Jewelry Designers on QVC | The Right Way and The Wrong Way
My client who just donned her new 14ct emerald cut diamond ring said , “I absolutely love Leslie Greene but what do you think about it being on QVC?” At that moment I realized just how important it is for designers like Leslie Greene to execute the QVC strategy the right way and thankfully she has! You see, Leslie’s beautiful jewelry designs in fine stores like J.R.Dunn and Neiman Marcus are done in solid 18kt yellow gold with high quality diamonds. This means her spectacular pieces retail for a couple of thousand dollars on average. On QVC the pieces look completely different and are done in sterling silver and retail for around a $100-$200. There is no mistaking Leslie’s “couture pieces” that are seen in editorials and on countless celebrities compared to the designs on QVC.
So who are some other jewelry designers that sell on QVC the right way. Let’s start with Tacori, I surfed on over to QVC and I examined their designs. If you took away the Tacori name on top of the page I would have no idea whose rings I’m looking at. The rings look very, very generic. I feel there wasn’t a conflict with the signature Tacori platinum engagement rings I have in inventory so who cares. So how about Judith Ripka Jewelry ? The majority of the jewelers I know only carry the sterling silver line and some of the really hot sellers are priced around $300. So the logic is if I have a customer that buys a piece for $300 and sees a similar but flimsier looking piece on QVC from $150 they won’t be upset with me.
So let’s see some of other guild lines that jumped on the QVC band wagon:
Raymond Weil
Anthony Nak
Robert Lee Morris
Jose Hess
Heidi Klum
View the complete list of designers on QVC
That’s just to name a few. Ironically some of these companies had the Chutzpah to tell me showcasing their brand on the internet is jeopardizing their image! Oh, but knocking yourself off doesn’t? I think if these brands do not manage their QVC strategy properly it might be the beginning of the end for them. A couple of the jewelry designers we have listed migrated over to QVC well after they were not getting a strong sell through in jewelry stores. And if that’s what the designers need to do to stay in business then more power to them. I carry some of the designers listed above and I’m wondering what the QVC effect will be going forward. For the less expensive lines I hope it increases brand awareness and for the pricier designers we’ll be watching your turn!
Best,
Sean Dunn
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October 2nd, 2007 at 11:37 am
Sean – glad you said it! This kind of “knocking yourself off” marketing has been going on for years. How about the designers that sold to retail stores for years and then started their own websites and began competing with retailers, instead of directing consumers back to the retailer sites – they sell their goods directly to the consumer.
March 23rd, 2008 at 6:09 pm
I’m trying to find info on the accusations (rumors?) that Klum’s line featuring clovers is similar to some higher end lines that used that symbol first and not really that original. Any info? thanks…..