Big Survey

$50,000 Is a Critically Important Number for Many Jewelers

Bad things happen beyond that amount.

Published

6 years ago

October 20, 2016

James Ritchie

WE RECENTLY TOLD YOU about the unexpected expenses that really hurt jewelers.

Building and equipment maintenance turned out to be the most common source of unanticipated financial pain. Still, many other events also put a surprise dent in jewelers’ pocketbooks, from robberies to diamond breakage.

But did you ever wonder how much financial damage your peers in the business are prepared to withstand?

For Big Survey 2016, we asked, “How large in dollar terms would an unexpected expense have to be to put a serious strain on your business?”

The most common answer was $50,000, and there were also clusters at $10,000 and $100,000.

A few jewelers said they wouldn’t be able to sustain any amount. As one told us: “We have only been open 2.5 years. Every penny is a serious strain on our business.”

$50,000 Is a Critically Important Number for Many Jewelers

Time to Do What You've Always Wanted? Time to Call Wilkerson.

It was time. Teri Allen and her brother, Nick Pavlich, Jr., had been at the helm of Dearborn Jewelers of Plymouth in Plymouth, Mich., for decades. Their father, Nick Pavlich, Sr., had founded the store in 1950, but after so many wonderful years helping families around Michigan celebrate their most important moments, it was time to get some “moments” of their own. Teri says Wilkerson was the logical choice to run their retirement sale. “They’re the only company that specializes in closing jewelry stores,” she says. During the sale, Teri says a highlight was seeing so many generations of customers who wanted to buy “that one last piece of jewelry from us.” Would she recommend Wilkerson? Absolutely. “There is no way that I would have been able to do this by myself.”