What goes into making and selling jewelry successfully? Well, quite a number of things, but nothing you can’t ace when you put your heart and soul into the craft. First, what is your angle as you plan to get into this business? These three are the main categories of jewelry.
Costume or Fashion Jewelry: Not everyone can currently afford jewelry made of precious stones, which is what makes costumer jewelries so marketable. They are mass0-produced to make the unit cost lower and by extension, the retail price, and they are also made of easily accessible material such as beads, synthetic gems, wire, plated metal, and plastic. They are quite good-looking too and if the maker is keen, buyers would have to strain a little before telling that a piece is costume jewelry.
Fine Jewelry: This type is made for the high end of the market and so it is highly customized. It is made of precious metal and gems. The craftsmanship is excellent so that the final product is quite unique as per the buyer’s request. Most expensive diamond engagement rings are made this way.
There is a mid-range that covers jewelry made of various material that can’t be classified as too cheap or too expensive. High-low mix of textile, gems, metals, wood, and acrylic are some of the material used for this kind and so the prices are also mid-range.
So, what type of jewelry do you plan to make? Fashion jewelry is a good place to start for a newbie jeweler.
Also, do you need formal education as a jeweler? Well, the advancement of online studies makes it possible to learn the craft from online videos and paid master classes, but you can still go to college to study how to make jewelry formally. Before going online to find the ideal class, you want to choose a technique and style to narrow down your options.
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Where to Start when Making Fashion Jewelry
As with many labor-intensive jobs, fashion jewelry making is outsourced to China, thanks to the country’s cost-effective yet efficient labor. Qingdao, located in North China, is one of the locations where you will find a reasonably large number of factories specializing in jewelry-making. You also can find fashion jewelry in Yiwu and Shenzhen. While there, you get design ideas as the factories specialize in all categories of jewelry.
The development cycle will usually consist of these stages. The jewelry parts selection process where you get a sample of products through catalogs to help you choose, then the presentation of pre-production samples that you will receive 2-3 weeks after selecting your preferred designs. If they are what you ordered, the process proceeds to mass production where your pieces are now brought to life so you can start the shipping process.
Before you settle on a manufacturer, look into as many catalogs as possible. Since you will already be in China physically, make the most of your visit to see as many factory heads as possible. This enables you to get the best price for your goods.
Why is China highly favored by jewelry vendors?
- High output per labor hour, thanks to a large workforce.
- Cheap labor, again due to a massive workforce.
- Cheaper prices for the final product as it has been mass-produced.
- Shipping outside China is quite easy for international brands.
How to Sell Jewelry Successfully
After finding the ideal source for your jewelry, now is the time to start selling. Branding is vital as it will set the pace and tone for the business. If you settle for the lower-end market, a simple Shopify store, free theme, and a cheaply made logo will suffice. Despite being quite reasonably priced, they could look quite good and set you off nicely so you can start selling even without too much capital.
If you want to target a wealthy clientele, then you will have to spend a little more through customizing a website fully made by a professional and a logo representing what the brand wants to be in the future. Your voice will also matter a lot and so branding is more than just having a beautiful site. Social media marketing will make it easy for your brand to get the recognition it needs to get you to the levels you want.
Selling Platforms
E-commerce is naturally the best platform being as it enables you to transcend geographical boundaries. Amazon and eBay are other platforms you can sell on to reach a wider audience. Starting an online store is quite easy, even if you have to have a professionally designed website. A knowledgeable expert will cost you a pretty penny but they will also ensure that the site is ready to go and in the ideal condition to set off.
You will need to select various check-out platforms, focusing on the most popular ones – PayPal, credit and debit cards, and if you like, reputable cryptocurrency. You will also need to set up shipping as an online store relies on this the most. These days, we have several companies specializing in shipping, and so you won’t have to struggle too much.
Professional Photography
Customers are led by emotions especially when it comes to luxury purchases, and so your product has to be appealing. You will need to use a professional photographer to bring your jewelry pout perfectly, but you can also learn the art online if you don’t have much of a budget. Models? Your friends could come in handy, rocking the pieces to make them look enticing to a buyer.
Your marketing skills will need to be top-notch so you can reach a wide audience both locally and internationally of that is your target. Using a social media influencer also pays off these days as they have a large following that the business will benefit from at any stage.
Setting Retail Prices
You could decide to go with the manufacturer’s proposed retail price or craft your own. Wholesale Price x 2 will give you the retail price that will capture the costs inquired and even give you some profit.
There you go! All the best in your new venture!
