Are you someone who started making jewelry merely as a hobby, but your creativity was praised by your friends and family so much that it pushed you to start a jewelry store? Well, then, firstly, congratulations on taking this bold step.
Now that you have decided to turn your hobby into a business, we are sure you must have several questions in mind, with the top one being how to start a jewelry business. If that is the case, then worry not because you have landed on the right page. Below is a detailed guide on everything you should know and follow when kickstarting your jewelry brand. Let’s dive in.
How to Kickstart a Jewelry Store?
Starting a jewelry business is a creative way to make money, given how fast this industry is growing. According to the recent statistics, the global jewelry market is expected to increase by $88 billion between 2024 and 2029, so this might be the best time to do your research and pick up that dream that you have had for a long time. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to start a jewelry store:
Pick Your Niche and Target Market
Jewelry – while a single term is an industry full of different niches and subcategories, ranging from colorful plastic beaded jewelry to fine-art precious stones and metals. Each of these jewelry subcategories comes with its materials, price point, production process, and customer profile.
Hence, knowing what type of niche you want to kickstart your business in is quite important as a new business owner. Here is a breakdown of some of the main types of jewelry niches and their target market:
Fine Jewelry
Fine jewelry, as per its name, is a type of jewelry made from precious metals and gemstones like gold, silver, diamonds, rubies, and platinum. The end-product is of high-quality, sleek, stylish, and something that can be passed down through generations.
This particular form of jewelry is made with master craftsmanship and is rarely ever mass-produced. These aspects make it fall on a higher price point, making it fall in the category for jewelry worn occasionally for luxury weddings or to commemorate special occasions.
Fashion or Costume Jewelry
The costume jewelry, also known as fashion jewelry, is a jewelry niche consisting of pieces meant for everyday use. Unlike its above-mentioned counterpart, the costume or fashion jewelry is mass-produced and is much more affordable and friendly on the pocket because it is made from imitation materials like wood, plastic, synthetic diamonds, copper, brass, and several other metals. These materials give the jewelry a high-end look, all while making it fall within a budget range that suits a wide majority of the purchasing market.
Art-Designed Jewelry
Art-designed jewelry also refers to handmade jewelry, which is a niche that is quite popular at present. This form of jewelry-making business, while it is a mix of both inexpensive and precious materials, is still one that requires skilled craftsmanship.
These jewelry aren’t made in bulk, which gives each piece a touch of uniqueness from other similar products. The business form has a mid-range price point, which varies with the designer’s popularity.
Do Market Research and Find Competitors
Once you have narrowed down the jewelry niche, it is time to start doing your market research around it. The first line of business for you should be to look into competitors who are working in the same line of business. Look through their pricing, social media channels, strategies, reviews, and offers they have and then plan a competitive advantage that you can hold against them. It is essential to differentiate your product from the rest to stand out in the market and make more sales.
Write Your Business Plan
To kickstart any business and lead it to success, it is essential to have a well-thought-out plan and set the business goals that you need to embark on. With a well-thought-out business plan, you, as a new business owner, will be able to set proper parameters with the jewelry manufacturer, estimate the number of products that you would need to manufacture initially, and determine the profitability aspect.
Moreover, a proper business plan would help you look professional in front of financiers, whether it is a bank, an e-commerce venture capital firm, or a fund. It would leave a great first impression for them to consider investing.
Choose a Brand Name & Register Your Business
Now that you have decided on your niche and surveyed the market on competitors, the next step would be to choose a brand name and get your business registered.
Choosing a creative and unique brand name that represents your brand’s purpose, style, and mission is extremely important for better growth and customer reach. Your business name should be unique for customers to remember it, and simple enough to give an insight into what the business is about.
Create Your Online Jewelry Store
The next step is to create an online jewelry store. In order to do this, you must first ensure with the Trademark Office that your business name can be trademarked or is not currently trademarked by anyone else.
Moreover, if the name is available, you will also have to check its availability as a website domain. This can be done through several website domains or hosting sites. Once done, we highly suggest you hire a professional website developer to create your business website online, which is both attractive and easy to use for your incoming customers.
Remember, an easy-to-use online jewelry store will ensure that customers have a great experience while shopping with you and will help increase your demand in the market.
Sourcing Jewelry Manufacturers in China
Once your online store is made and your jewelry line concepts are ticked off, it is time to find potential manufacturers. You can either choose to manufacture products locally or get them produced overseas.
A lot of jewelry business owners choose jewelry manufacturers in China to design their jewelry and ship it to them or their customers. Choosing a manufacturer overseas, like China, is quite beneficial because it would save you from purchasing jewelry-making tools and equipment for yourself, and you can get products made by experts in the business at a much cheaper price.
Photograph, Pick & Pack Your Products in a China Fulfillment Center
When your jewelry is finalized and made, start taking sample photographs to upload to your website. If you are a small business owner, you can always do product photography yourself with a high-quality camera phone and a few product photography tips that you read online. However, if your budget allows, it is recommended to hire a professional product photographer to do the job.
While initially it might be easy for a small business to work through the orders, with popularity and customer growth, you might want to look into a fulfillment strategy. Once your company reaches a point where it becomes hard to keep up with packing and shipping your orders, a fulfillment partner can be your best approach. A good outsourcing fulfillment partner like NextSmartShip will help you pick, pack, and ship orders so that you can keep your focus on other crucial parts of your business.
Launch & Promote Your Business
Given that the jewelry industry is highly saturated, there would be a lot of businesses selling similar products. Hence, staying ahead of your competitors through a good marketing strategy is extremely important. How can you do this?
Well, with the right use of social media, you can launch and promote your business correctly. Businesses can use artistic videos, images, and even influencer collaborations online to promote their products and help them reach a wider audience. Moreover, apart from online sales, businesses can also consider setting up stalls and kiosks at carnivals, pop-up markets, and other events.
Monitor Performance & Scale
The last and most important aspect of this guide on how to start a jewelry business is to monitor your performance and growth scale throughout. When your business starts getting in customers and orders become frequent, it is essential to match your current growth from the past orders and make significant changes for better outcomes in the future. This will help ensure that your brand takes the right steps towards growth and flourishes for the better, attracting more customers.
Shipping Jewelry from China Directly to your Customers with NextSmartShip
Now that you know everything about how to start a jewelry store, we are sure you’d be gearing up to launch one. While you do that, take another little tip from us. If you are a business operating in China or have a retailer there, then we highly suggest that you ship your jewelry from China directly to your customers with the help of NextSmartShip.
NextSmartShip is a service that provides its customers with stable, stress-free logistics by navigating tariffs in shipment, keeping your products cost-friendly, and operations running smoothly. The service has its main warehouse in China, which is backed up by the best suppliers in the world through a network of 10 warehouses globally for efficient distribution. NextSmartShip has 400-plus shipping lines and offers its customers a 40% reduction on the overall cost, which will save your business money and attract customers as well.
Conclusion
If you are looking into ways to start a jewelry store, then we hope this guide on how to start a jewelry business was helpful for you. While we did try to mention all the best tips and tricks on starting a jewelry business, our best one has to be that customers choose an outsourcing fulfillment partner once their business starts growing. This would help a jewelry business ensure that all their orders are streamlined while being picked, packed, and delivered on time. One of the best fulfillment centers, in our opinion, has got to be NextSmartShip. The company has been in operation for years and provides the best services to its customers. So, make sure to check it out today.
