| Bigger (it was an opportunity to expand) |
|
8%
|
| Stronger/more resilient (more efficient, less indebted, etc.) |
|
59%
|
| Weaker |
|
3%
|
Just different. We reinvented ourselves.
|
|
12%
|
| Just the same. Nothing changed really. |
|
18%
|
MOST JEWELERS SAID that over the past year of lockdowns and stay-at-home retail sentiment their businesses had become “more resilient,” “more efficient” and “less indebted etc,” although around 29 percent conceded that government relief programs were “the main thing” that helped them get through the pandemic.Support from the local community (18.95%) figured high amongst jewelers as the main source of support over the past year, as did cost cutting (10.08%) and personal savings (8.27%).Echoing many respondents, one jeweler said, “We were able to do more with less time … [which] made us stronger.” Another said the key to getting ahead was to “work smarter not harder … [and be] open to new ways of doing things.”Many respondents said that shortening hours or even restricting business to appointments had made their businesses leaner.“I cut down my hours to two days a week—Mondays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Fridays 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. – which allows flexibility for buying and appointments,” said one jeweler, who added: “I’m able to receive repairs on Monday and pick-ups on Friday.”Other Big Survey respondents said that reduced instore hours equaled better quality living—without any downside to business.“We began delivering in town to customers who could not make it in during our modified store hours,” said one respondent. “We were in store less, with our families more, and doing more business.”
