Independent jewelers reported a solid start to the key winter selling season with surprisingly robust Black Friday sales and many are now cautiously looking forward to a strong end to 2025, supported by the nearly always inevitable last-minute rush of customers.
Thirty-nine percent of the respondents to our second INSTORE 2025 Holiday Season Mini Survey reported that sales were up compared to the same period last year, while another 43% said they were much the same. Encouragingly, more than half (51%) said their average ticket was up.
Black Friday proved to be the strongest of the three “Black” shopping days, with 62% of respondents reporting it as their best performer. Small Business Saturday followed with a respectable 35%. In contrast, Cyber Monday barely registered, favored by just 3%, underscoring the continued preference for in-store experiences for jewelry purchases over online-only deals.
“Tons of people out shopping Friday/Saturday. Though Black Friday is typically not a great day for us. Good feeling,” said Georgie Gleim, owner of Gleim the Jeweler in Palo Alto, CA.
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Denise Oros, owner of Linnea Jewelers in La Grange, IL, was even more unabashedly upbeat: “This season has been an absolute gas! No 6 or 7 here — just a straight up 10!”
The weather played a significant role in some parts of the country, notably in the Midwest. “Small Business Saturday was snowed out (Chicago, ten inches of snow, it fell all day and into the night),” impacting foot traffic, said Bob Moon of Once in a Blue Moon in Barringto, IL.
To be sure, given the prevailing economic uncertainty, a significant portion of the respondents expressed concerns, with a quarter characterizing the first week of their holiday season as “Soft.” Other jewelers expressed a wait-and-see attitude, with Monica Lara of Argentum Et Aurum in Fond du Lac, WI, noting, “I’m hopeful but nervous because people tend to shop late here, but they also shop early and I’ve heard people say they are done.”
Another common expectation was for the late surge that hits jewelers almost every year: “Customers are going to ‘Kill us’ from Dec. 15th – 24th. All those ‘I’ll be back’ customers that shopped all year long and only looked,” said Jan Carlton of Genesis Jewelry in Muscle Shoals, AL.
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Added Loann Stokes, of Stokes Jewelry in Stillwater, MN: “Men don’t shop until after Dec. 10th.
“In terms of what’s popular this year, lab-grown diamonds, particularly in bridal and engagement rings, were frequently mentioned as top sellers. Estate jewelry, vintage pieces, and gold items also saw strong demand. Custom work continues to be a significant draw, alongside traditional favorites like diamond studs, tennis bracelets, and wedding bands. “Always diamond studs — labs this year,” said Cindy Stafford of Wades Jewelers in Southport, NC.
Responses to the second 2025 Holiday Season survey were collected between Dec 2-3. A total of 51 jewelry store owners or managers from across North America responded to the online survey. If you’d like to become a member of the Brain Squad, and get access to all the respondent data, please sign up HERE.
