Designer Christina Puchi, the creative force behind CCWW Designs, has created charms and pendants based on iconic candies and crackers.
These Are the New Sales Rules to Live By
Live from Conclave, millennial marketing expert Jeff Fromm sets out the new rules for retailers to follow in the digital age.

Los Angeles--Retailers have heard a thing or two about selling according to generation demographics.
They’ve heard about “midults.” They’ve heard about Generation Z. And they’ve probably heard enough about millennials to write a book about them.
But Jeff Fromm, president of consumer trends consultancy Futurecast, is the man who actually has written books on the topic: he’s the co-author of “Marketing to Millennials” and “Millennials with Kids.”
At the American Gem Society’s Conclave education conference, going on now in Los Angeles, Fromm laid out new sales rules for retailers to follow that were far from the typically espoused millennial marketing wisdom.
These rules also apply to an ever-evolving baby boomer customer and beyond.
Here are some of the highlights.
The New ABCs of Sales
Retail jewelers have probably been taught to “always be closing,” but today, Fromm explained, they need to “always be collaborating.”
“It means you’re going to have to be more useful and less pushy,” Fromm said.
Millennial consumers are inherently wary of a sales pitch. They’re digitally savvy and tuned in. They’re “prosumers” rather than consumers, exposed to and capable of processing large amounts of information.
So if a salesperson acts in the role of a trusted advisor, imparting their specific jewelry expertise and making suggestions, rather than someone making a sale, they can create a loyal relationship.
This can be achieved by foregoing rote sales questions like “What is your budget?” and instead, making suggestions and learning about the customer’s needs.
Today’s shoppers already know how to compare prices and work within their own budgets. Retailers should focus on collaborating with their clients and becoming a trusted source of knowledge.
Put the Millennial Focus on Employees
Traditionally in sales, the customer always comes first. But Fromm suggested that to understand a millennial customer, store owners should pay attention to their millennial employees.
“Many of them, in addition to compensation, not in lieu (of), want to work for a brand where their values align with the brand’s values,” he said.
This speaks to the importance of passion in the work place. Millennials want to work with companies they believe in, whether that’s due to an enthusiasm for the product being sold, an emphasis on work/life balance or even the way a company gives back.
The important thing is to understand what your millennial employee wants and what they value, thereby helping stores understand how to connect with their consumer cohort.
“You
Don’t Treat Others As You Want To Be Treated
Instead, treat others as they want to be treated, he said.
“Empathy is at the core of it.”
A salesperson should understand the various emotions, including fear and anxiety, that come with purchasing fine jewelry.
The key is to identify a customer’s need state--or, why they’re shopping--whether that’s for an occasion like a proposal, a Mother’s Day present, or a self-purchase.
“The consumer has a need state that extends beyond the product you sell,” Fromm said.
Retail has to adapt to what the customer wants and needs, acting on the information a customer shares rather than sticking to a dedicated sales strategy.
“Not everybody wants what you want,” Fromm said.
The Next Step: Identify Influencers
Millennials crave content, and it’s a given that they require various social media channels to interact with a brand or store.
“I think we’ll see very rapidly that best-in-class retailers move to content strategies where they integrate traditional CRM (interactions with customers) with social behavior. We’re talking about who is consuming your content, who is curating your content and who is creating content on behalf of your brand.”
He emphasized that the latter, those who create content--such as Instagramming a product on their personal feed--are the most important consumers to a brand.
The way of the future, he said, is to use a simple algorithm, whether proprietary or from a third party, to identify the “5 percent of customers who not only buy from us, but actually love us and have a social influence” and treat those customers differently.
The Latest

The Jonas Brothers star showed off new timepieces against the backdrop of his favorite spots in his home state of New Jersey.

The family-owned jeweler in Fayetteville, North Carolina, is in the hands of the second generation.

Jewelers of America is leading the charge to protect the industry amidst rising economic threats.

In his latest column, Emmanuel Raheb shares tips for encouraging customers to treat themselves to new jewelry.


The new stand-alone Rolex boutique is housed in the former Odd Fellows Hall, a landmark built in 1897.

The Brilliant Earth ambassador co-designed a diamond medallion featuring meaningful symbols.

As a leading global jewelry supplier, Rio Grande is rapidly expanding and developing new solutions to meet the needs of jewelers worldwide.

Wrap jewelry is more than just a trend; it’s the perfect motif for the coming season of layering, scarves, and pumpkin spice.

The three-day watch collector show, coming this October, will feature 44 exhibiting brands, as well as a new dinner experience.

Sriram “Ram” Natarajan is now GIA’s senior vice president of laboratory operations and is based out of the lab’s headquarters in Carlsbad.

The one-of-a-kind collar represents the beauty of imperfection and the strength to rebuild.

Three C-suite executives, including former CEO Tom Nolan, have resigned as part of what the company describes as a “transition.”

The retailer, which recently filed Chapter 11, inked a deal to sell its North American business and intellectual property.

Target CEO Brian Cornell will step down in February and be replaced by the company’s chief operating officer, Michael Fiddelke.

The group met with the president's senior trade advisor earlier this week to express the industry’s concerns about the effects of tariffs.

The pop-up will display this year's Tiffany & Co. Singles Championship trophies along with a diamond-encrusted tennis racket and ball.

The New Hampshire-based store has expanded to Boston, propelled by the success of Alex Bellman’s TikTok page, “The Truthful Jeweler.”

The latest incident happened Monday at a store in Oakland, California, continuing a pattern JSA first warned about last month.

The new aqua green New York Harbor Limited Edition II is the watchmaker’s second collaboration with the Billion Oyster Project.

The investment company, founded by Dev Shetty, has acquired the struggling miner and its assets, including the Lulo mine in Angola.

Smith shares wisdom he gleaned from a podcast he was listening to one morning while being walked by his dog, a Malshi named Sophie.

The counterfeit Van Cleef & Arpels jewels would have been worth more than $30 million if genuine.

The MJSA Mentor & Apprenticeship Program received the Registered Apprenticeship Program designation by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Casio executive and watch enthusiast Masaki Obu is the new general manager of its U.S. timepiece division.

Barabash, Verragio’s client relations representative, was a vital member of the team and is remembered as being warm and full of life.

Originally introduced in 1992, the “Dot” collection is back with a capsule featuring five archival designs and three new creations.