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Jewelry sales ‘weak’ for fifth consecutive month
February figures show that sales were down 0.2 percent year-over-year, with consumers favoring fashion jewelry over big-ticket items set with large gemstones.
Glen Allen, Va.--The latest data from the U.S. Commerce Department is in and it shows continued softness in jewelry sales in the U.S. market.
Sales in February totaled $6.3 billion, down 0.2 percent when compared with February 2014. This marks the fifth consecutive month of “weak” demand in the world’s largest market for jewelry, industry analyst Ken Gassman said in his latest sales update.
Year-over-year sales were down 2 percent in October, 0.8 percent in November and 1 percent in both December and January.
For specialty jewelers, the decline has been more marked. Sales fell 4 percent in October, 6 percent in November, 4 percent in December, 6 percent in January and 5 percent in February.
Gassman noted that the faltering sales in February come despite the fact that Valentine’s Day is the third most important selling period of the year for jewelers, behind Christmas and Mother’s Day.
During the month, the U.S. jewelry industry lost market share to other retail categories, as total U.S. retail sales were actually up 2 percent.
Those who were buying jewelry, for Valentine’s Day or otherwise, chose less expensive fashion jewelry over big-ticket items and shifted their purchasing from specialty jewelers to retailers such as J.C. Penney, Walmart and Costco, despite jewelers’ price-based promotions, Gassman said.
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While the U.S. Commerce Department data contains little good news for jewelers, Gassman said his Jewelry Research Institute still is forecasting that U.S. jewelry sales will increase about 2 percent year-over-year in 2015, boosted by a strengthening economy and rising household wealth.
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