Jeweller - July, Edition I 2020

OPINION
Soapbox
Jewellers should heed these
pearls of wisdom
There are numerous opportunities for jewellers in the pearl category, particularly in
providing care and maintenance services for strands and jewellery, writes JUNE MANN.
Have you thought of offering “pearl
services”? With the current economic
situation due to COVID-19, customers
may be less inclined to spend money
on new jewellery. But have you thought
of providing pearl care information to
customers, and services to “refresh”
customers’ pearl jewellery?
A lot of people have been sorting through
their house during lockdown, and they
may have come across some strands
of pearls.
Jewellers know that pearls need to be
much more carefully handled and cleaned
than other precious gemstones to keep
them in good condition.
Pearls do not ‘like’ light, heat or
excessively high or low humidity; metals
and other materials can scratch them
as pearls are generally rated 2.5-4.5 on
Mohs’ scale; and even perspiration can
damage a pearl’s delicate nacre.
Each time a pearl is worn, it needs
to be wiped gently with a very soft
cloth afterwards.
Do your customers know that? Maybe not!
I keep seeing pearls that have been
damaged through years of ‘abuse’,
including my own very old strand of
pearls which have been subjected to
everything from perfumes to shower
gel – and even hair-perming solution.
This strand was left powdery white by
my years neglect – mind you, this was
years ago, and before I developed my
interest in pearls!
For mild damage, jewellers can use
special cloths that will clean and refresh
the pearls. They are inexpensive and
quite effective. However, for more serious
damage, machinery may be necessary.
My damaged strand was too far gone to
refresh with the cloth, but was brought
back to life thanks to the re-polishing
machine from Pearl Science Laboratory in
Japan – and some dogged determination
on my side.
The result was quite impressive, however,
prevention is better than cure.
Jewellers could run pearl care workshops
for customers, online or in-store, as well
as offering ‘spruce-up’ services.
Restringing is another service you can
offer. You might think restringing pearls
is difficult, and I agree; doing the knotted
finish well is not easy at all and it requires
rather a lot of practice to get right.
You also need to do it regularly maintain
the skill.
However, there is a perfectly viable,
easy and long-lasting alternative that
produces a good result, and that is to
use a stainless steel, flexible bead
stringing wire (7x7 is preferable due to
its superior flexibility), tiny silicone
cushions, and click-in-place or screw-in
crimps – which look much better than
crimps you squash.
You could also replace the clasps with
something more fancy or user-friendly
while you re-string them too.
New clasps with fancy designs can really
bring a strand of pearls to life. Not only
that, but they also enable people who
struggle with small spring-ring clasps to
put the necklace on themselves.
With the right tools – which you probably
already have – parts and instructions,
almost anyone can learn to re-strand
pearls with wire in less than a day.
Another advantage is that good quality
stainless steel wires are very hardwearing
and simply won’t snap like
silk threads, especially when they are
Nylon coated.
The finished necklaces have a different
I keep seeing
pearls that have
been damaged
through years
of ‘abuse’,
including my
own very old
strand of
pearls which
have been
subjected to
everything
from perfumes
to shower gel
– and even
hair-perming
solution
look from using a thread-and-knotted
finish. n no way am I knocking the knotted
finish, however re-stringing with wire is
something you could easily offer in your
store, and it does not take a huge amount
of practice.
I am advocating it as something you
could do to gain a revenue stream
when the sales may be down due to the
economic situation.
Expanding from that, once you can
re-string pearls with wire, your options
also expand.
Combining a strand of pearls with other
types of beads is easy, and you could
even create a ‘new’ bracelet and necklace
set from the customer’s existing strand of
pearls by adding different types of beads.
So, to summarise, while the sale of new
jewellery may be down, you could quite
easily offer the following services:
• Pearl care workshops online or
in-store;
• Pearl cleaning and refreshing
services;
• Pearl restringing services, with or
without clasp replacement;
• Creation of new pieces using the
customer’s existing pearls, with
some additional beads/parts.
Hopefully, by offering helpful services,
you will retain customers.
Then when the economy improves,
your customers will choose your store
to buy their new pieces – pearls and
otherwise!
Name: June Mann
Company: Pearl Specialists
Position: Director
Location: Queensland, and Europe
Years in Industry: 6
58 | July 2020