Simon G. Launches E-Commerce to Support Retailers

The jewelry brand is selling direct-to-consumer on its website, with profits going to the retail partner closest to the customer.

Brecken Branstrator brecken.branstrator@nationaljeweler.com

Simon G. has added e-commerce capabilities to its website to allow consumers a place to shop and to support its retail partners, many of whom are still closed due to the pandemic.

New York—Simon G. has gone direct-to-consumer for the first time to support its retail partners during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The jewelry brand is now selling its jewelry on SimonGJewelry.com and giving the profit from each order to the retailer located closest to the consumer.

While e-commerce has long been an option for the brand, Vice President of Marketing and Communications Brooke Brinkman said they’ve steered away from it before because of their strong relationship with retailers and the latter’s ability to fulfill consumer needs in local markets.

But the recent pandemic has hit jewelry stores hard as measures have forced the closing of nonessential businesses.

Some have started to re-open and find ways to service customers safely, but for a large amount, business is still slow.

And even for those that may have wanted to build or enhance e-commerce abilities, many don’t have the staffing resources, especially now, to not only get the website up and running but service customers through it.

Brinkman said Simon G., which has about 800 retail partners, realized it could quickly develop a platform on its existing website to benefit them during the pandemic.

“We felt like this was the time for us to really be able to support the retailers that have supported us for so long,” she said.

What’s more, it provided a way to respond to consumers at this time, who have been “very, very eager to purchase,” according to Brinkman.

She said the brand has seen an uptick in purchasing from images they have posted on social media during the pandemic, even noting every piece featuring a colored gemstone has sold within 24 hours of posting.

Before, they had no platform from which to sell it. Rather, the Simon G. team connected an interested customer to a retailer—not necessarily nearby—who was able to make the sale.

With the e-commerce platform, they can now sell a piece online and ship it directly to the consumer or allow them to pick it up at a nearby retailer if possible.

Additionally, if the nearby retailer has the piece in stock, they can deliver it to customers themselves to help reduce their own inventory.

Simon G. will keep a percentage of every sale to cover the credit card processing fee, process the order and facilitate shipping, but retailers will receive a similar profit margin as they would if

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they had the piece in person and were selling it from their stores.

Brinkman noted everything featured on the Simon G. website prior to the switch will be available for purchase, representing top sellers, iconic pieces and those promoted in ads or editorial features—the majority of what you’d see in a retail store plus a little more, she said.

The brand plans to keep the e-commerce change in place for the “foreseeable future,” selling jewelry on its website to provide additional support for retailers for as long as they may need it.

Brecken Branstratoris the senior editor, gemstones at National Jeweler, covering sourcing, pricing and other developments in the colored stone sector.

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