Karma Chameleons

CUT CORNERS IN THE JEWELRY BUSINESS and the corners tend to cut back. Our Brain Squad members shared their most instructive missteps: rings cracked on the stretcher, snow removal outsourced to the city at triple the price, stacking rings that turned a hot trend into a repair nightmare. The lessons, as it turns out, are pretty universal.

• “A client wanted me to discount a one-of-a-kind piece and my salesperson warned him it wasn’t a good idea to ask. He asked anyway. I walked up and told him he was insulting my artistic talent. The following Friday was Black Friday. Every year I let clients pick an ornament off my discount giving tree — and I had one at 50 percent off. Guess who came in that day and got 50 percent off my one-of-a-kind? Oh boy, was that hard to swallow.” — Drue S., Albany, NY
• “About 10 years ago, micro stacking rings were all the rage — $75 to $150 cost, easy to sell at $250 to $500, and clients would buy five at a time in every metal color and stone combination. Then came the returns. These rings were so delicate they’d bend easily, stones would come out constantly. I was constantly paying my jewelers to fix them, which was very hard to do, and eventually I stopped selling them.” — Jeremy A., Los Angeles, CA

“Early in my career, a gent came in with a very heavy, wide 18K ring that needed to go up about one size. I’d just got a ring stretcher and stretched it bit by bit until — I realized I’d cracked it in about 10 spots. I had to put a new shank on, which cost about $1,000. And that was 45 years ago. Can’t imagine that mistake at today’s gold prices.” — David B., Calgary, Alberta, Canada

• “We snow-plowed a huge snowfall to the corner of our building’s parking lot instead of having our contractor load and haul it away. The pile grew so high it caused a visibility issue, and the city sent a front-end loader and a tri-axle dump truck to remedy it — at a cost triple what our contractor would have charged.” — J. Dennis P., Johnstown, PA

• “We bought a cheap 3-D printer that ran slow and lost detail. Now we have a very nice 3-D printer. We use it to let clients see the piece we’re making from a CAD design — it’s helped tremendously with clients who need to feel and touch before they’ll approve.” — Tim W., Yorktown, VA
• “We didn’t buy the newer edition of the Gellar book when gold started going up. It didn’t have a huge impact on most repairs, but some came in at cost or slightly over after the price had already been discussed with the customer.” — Arron J., Waynesville, NC
• “Karma usually comes in the form of a repair job. Shortcuts do not work — you usually end up doing the job twice to get it right.” — Sue P., Escanaba, MI
• “I’m definitely a believer in karma, so I’m very conscious of it coming back around. I usually try to look at situations and see what I can do to get good karma on my side.” — Marc M., Midland, TX

• “Sometimes when you do something for free, a client will be difficult — or act entitled. But it’s still worth it.” — Sherrie S., Tigard, OR
• “The more you go out of your way for a client and jump through hoops, it will always come back to bite you.” — Krystal S., Plymouth, MI
• “I sometimes feel the old saying is true: no good deed goes unpunished.” — James S., Lowell, IN

“Tents! I buy inexpensive ones for outdoor setups so they’re light — but the wind has wrecked the third one now. This town is WINDY!” — Monica L., Fond du Lac, WI

• “In 40 years in business, I never believed in shortcuts.” — Barry F., Bardonia, NY
• “Still new enough in ownership for this not to hit me yet — but I’m sure it will.” — Cole R., Bradenton, FL