Jewelry Store Holiday Season Checklist

Decided in August

The holiday season is decided in August and September, not in December. By the time the first gift shopper walks in, what you bought, how it's tagged and who's on the schedule are already decided. December just collects.

Nine steps

Here's a nine-step checklist. Forecast the buy, fix your inventory data, and open layaway early, set repair cutoff dates, hire and schedule early, and work the customer list you already have, get the online side ready in October, tighten the register and the floor, and decide what you'll measure.

Step 1: forecast the buy before you place it

Step one: the holiday buy is the biggest cash commitment of the year, so buy against what actually sold. Break the last two or three seasons down by category, and by price band, since gifts under $500 and bridal are different businesses, by vendor, to decide who earns a bigger open-to-buy, and by week, so the goods are on the floor when the season lands.

Step 2: fix your inventory data

Step two: September is the last comfortable window to fix your inventory data. Run a full physical audit, and deal with the discrepancies now, tag everything, including new receipts, clear the aged stock before the new goods arrive, and reconcile memo and consignment.

Steps 3 and 4: layaway early, repair cutoffs posted

Steps three and four: promote layaway in early fall, with a payoff deadline a week before the holiday, the policy in writing, automatic payment reminders, and layaway pieces reserved out of stock. And set repair cutoffs from your bench capacity, with an earlier date for outside work. Post them everywhere, and take intake photos every time.

Step 5: hire and schedule before you need to

Step five: hire in October, not November, so seasonal staff learn on the quiet weeks. Schedule from your own hourly sales, and set permissions so seasonal staff can sell, but can't void, discount or edit costs. Decide commission rules up front, and assign opening and closing duties for every day of the season.

Step 6: work the customer list you already have

Step six: the cheapest holiday sale is to someone who already bought from you. Call on open wish lists and quotes, anniversaries and birthdays in the coming months, and your repair and appraisal customers, last holiday's gift buyers, and lapsed clients. Two years quiet isn't gone; it's unasked.

Steps 7 and 8: online, and the floor

Step seven: get online ready in October, with real-time inventory sync, published shipping cutoffs, insured shipping, and holiday hours on Google. Step eight: one tray out at a time, card processing ready, staff briefed on fraud, and counts at every shift change.

Step 9: decide what you will measure

Step nine: pick your numbers before the season, so you can read them during it: sell-through by category and vendor, the average ticket every week, and open layaways on schedule, repair turnaround against your promises, and the aged inventory going into January.

Month by month

Month by month: August, forecast and order; September, audit, clear the aged stock, and launch layaway; October, hire, tag, and ready the website; November, merchandise and run the campaigns; December, execute; and January, count everything and compare it to the forecast.

The season in WJewel

In WJewel, the analytics include best sellers and forecasting, from your own sales history, physical inventory scans make the September audit fast, you can text every layaway customer who's behind on payments, customer profiles hold birthdays, anniversaries and other occasions, quotes and wish lists come with reminders to follow up, and your website stays connected to the same inventory.

Contact us

You'll find the full checklist on the WJewel blog. WJewel is fully web-based, and runs on PCs, Macs, tablets and phones. To learn more, visit www.wjewel.com, or call us at (646) 578-8300.