Presentation Brand Ambassadors Brand Ambassadors: Tom Williams
Last Updated on Thursday, 23 September 2010 04:18 Written by Josh Wimmer Thursday, 05 August 2010 05:25
Floy & Green co-owner explains why customers love the pearl stylings of Honora.
TOP SELLER OF THE BRAND HONORA
FLOYD & GREEN JEWELERS, AIKEN, SC
T om Williams “kind of stumbled into the jewelry business” after graduating from college in 1989 with a journalism degree, when he answered an ad to work for a gem company in Newark, NJ. Before buying into Floyd & Green as part-owner 11 years ago, he also got the chance to work for a gold manufacturer in Manhattan and a mom-and-pop retail shop. “So I’ve pretty much worked all aspects of the industry now — big and small vendors and big and small retailers,” he says. As a result, he knows a good product when he sees one, and he’s an avid fan of Honora’s freshwater pearls. “We’ve seen a lot of trends come and go, but one thing that has never gone out of style is pearls,” Williams says. “And Honora’s pieces are not only very, very good-looking, but very, very, very reasonably priced.” — STORY BY JOSH WIMMER
What he loves about the brand: “Things like diamonds or emeralds or Rolexes can take a little more training for a new employee to sell. But everything Honora sells is a simple purchase, easy for my staff and for the customer.”
How the line helps build business: “It’s a wonderful entry-level item for your future generations of customers. Pearls go with jeans and a T-shirt, or you can wear them to a black-tie affair. I have a lot of 19-year-old kids who come in to buy their girlfriend something for Christmas or her birthday, and I feel comfortable selling them Honora. Then it plants a seed. If I treat them well, there’s no reason for them not to come back and see me four, five or six years later when they’re looking for a diamond.”
On who buys the line: “This is what makes it so wonderful: I had a senior in high school come in and spend $75 buying some Honora earrings. Two hours later, one of my best clients — a woman in her 70s — came in. She and her husband were leaving in a week for a wedding in Paris and she needed something to go with her dress. I sold her a $399 strand of pearls that were just the right color.”
On its “instant purchase-ability”: “Retail therapy is a real thing. Whether it’s a man buying golf clubs or a woman buying pearls, we are a microwave society — we want things now. Honora gives people that opportunity. And it’s an easy self-purchase. I pull a Honora best-seller out and say, ‘Isn’t this cool? That’s all sterling silver, all precious metal, and it’s genuine pearls — and it’s $79. Do we need to treat ourselves today?’”
On Honora’s convenience: “The average retail with them is like $155, and for most people, that’s in their wheelhouse. Also, one of the things Honora does really well is they never — I mean, never — introduce a product without having a bracelet, earrings and a ring to match. So I can show a guy a bracelet and it’s $95, and he says he’ll take it. And I can say, ‘Now, Bob, I’m trying to make your life easy; I’m not trying to be a pushy salesman. The other pieces that match are here ... should we put something up for Valentine’s Day?’ It’s not pushy. Men have to give gifts — to our daughters, to our mothers, to our wives. Make it easy. And Honora does such a good job with that.”
On working with Honora: “Honora must treat their people OK, because the people we’ve always dealt with are still there. They have tremendous support in-house, and there’s been almost no turnover. So there’s some consistency not only in the product but in the people on hand.”
This story is from the July-August 2010 edition of INDESIGN
Get a free one-year subscription to INDESIGN, the magazine for the retailer of fine jewelry design. Sign up here!
Products in INSTORE
Online Users
