Once upon a time, inventory management in the jewelry trade was a low-tech, time-consuming affair. Retailers would walk the floor, taking notes of the product numbers of jewelry displayed in cases and stored in vaults. They’d then check that list against original inventory take-in records. If there was a discrepancy, the retailer needed to “reconcile” the difference, retail lingo for determining whether jewelry was missing or had simply been misplaced. Then, about 15 years ago, UPC barcodes made inroads with retailers. Said to reduce shrinkage, prevent theft or loss, and, thus, maintain margins, they failed to deliver. Easily damaged, the coded tags were difficult to scan, often forcing jewelers to do hand counts.  Plenty of retailers still rely on barcodes or even the tried-and-true pen-and-paper method. But recently, a cohort of tech-savvy retailers has embraced RFID, or