Signet Jewelers’ Q1 Sales Up 2% As It Focuses on ‘Core Four’

Akron, Ohio—Signet Jewelers recorded modest sales growth in the first quarter, bolstered by solid sales for Valentine’s Day and ahead of Mother’s Day.

For the quarter ended May 2, Signet’s sales totaled $1.55 billion, up 2 percent year-over-year. Same-store sales also were up 2 percent.

“We drove top-line growth in the first quarter, with all categories up on a comparable sales basis,” Signet Jewelers CEO J.K. Symancyk said in a press release.

“We also delivered positive performances for both Valentine’s Day in February as well as Mother’s Day to start the second quarter.”

Signet’s North American stores include Zales, Jared, and Kay Jewelers in the United States, and Peoples Jewellers in Canada.

In the United Kingdom, Signet owns Ernest Jones and H. Samuel.

Symancyk said in the release that the company is working to highlight the differences among its brands through “more impactful marketing, redesigning digital experiences, and creating more compelling store environments.”

Signet is currently renovating about 10 percent of its store network, which totals about 2,600 locations worldwide.

The retailer’s positive Q1 results show that with its turnaround strategy, Grow Brand Love, Signet can “perform and transform,” he said on the company’s earnings call Tuesday morning.

In the fourth quarter, Signet announced several changes to its portfolio, including around 100 store closures this fiscal year and the shuttering of mainly online retailer James Allen.

The sunsetting of the James Allen banner represented a one-point drag to the quarter, Chief Operating and Financial Officer Joan Hilson said on the earnings call.

Blue Nile, meanwhile, is being repositioned as a natural diamond-focused jeweler with an eye on attracting higher-income consumers.

To aid Blue Nile’s transformation, Signet announced last week that it has inked a deal to purchase The Clear Cut, the online-only jeweler known for its natural diamond advocacy, and will integrate it into Blue Nile.

The retailer is transitioning Rocksbox to a brand within Kay Jewelers, rather than a standalone brand.

Streamlining will allow the retailer to focus on its biggest brands: Kay, Zales, and Jared. On the call, Symancyk referred to these three plus Blue Nile as “the core four.”

Signet is the process of updating the Kay, Zales and Jared websites to further sharpen the brand’s distinct identities. It plans to finish by Q3, in time for the holiday season. 

As for its revamped marketing approach, the company will shift toward social-first storytelling and scaled creator partnerships to better connect with a younger and more diverse audience, Symancyk said.

Zales recently partnered with model Ashley Graham on a Mother’s Day campaign, while Kay Jewelers collaborated with San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey.

Hilson, the company’s CFO/COO, pointed out that The Clear Cut is a digitally native brand with a strong ability to connect with younger consumers via social media, promoting storytelling and natural diamond education.

Symancyk also gave some insight into what’s selling.

“We continue to see strength in the higher-end consumer with some of our best performance at higher price points, he said. 

He also noted that Signet’s greatest driver of unit volume is its products priced below $150. 

He said those sales are important because they give people the ability to experience the brand and allow for relationship building.

Its collections also continue to be growth drivers, Symancyk said, noting Shy Creation is fueling growth in fashion jewelry while its Neil Lane and Monique Lhuillier lines are popular with bridal customers.

Its services and watches categories recorded low-single-digit sales growth in Q1.

The retailer has also implemented an integrated and centralized natural diamond sourcing process.

“We’ve centralized sourcing for diamonds across our North American brands, which we believe will allow us to improve margins and inventory turns,” Symancyk said.

“We can strengthen our position in the more valuable segments of the natural diamond category to support both sales growth and margin without exiting the customer base that’s seeking lab-grown products.”

Symancyk also discussed Signet’s plan to retain top talent by better incentivizing employees.

“As the jewelry customer evolves, our talent model has to evolve with them. Gen Z wants to shop in stores, but they’ve set the bar higher for what experience looks like.

“They want a stronger personal connection,” he said, emphasizing the importance of the customer-sales associate relationship.

Symancyk and Hilson also spoke about the tariff situation.

The retailer has submitted requests for refunds and has received “a small amount,” said Symancyk. It is working with vendors to recover the remainder.

Its guidance assumes tariffs will be similar or slightly higher than the current 10 percent, with Hilson noting that if “country-specific rates become substantially higher, we would likely shift country of origin to minimize impact.”

Looking at the year ahead, Signet has increased its sales expectations for the fiscal year slightly due to a strong Q1 and a promising Q2.

Signet said it expects second-quarter sales to be between $1.5 billion to $1.53 billion, with same-store sales up 0.5 to 2.5 percent.

For the full year, sales are expected to be between $6.7 billion and $6.9 billion, up from its prior guidance of $6.6 billion to $6.9 billion. 

Same-store sales for the year are forecast to be down 0.75 percent to up 2.5 percent, up from its prior guidance of down 1.25 percent to up 2.5 percent.