Why should I work with a small, independent jeweler vs a chain jewelry store?

Hi! This is R&N Custom Jewelry and Repair’s first ever blog! We’d love to start a space where we can talk about jewelry, the jewelry industry, our products, and other jewelry related topics. I’m not sure where this blog will end up and may change and grow along the way, but we’re excited to kick it off!

Have you ever wondered why someone may choose to work with a small, independent jeweler (like us) vs a large chain jewelry company?

I think people see those fancy jewelry stores in the mall and automatically feel like this is a company they can trust and get the best jewelry from. I mean, they are in every mall across the United States. They must be doing something right?

Here are a few ways we believe smaller jewelry stores may serve you better.

Lower Prices

Big chain jewelry stores have high corporate overhead costs. They must pay for things like high mall rent, security systems, payroll for many staff members, along with a myriad of other costs. They cover these costs by marking up the cost of jewelry to their customers. The average markup for a chain jewelry store can be anywhere from 100%-500% or more. This means you are paying 2 to 5 times more for your jewelry than it costs.

When you work with a small, independent jeweler, they don’t have all these costs and as such, don’t need to mark their jewelry up as much as chain stores or bigger jewelers do. When you work with us, we don’t have all those costs. This is part of the reason we haven’t opened a brick-and-mortar store front. As a mobile jewelry business, we can pass on our savings on rent, advanced security, payroll, signage, displays, etc. to our customers.

Better Craftsmanship

Larger chain jewelry stores often don’t have jewelers on site. They usually take in your jewelry repairs and send them offsite to a jeweler. As a corporation, they are looking to minimize their costs and generate profit for shareholders, so they may try to find the cheapest repair labor available. They are also going to pass on the cost of that jewelry repair labor along with a cost markup, resulting in higher possible costs for you.

Working with our company means you are working directly with us. Any jewelry we repair is kept with us and fixed directly by Rob. Rob’s decades-long experience as a jeweler offers expertise that you are likely not going to find when having repairs completed through a chain store. On top of the experience, he offers, you also are working with someone that cares about your experience