1 in 3 Brain Squad Survey Respondents Report Decreased Sales in July

IN OUR MOST RECENT Brain Squad survey, 34 percent of respondents saw their July sales go “down” or “way down” over July 2021, while 43% said sales went “up” or “way up”. For 23% of respondents, sales were roughly equal to the previous year.

Here are our panel’s comments on their hottest-selling brands for July 2022:

Stack bands and jewelry by Uneek are new to our store. Beautifully made and extremely well received. Lovely details on the jewelry. Excellent pricing on 18K stack bands with all diamonds or a mix of diamonds and precious stones. Super excited about this brand partnership. — Andrea Riso, Talisman Collection, El Dorado Hills, CA

• Allison-Kaufman is still our champion. Our clientele seem to love their designs, deftly mixing modern and vintage styles. We barely have to work to sell it; they just point to it, try it on, and say “I’ll take it.” Allison-Kaufman has also introduced a new inventory management system that helps us get the styles that have been selling well in our store and stores like ours. It’s genius and it’s free. — Joe Kirk, Kirk & Co. Jewelers, Milford, OH
• Still custom engagement rings with lab-grown large centers. — Rick Weadock, Jewelry-By-You, South Jordan, UT
• Pre-owned Rolex. I have a list of clients who have opted in to receive lists of watches I receive. I typically wait until I have at least 10 watches to send the list out, and you never send more than one email per month. — Jeremy Auslander, Roxbury Jewelry, Los Angeles, CA
• Diamonds! Most of our younger customers are interested in lab-grown diamonds. Not only are they going for larger sizes, but they are also choosing shapes other than rounds. — Shannon Akridge, Clater Jewelers Diamond Center, Louisville, KY
• Our top trend: green gemstones are hot. We sold three green sapphires for custom projects and a few finished pieces with emerald and malachite. Our top designer was Todd Reed. — Melissa Quick, Steve Quick Jeweler, Chicago, IL
• Paraiba was a popular stone for us, along with requests for custom opal and jade pieces. William Levine black onyx and mother of pearl clover pieces in yellow gold were also very popular. — Rebecca Larson, Barry Peterson Jewelers, Ketchum, ID
• Gold chains, vintage charms, permanent bracelets, color. — Laura Kitsos, Gem Jewelry Boutique, Oak Park, IL
• Lab diamonds from Quality Gold (2 carats). Pandora is still selling. Seiko and Bulova watches. ELLE for self-purchase. — Christine Matlack, E.G. Landis Jewelers, Boyertown, PA
• ArtCarved bridal, Rembrandt Charms, Carla Corp. earrings, estate jewelry. — Eileen Eichhorn, Eichhorn Jewelry, Decatur, IN
• Lab-grown diamonds are still leading the way, set into “skinny” bands, now trending with “hidden halos” by Parade Design. — Laura Sipe, JC Sipe, Indianapolis, IN
• Repairs!! It’s more cost-efficient to repair than purchase new. — Traci Hill, Got Rocks Jewelry, Harrisonburg, VA
• Tacori and Fana bridal in general. Also fashion by Shy Creation. — Michael Rumanoff, Rumanoff’s Fine Jewelry and Design, Hamden, CT
• A lot of wedding ring restyling this month and jewelry box makeovers. Plus lab-grown diamond solitaires from M. Geller. — Beth Cevasco, Scott’s Custom Jewelers, Dublin, OH
• Biggest seller right now is diamond bands. I did a promotion last week with Facets of Fire diamonds, and they provided 8-foot-high diamond wings so customers could take selfies in front of them and share to social media. The best “wing” picture won a diamond ring! Successful! — Cathy Calhoun, Calhoun Jewelers, Royersford, PA