V-day a big day for jewelers
Take a lesson from the diamonds themselves, girls: time plus pressure equals something sparkly.
The Valentine’s Day season brings with it a celebration of love, lace and naked baby archery. And for Logan’s jewelry industry, it brings a lot of guys, usually at the last minute, seeking gifts for their women.
“I don’t know if it’s pressure from the wife or the girlfriend, but usually guys aren’t very romantic. But Valentine’s Day tends to bring that out,” said Brenda Patrick, manager of the New York Jewelry Outlet.
It comes out in a big way. Julianne Lintz, manager of Morgan Jewelers, said store business triples from January to February. She said Valentine’s Day sales are second only to Christmas. Other than heart-shaped items, diamond rings tend to be king for the holiday.
“It’s a big time for engagements,” Lintz said.
Gene Needham, who owns S.E. Needham Jewelers with his brother Joe, said that’s especially true in a college town.
“February is one of our biggest months, actually,” Needham said. “The week of Valentine’s, our engagement ring sales really skyrocket.”
He said students make up the majority of Valentine’s Day business, and he has no problem with young people deciding early in life to tie the knot.
“It’s critical to our business, so they really do make up a big part of our business,” Needham said. “It’s part of the culture. It’s been that way for years, particularly here in Utah. We have a lot of people who look at this in a very mature way.”
Lintz said there’s a lot to love about working with people to find the perfect engagement rings.
“The thing I love most about my job is people come in and they’re in love,” Lintz said. “I love the look on people’s faces when they walk out with a piece of jewelry that symbolizes their love.”
And that’s not the only perk that comes with helping those young lovers.
“Plus, I love playing with diamonds all day. What girl wouldn’t want that?” Lintz said.
Despite the frequency of proposals around Valentine’s Day, Needham said the bulk of their February business really goes to items under $100, such as heart pendants and silver jewelry. He attributes this to Valentine’s Day being a holiday for the youth.
“Valentine’s Day is a day for sweethearts. It’s a time for a lot of young couples,” Needham said. “For young people, Valentine’s Day is just a dang good excuse to do something romantic for the person they’re interested in.”
Patrick said she sees a lot of guys who become very sentimental around the holiday, often recalling a first date or a memory and trying to select a gift that echoes those events.
“I’d say that’s the thing that’s most different about Valentine’s Day, is that they’re looking for something sentimental,” Patrick said. “You can tell there’s a lot of romantic feeling in their heart when they’re trying to match it to a memory that way.”
She said though the men sincerely try to be creative, they tend to fall back on heart-shaped jewelry.
“They come in and ask for a heart and act like they’re the first one that’s thought of it,” Patrick said.
Patrick said her favorite part of the job is matching the right jewelry with the right person.
“Especially when the person comes back in and says, ‘Oh, I love this. It’s my favorite!'” Patrick said. “You feel good about it.”
She said her least favorite part of the job is dealing with women who don’t “live within the means of their boyfriend.”
“There are often times girls that are trying to keep up with their roommates and get the biggest diamond,” Patrick said. “Not even necessarily because they want it, just because they’re trying to keep up with their roommate, and it’s showy.”
She said in spite of this, she usually thinks young people are ready for their marriages.
“But I’ve also had, ‘When did you guys meet?’ ‘Last night in the bar,'” Patrick said.
That’s not the only time things get hasty. Needham said the bulk of Valentine’s jewelry sales are done in the last days before the holiday. He said a student came in last week for his Valentine’s gift and was proud to be “shopping early.”
“Most of these guys don’t even start until 24 to 48 hours before,” Needham said.
For that reason, there isn’t a huge increase in custom jewelry sales around Valentine’s Day, but Joe Needham, who makes custom items for the store, said there are many custom jobs ordered among the men who don’t procrastinate. He said he has done custom pieces with many interesting features, including Star Wars inscriptions, elaborate Celtic knots and one with Moldavite, which is “a gem material that falls from space.”
Whatever it is that will symbolize love, Joe Needham said there often isn’t much of a price difference between his custom jewelry and premade items. He said he especially likes working with difficult pieces that involve filigree or other complicated craftsmanship.
“I liken it to a relationship. Since when is a relationship easy all the time?” Joe Needham said.
He uses a computer to generate images of custom jewelry pieces and can make them from pictures or even drawings that people bring in.
“I had one guy come in and say, ‘Joe, I had a dream, and this is the ring I dreamt.’ So if you dream it up, we can make it,'” he said.
And though the increase in custom jewelry traffic may not be large around the holiday, Joe Needham said Valentine’s Day does play a significant role in people getting engaged, regardless of the jewelry involved.
“Engagement rings have always been at the forefront of our business. All the other stuff is just icing on the cake, I guess,” Joe Needham said. “(Valentine’s Day) is just one of the times where guys say, ‘OK, let’s do it.'”
-jenbeasley