Weekend Reading Assignment

As you know, I am a fan of INSTORE Magazine. I think it is the only jewelers magazine every retailer should read. Frankly all the other mags are playing catch up to INSTORE’s retailer based editorial format. Essentially the whole magazine is written as a living, breathing survival guide for the retail jeweler. Managing Editor Eileen McClelland came out of the newspaper world so she really understands what it means to cover your beat, in this case drilling down into every aspect of running, surviving and thriving as a retail jeweler.

In the June edition of INSTORE, check out Eileen’s article “Renewing Your Diamond Vows”. Vow # 2 is all about leveraging your gold buying to build your Diamond business and features IMG member Alan Perry of Perry’s Emporium. It’s on your desk…read it…good stuff.

Secondly, if you have not been reading INDESIGN magazine, INSTORE’s upscale sister publication you should check it out as well. INDESIGN is really geared more for the designer brand oriented store and features not just the strong established designer brands but also the emerging designers who are a critical to keeping jewelry design relevant and exciting. Editor Trace Shelton, Contributing Editor of INSTORE leads INDESIGN. Here is the feature article in the June issue and I think it is a must read by Josh Wimmer about marketing your brand and the designer brands you carry. It’s a great nuts and bolts article covering both message and medium choice and how individual stores across the country are addressing the challenge of making individual designer brands hot while also building their store’s overall brand. This is stuff that you can actually use!  Kudos to Tom Duma and Thom Duma Jewelers for his TV commercials produced by sons Cody & Cory Duma. Cody and Cory’s talents are available to all IMG stores.  Print out the article below  and share it with your team.

INDESIGN Magazine: June 2011 lead – Advertising Designer Lines