(PRESS RELEASE) EVANSTON, IL — BriteCo, an appraisal and insurance technology company, announced that more than 9,000 appraisals have been created using its cloud-based Appraisal Management Platform since first introduced at JCK Las Vegas in 2019.
Free to qualified jewelers, the BriteCo appraisal software provides retail jewelers with intuitive self-guided screens to enter key information, include photos, and get a recommended range for appraised value based on more than 200,000 market pricing points. Once the jeweler finalizes the appraisal, the customer receives an email with a customized electronic copy of the appraisal for their records.
“Most appraisals using the BriteCo appraisal software can be completed in under 7 minutes,” according to BriteCo CEO Dustin Lemick, a third-generation jeweler. “With hundreds of jewelers creating thousands of appraisals this past year, our platform is proven to save huge amounts of time and effort while improving the customer’s experience at retail.”
Immediately after the appraisal is finalized, BriteCo sends an email or text directly to the customer offering replacement insurance coverage. The customer clicks a link in the message, fills out a short application on their smartphone or other device, and gets an exact quote based on their piece’s appraised value. Paying by credit or debit card, the customer is insured instantly.
“My experience working at a family jewelry store made it clear that appraisals were taking way too much time and were a huge headache,” Lemick explained. “I was also frustrated spending hours on the phone getting the runaround from insurance companies whenever my customers had a claim. I knew there had to be a better solution. That’s why I founded BriteCo.”
Licensed to sell jewelry and watch insurance in all 50 states and backed by an AM Best A rated global insurance carrier, BriteCo is getting an enthusiastic reception among hundreds of independent retail jewelers across the country.
“Somebody has finally done something right for the independent retail jeweler”
Gail Pav, Sales Floor Manager at Pav & Broome Fine Jewelry in Gulfport, Mississippi, first heard about BriteCo through the Facebook group “Jewelers Helping Jewelers,” or JHJ.
“Thanks to BriteCo, somebody has finally done something right for the independent jeweler,” Pav said. “It’s nice to get help from an appraisal system that saves us time, is there whenever we need it, and it’s free!”
Pav especially appreciates that once an appraisal is finalized, her customers receive a text or email with an offer directly from BriteCo to get insurance coverage based on their appraisal. “It takes some of the pressure off us as the jeweler,” she noted, “when we know our customer can get insured even before they leave the store if they like.”
An “amazing” In-Store Customer Experience
“BriteCo has basically closed all of these loops to where a customer comes in, makes a purchase, and we issue their appraisal right away,” said Zachariah Turpin owner of Jackson Hole Jewelry in Wyoming.
“This is especially valuable in a travel destination area,” Turpin noted, “because so many people are buying valuable items and wanting them instantly insured. For us, it’s a really fantastic customer service differentiator.”
He pointed out that even though the store is focused on building long-term customer relationships, for first-time customers, providing an immediate appraisal and an instant insurance offering can alleviate any concerns they might have in making a large purchase far from home.
“We hold ourselves to very high standards for customer service,” Turpin concluded. “We’re aware of what a big difference the in-store experience makes in our success, and BriteCo is a phenomenal tool that we use to create an amazing customer experience.”
From Insurance Claim to Replacement in One Week
Bob Hill has been in the jewelry business for more than 40 years, of which the past 20 have been with Geiger’s Fine Jewelry in Turlock, California. He fulfills many roles—including doing appraisals—at the full-service jeweler.
“We had a young man, Steve, who bought an engagement ring for his fiancé Ashley,” Hill recalled. “I used the BriteCo appraisal software to do his appraisal and when I finalized it, Steve got a text from BriteCo offering insurance coverage for the ring.”
Steve debated whether to get the insurance right away, according to Hill, but decided he really didn’t have the extra time to try and add it to his homeowner’s policy. He bought the BriteCo policy in a matter of minutes on his smartphone and added his fiancé Ashley as a co-insured party.
Steve was glad that he did when about a month later his fiancé brought the ring back to Geiger’s after the diamond had gotten chipped. Bob Hill helped her to choose a new diamond and had her restored ring ready for her within a week. There were no deductibles and no out-of-pocket expenses for Steve and Ashley.
Geiger’s received a check for the replacement stone from BriteCo soon thereafter. BriteCo completed the cycle from claim to replacement all within a week, “making for a very happy customer,” Hill said.
To learn more about the BriteCo Appraisal Management Platform and immediate insurance coverage, visit www.brite.co or email jeweler@brite.co.