The Big Survey 2025: The Basics

The typical independent jeweler in America is still a one-store downtown operation. The largest portion ply their trade in small to medium-sized cities, offering a full range of jewelry services while proud of the edge their custom design skills gives them.

Published

3 months ago

October 26, 2025

INSTORE Staff Instore November 2025 Issue

In which state is your (main) store located?

The Big Survey 2025: The Basics

Where is your store located by region?

The Big Survey 2025: The Basics

Which description of your business do you most closely identify with?

The Big Survey 2025: The Basics

How long has your business been in operation?

1-5 years
3%
6-10 years
4%
11-20 years
10%
21-30 years
14%
31-40 years
15%
41-50 years
19%
51-100 years
27%
101-150 years
7%
More than 150 years
1%

How big is your (main) store?

Less than 500 sq feet
5%
500-999 sq feet
13%
1,000-1,499 sq feet
19%
1,500-1,999 sq feet
15%
2,000-2,499 sq feet
10%
2,500-2,999 sq feet
8%
3,000-3,999 sq feet
8%
4,000-4,999 sq feet
8%
5,000-7,500 sq feet
8%
More than 7,500 sq feet
4%
NA
1%

Where is your (main) store located?

A downtown shopfront
30%
In its own free-standing building
29%
In a strip mall
23%
In a lifestyle center
5%
In an enclosed mall
2%
Office building/Business park
7%
Home studio
2%
Other
2%

How many stores do you own/manage?

1
89%
2
7%
3 -5
4%
6 or more
1%

How would you describe the market where your store is located?

Big urban market
8%
Suburban outskirts of a big urban market
17%
Medium-sized city (250,000-1 million people)
20%
Small city (25,000 to 250,000)
29%
Country town (up to 25,000)
20%
Resort area
3%
The whole world – we’re online
2%
Other
1%

Check the paid services offered by your store.

Custom Design
95%
Onsite jewelry repairs
84%
Specialty repairs for a particular brand or product type
31%
Offsite jewelry repairs
54%
Watch repairs/batteries/watch bands
84%
Other repairs (sunglasses, iPad screens, etc)
14%
Appraisals
83%
Consignment
34%
Engraving
69%
Piercing
13%
Jewelry rental
4%
Jewelry safekeeping
4%

Which category is your business’s “main point of differentiation” (the one that helps you stand out from the competition).

Bridal
20%
Diamond jewelry
11%
Custom design
32%
Repairs and other general jewelry services
16%
Colored gemstones
4%
Designer jewelry
4%
Antique, vintage or estate
7%
Watches
2%
Silver
1%
Other
3%

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."