Editor's Note

If You Love INSTORE, Please Join Our Brain Squad!

The monthly survey group requires a low investment of your time but yields exceptional information for the magazine.

Published

9 months ago

May 4, 2025

Trace Shelton Instore May 2025 Issue

IT’S MAY AGAIN — our biggest issue of the year, which also means lots of content.

We’ve got two big stories for you: one about how to use social media more effectively, and the other about making your repair shop more profitable. We’ve also got our Buzz Session spread where our readers sound off about remodeling, as well as membership in local business organizations. Not to mention our data-driven sections like Hot Sellers, Heat Map and the Jewelers Confidence Index.

All of these lean heavily on our Brain Squad — the survey group of jewelry store owners and managers who answer a short series of questions every month. Without our Brain Squad, we would not be able to bring you the innovative advice, fun stories and accurate sales data that we do each issue.

Here’s the problem: Our Brain Squad participation is shrinking. Why? Well, some readers have retired, some miss the survey in their inbox, and some just get busy. Regardless of the reason, we could really use your help.

If you’re part of the Brain Squad and you’ve just gotten out of the habit of responding, please consider jumping back in! We read and appreciate every comment. And if you’re not part of the Brain Squad but would be willing to devote five minutes per month to a survey that can vastly improve INSTORE’s content, sign up today at https://instoremag.com/brainsquad . You won’t be sorry you did!

Now Introducing The INSTORE Show, Coming to the Chicago Area in 2023!

Trace Shelton

Editor-in-Chief, INSTORE
[email protected]

Five Smart Tips You’ll Find in This Issue

In June, ask holiday-season customers to bring in their jewelry for a free checkup. (Manager’s To-Do, p. 38)
Make videos for social media that feature slow reveals of jewelry pieces inside a box to keep viewers watching longer. (Most Social Stores, p. 46)
Aim to produce three quality Reels per week for social media. (Most Social Stores, p. 46)
Give spiffs to your bench jeweler who completes the most production in a single quarter. (Repair Revolution, p. 57)
Don’t use images on your website larger than 200KB — they will slow down load speed and irritate site visitors. (Chris Austin. p. 79)

Honoring a Legacy: How Smith & Son Jewelers Exceeded Every Goal With Wilkerson

When Andrew Smith decided to close the Springfield, Massachusetts location of Smith & Son Jewelers, the decision came down to family. His father was retiring after 72 years in the business, and Andrew wanted to spend more time with his children and soon-to-arrive grandchildren. For this fourth-generation jeweler whose great-grandfather founded the company in 1918, closing the 107-year-old Springfield location required the right partner. Smith chose Wilkerson, and the experience exceeded expectations from start to finish. "Everything they told me was 100% true," Smith says. "The ease and use of all their tools was wonderful." The consultants' knowledge and expertise proved invaluable. Smith and his father set their own financial goal, but Wilkerson proposed three more ambitious targets. "We thought we would never make it," Smith explains. "We were dead wrong. We hit our first goal, second goal and third goal. It was amazing." Smith's recommendation is emphatic: "I would never be able to do what they did by myself."