Could you use?

[Horologist]

Can You Use an Extra $30,000 This Year?
The only thing that separates most retail jewelers from the “---Mart” stores and everyone else who changes batteries for $2.99 is the price. And before you say “We do quality work”, the end result is the same – the battery is changed and nothing more. So effectively, if you charge $10 for a battery and the “—Mart” store charges $3, the real
difference to the customer is $7. What we teach our students is that in order to get more money, you have to give more service.
Here is what the difference to your profits can be if you offer your customers a “Tune- Up” service:
The average retail jeweler changes approximately 50 batteries per week, or 215 per month at the national average of $9 each. That’s $1,935 per month. Our students who offer their customers a choice of a $9 battery, a $24.95 5-year battery or a $39.95 Tune-
Up Service find that 40% will choose a $9 battery, 40% will choose a 5-year batter at
$24.95 and 20% will choose a Tune-Up at $39.95. When you do the math, you will find
that the difference in profits for the year will be over $32,400!
The biggest complaint associated with retail jewelry store customers and watches is
regarding water-resistance. First, let me dispel some common wives’ tales. There is no
“hermetic” factory seal. The factory does nothing special to reseal a watch that you could
not do yourself. The difference is in the details. You will need a few things to ensure
you have done a good job:
· Silicone grease
· Gasket Assortment
· “Rocket Cement” or G.S. Crystal Glue
· Case Press
· Case Opener/Bench knife/Case Spanner
· Loupe
· Bergeon 5555 Pressure Tester – OPTIONAL
The cost of all necessary supplies (except the Pressure Tester) is under $100 total. These
are all readily available from your material distributor.
Most watches have three possible point of entry for water. They are the stem and crown,
the back and the crystal. Here we will explain how to seal all three.
We will explain this from the point at which the watch has already been opened. With
the watch opened, remove the stem. On all water-resistant watches, there is a case tube.
This is simply a tube that the crown slips over and that the stem
passes through. In order for a watch to be as water resistant as it is capable of being, it is
necessary to apply silicone to the case tube. Don’t worry if some of the silicone gets
dragged into the movement when you put the stem and crown back in. It hurts nothing
and in many quartz watches, actually helps. This alone makes a huge difference in the
water-resistant capabilities of the watch.
Next, we need to take a close look at the back gasket. This of course will necessitate
using a loupe. What we will be looking for is cuts, dried areas, caked on dirt, and if it is
stretched out (too large for the space). If the gasket is damaged in any way, measure the
diameter of the back to the groove where the gasket rests with a millimeter gauge. They
are measured in whole and 10ths of a millimeter, e.g. 27.5 mm. Inasmuch that they cost
less than 10 cents each, not much to invest in a quality job.
Next we will need to apply silicone to the gasket. The way I do this is I place a dollop of
silicone on the edge of the case back, where the gasket rests. Then I spread the silicone
around the entire gasket with my finger so that the entire gasket has a consistent but thin
layer around the circumference.
Then replace the back as you normally would.
Next, we use either “Rocket Cement” or G.S. Crystal Glue. Where the crystal meets the
bezel apply a liberal amount of glue to the seam. Inasmuch that this is a rubber type
cement, when it begins to become tacky, an excess can be wiped a way with a cloth and
still leave a thin seam of glue between the crystal and the bezel to insure it is water tight.
You will, however, have to take a close look at the crystal and ensure that there are no
cracks or chips.
When you take these processes, the big difference between you and the “---Mart” stores
is no longer $7, it is a professional job and being paid for it. We now offer a video of this
procedure and marketing this service for only $39.95. If you would like one, please call
Sheila Gendron at 888-750-3330.
________________________________________________
Dan Gendron is a 6th generation watchmaker and is the country’s leading instructor on building big, new
profits with watch repairs. He offers books, videos and a hands-on course teaching jewelers to perform
their own Quartz Watch Repairs. He can be reached at 888-750-3330. For class schedules and locations,
visit his website, www.watchfix.com.

[Horologist]

Carrying High-End Watches Without the High-End
Commitment
In a previous article we discussed creating your own watch line. Very
seldom do I speak to jewelers who have committed to a watch line – High-
End or otherwise -- that can justify the expense.
Let’s say you carry a mid-price-point Swiss watch line. Certainly,
there will be models in that line that are hot sellers. Unfortunately, much of
what you are forced to carry as a part of the watch line commitment will be
“dead dogs”. It’s not unusual for these “dead dogs” to take years (literally)
to sell -- if at all.
Add to this the apparent lack of loyalty of some watch companies as
evidenced by the fact of many traditionally “jeweler only” watch lines now
turning up at discounters, buyers clubs, the ever popular 75% off sales, and
not least of all, the Internet.
So when we add it all up, most retail jewelers have little reason to
carry a watch line, other than to have bragging rights and having something
to put in the watchcase. But for those of you who have customers who “buy
branding”, there is another solution.
What savvy jewelers use is “outsourcing”. Outsourcing is achieved
by finding watch dealers who re-sell watches to jewelers without asking for
the commitment of carrying an entire line.
Let’s say that Tag-Heuer is a popular watch in your market area, and
worse yet you cannot purchase the line because they have a direct-market
retailer in your area. Finding a re-seller is a great way for you to compete
without the full-blown expense of carrying the line. Imagine being able to
order just ONE watch when YOU need it, and not being forced by a watch
company to place orders you don’t need and can’t sell. Sounds good doesn’t
it? I know jewelers who use this method to their full advantage.
Here’s how I have seen it done successfully. Have just one case in
your store for watches. In that case, place a mix of one ladies’ and gent’s
each of the following watch brands.
Tag Heuer
Omega
Rolex
Cartier
Seiko Kinetic
Citizen EcoDrive
Breitling
If there is a particular watch brand that is not mentioned above that is
in demand in your area, include that brand in the watch case, too. Also in
that case, place a small easel sign that says, “We have resources for all
major watch brands. If you don’t see what you are looking for, please ask.”
This will serve as a market test for your store that will not cost you the
expense and time of having an entire watch line.
Your turnover on inventory will be great! And you will find that many
times your customers will tell you exactly what they are looking for, and
give you time to get it.
Don’t forget-- customers aren’t always buying price. More times than
not, they are buying availability. Someone who wants a James Bond Omega,
wants a James Bond Omega, and the jewelers who carry the Omega line
probably ran out of them long ago, if they were lucky enough to have gotten
any to begin with. So there is no reason to discount on these highly desired
watches. You just need a resource to get them.
Here are some sources for your “remote inventory”.
INVENTORY ADJUSTERS, INC.
3437 E McDowell
Phoenix, AZ 85008
602/278-5966
Cheryl Carlson
www.inventoryadjusters.com
ALL ABOUT TIME, INC.
P.O. Box 1709
Dania, FL 33004
954/964-7705 [FAX: 954/894-9912]
Suzanne Knohl
watchinfo@aol.com
SERGES & CO.
3841 W. Broward Blvd.
Plantation, FL 33312
877/973-7437 [FAX: 954/583-6559]
Chip Hurd
chip@watcheslikenew.com http://www.watcheslikenew.com

[Horologist]

Cashing In on Watches
By Dan Gendron
By virtue of the title, I’m sure that many readers will pass this article by.
But that’s true about watches and jewelers for the last 25 years -- jewelers
passing by the profits and customer good will watches can generate. In this
article we will cover how to sell watches at a triple keystone profit and how
to cash in on the Christmas watch sales others make.
First, I’m sure most of you are skeptical about how anyone can make triple
keystone on watch sales. That’s reasonable, because most watch lines only
offer a straight keystone markup -- if you can even get that! Most traditional
watch lines are heavily discounted everywhere. Without naming names,
most watch lines that have for years been the bread and butter for retail
jewelers have become a burden to the bottom line.
It makes no sense for any jeweler to inventory a watch line that only makes
them 25 % to 30% gross. Many of you have given up on carrying a line
because of this, and that, in itself, is a good enough reason. Why should
jewelers carry a line that only makes the watch companies richer? The
answer is, there is NO GOOD REASON!
In the classes I conduct on quartz watch repairs, the question always comes
up, “What watch line should I carry?” I always answer, “Yours!!” It is a
little known fact that anyone can have their own watch line. It’s called
“private labeling”. Private label watches are purchased from a supplier, who
puts your name on the dial! With private labeling, your own watch line is
very easy and very profitable.
An excellent source for your own private label watches is Belair watches of
NJ (800-223-1654). There is a one-time fee to make up a die for your dials
(this can be your logo, or if you don’t have one the name of your store will
do). Most jewelers who sell private label watches mark them up 3½ times,
and occasionally offer a discount of 20% off. Still a very nice margin!
Selling private label watches with your name on them is the easiest watch
sale you will ever make. Why, you might ask? First, whether you realize it
or not, the real reason people come to your store is because they trust you!
Never discount this. It’s the most valuable item in your inventory. What
better way to bring this to the forefront? Second, one way to make the sale
“bullet-proof” is to make an “irresistible offer”. Most offer lifetime batteries
and lifetime repairs at no added cost to the customer.
Add it up…
· YOUR NAME SELLS!!
· LIFETIME BATTERY REPLACEMENTS!!!!
· LIFETIME REPAIRS!!!!!!!!
Equals -- an IRRESISTABLE OFFER!!!!
Don’t worry about the cost of lifetime batteries. Watches in today’s market
are every bit as much a fashion item as a timekeeper. Styles change and
watches that were once cutting edge, in a few years are old news. Typically,
you will replace batteries in 20% to 30% of the watches in the years
following the sale, and within 5 years this number drops off to nearly
nothing.
If you are concerned about the lifetime repair promise, don’t be. The
watches sold by Belair are fundamentally no different than most mid priced
watches. Most movements used in them cost in the area of $7 to $15, and
typically you will need to repair only 2% to 5% at worst. Even if you need to
send them to a trade shop, this is not big problem, compared to sending them
to a factory service center.
You really have everything to gain from carrying your own private label
watch line -- and a nice profit margin to boot!
Now for the second part of this article -- Cashing in on the watch sales of
others. I realize that this part intrigues most of you! Every jeweler in
America has other watch sellers’ customers coming in to have their watch
band sized because the store that sold it to them doesn’t offer that level of
service. We can complain all we want about the nerve of a store selling a
watch that they cannot size the watch band on, or we can cash in on it.
If you’re thinking it’s OK to begrudgingly size watch band for $5, you’re
not thinking about this service in the proper light. If we offer these services
too cheaply, we are subsidizing the other retailer. What I mean by this is if
you “give away” this service, you are de facto working for the other store at
discount prices and helping them make the sale.
To make this service viable, we need to be charging at least $15 per side,
that is, if we have to remove links from both sides of the band, we charge
$30. It’s a little known fact that many retailers who sell watches and cannot
size the band will reimburse the customer for the cost of the sizing. The truth
is, most customers are only too happy to pay you what you require -- if you
will only ask. As a matter of fact, most customers are quite sheepish about
asking you to size the band in the first place. You might also consider
offering these new repair customers something like lifetime batteries, or
even a lifetime watch repair contract (another great money-maker). More on
those services in a future article.
The
tools cost in the area of $15 to $50. It also helps to have a sign that say
“Minimum bench charge $25”. This prepares the customer, and for those
who opt to not pay you the fee, consider this: whose customer are they? Not
yours. Take the opportunity to make some money while they get aquatinted
with your store. And, by the way, those customers who don’t want to pay
you a fair price for your services won’t ever make you money, anyway!
Dan Gendron is the Executive Director of the Gendron School of Horology,
www.watchfix.com dan@watchfix.com

[Horologist]

Attitude IS Everything
by Dan Gendron
Most of us have had some exposure to concepts like those explored by self-help gurus
like Tony Robbins and the late Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, and for the most part we can agree
that those ideas and concepts are worthwhile. But how many of us actually use those principles
in our role as watch repair department liaisons?
The truth is that whether or not we realize it, our attitude affects the results we
experience in the repair department. It is no stretch to have a bright, happy attitude when we are
selling what we enjoy, e.g. a large diamond, or something we have created. The real trick is to
develop a happy, expectant attitude when it comes to repairs - especially watch repairs! I have
had many occasions to visit jewelers and I find more times than not jewelers behave less than
enthusiastically when they encounter a watch repair customer! As a matter of fact, I have
observed that most act as though the customer just handed them a dead rat!
We need to realize that our customers are sensitive to the demeanor we show them in the
sales interview. In a recent seminar I gave the analogy that we act less than enthusiastic
towards a watchrepair customer, it is much like if a man went to an upscale women's clothing
store and upon choosing an expensive dress for his wife, the sales clerk says to the customer,
"Why would you want to spend that much money on that fat cow wife yours?” But this is
exactly what we are doing when we do not treat our customers' watches without consideration
of the way they feel about them.
We in the jewelry trades tend to be very "jaded," that is, we see our customers' items
with the eyes of what we think is worthwhile. Just today I received a call from one of my trade
customers asking me if an Ingersol watch was valuable. He wanted to know this to make a
determination of weather not his customer's watch was worth, fixing. This told me from the start
that he had not perceived the real value to his customer, nor did he try to evaluate his customer's
real feelings about the watch. We have no way of knowing what our customers really think
about a watch unless we ask them!!
In that vein, the last watch, my father was wearing was Russian Chrono, not worth very
much, but while he was in the hospital it was something he did not worry about losing. He died
wearing it. I would not value that watch at its "actual value" , at least not to me. To me, it is so
valuable that I will keep that watch .running, at least for the rest of my life and no amount of
money could ever buy it!
Speaking my dad, the late Henri Gendron, the old gent had a way of determining the
customer's feelings about their watch. He did this in a way from which we can all learn. When
a customer handed him their watch, he would say something to elicit a response from them, e.g.,
"What a nice Watch. You must be proud of this!" Or "they sure don’t make watches like
this anymore." or some other platitude. Then He would listen to the customer's response to his
statements. If they agreed, (e.g., "yes, I love this watch!" or, "My husband gave me this for Our
20th wedding anniversary." or some such), he get a confirmation from the customer that they
were very interested in having their watch repaired. He then proceeded to give them a detailed
estimate to repair the watch.
On the other hand, if the customer said "On, this piece of junk?" or, "I never really liked
this watch." or some such, he would immediately move over to the new watch case and start
selling them a watch.
Your rewards will always match your attitude:
Poor Attitude, Poor Results
Good Attitude; Good Results
Excellent Attitude, Excellent Results
So the next time you see a repair customer, especially a watch. Repair customer, greet
him or her with a smile. Then just watch and see. I think you will notice that watch repair
customers aren’t grumpy misanthropes like you thought.

[Horologist]

Confidence Sells
More than any other skill or asset on the sales floor, telemarketing phone, or advertising
written word, CONFIDENCE is the greatest factor. Both men & women find that
confidence in the salesperson is the number one reason they buy anything from anyone.
The salesperson with confidence shows it unconsciously in everything he or she does as a
sales person. Customers are naturally attracted to the sexy, confident sales person.
How does one obtain confidence? One key way, particularly in the sales arena, is
knowledge about the product one is trying to sell.
Most retail jewelers have tons of confidence with customers who are buying something in
which they have an encyclopedic knowledge. But when the customer shows interest in
something in which the salesperson has little or no knowledge, the sales close ratio
drops. All enthusiasm and energy dissolve from the interaction like a sugar cube in the
rain.
Unfortunately, retail jewelers are hurting themselves by educating themselves only about
those subjects that personally interest them. It is so simple, particularly with the Internet,
to gain an education in all aspects of a particular business. Become a student of your
business! Want to become an expert in your business? Try this: Search Google for
“learn watch repair”. You will find well over 8 million hits with that search term. Search
“learn laser welding” and you will find over half a million for that.
Become a student of all aspects of your business, even just through the internet, and you
may find that was once uninteresting to you has now become fascinating, even to the
point of becoming a passion. That new knowledge, that passion turns into a confidence
that translates into a new blossom in the garden of your business.
So find something to be come passionate about, even if it’s something you once had
distain for. Even if it’s not your favorite thing to do, it probably isn’t anyone else’s,
either. No one like to do things they know nothing about. But there is an old, Eastern
European saying: “If no one wants to do it, there’s money in it!”
So become passionate about every aspect of your business. And remember, confidence
sells.