Jewelry is an investment in luxury and is a personal investment in a fashion accessory that promotes personal style. Some jewelers also promote the financial value of jewelry as an investment.When I worked at GIA it was commonly understood not to advocate the solicitation of jewelry as an investment. Of course, that was just GIA’s position. It did not align with culturally accepted practiced that were centuries old such as wedding jewelry in India where even today wedding jewelry is seen as a form of investment for the bride’s future. Many jewelry stores have offered to take back jewelry as a trade in and use up to one hundred percent of the original purchase price toward the purchase of another piece of jewelry. This certainly can encourage some customers to become more confident about the future value of jewelry they are considering purchasing. Some jewelry stores even promote the appreciated value of jewelry as part of their sales presentation. Given the price increases in gold and other materials there is some basis for the argument of jewelry as an investment. What is your store’s position on promoting the appreciated value of jewelry? How do you promote jewelry as an investment to prospective customers? Do you want your customers to consider their purchase in jewelry to be a financial investment in addition to being a luxury investment?

JCK