Sterling Jewelers
 | This article reads like a press release or a news article and may be largely based on routine coverage. (December 2007) |
Sterling Jewelers Inc. was founded in 1906 by Henry Shaw (the father of Jerry Shaw, the chairman emeritus of Sterling today), from one store in Cleveland, Ohio. Their headquarters in Akron, Ohio was established in 1922, with Henry Shaw opening the first Akron store (LeRoy's Jewelers) downtown in 1910. Sterling is a wholly owned subsidiary of Signet Group plc (listed on the London and New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SIG), having been acquired in 1987. Sterling is the largest speciality fine jewelry company in the United States. The company operates chains of fine jewelery stores in the United States, with 1,383 stores in all 50 states as of 3 November 2007. Mark Light is the President and Chief Executive of Sterling Inc. Sterling's main competitors are independent jewelers, which make up around 70% of the market, and Zale Corporation, which operates the #2 US specialty retail jewelry chain. According to the company's 3 September 2007 Fact Sheet, Sterling has the #2 position in the US with a 4.3% market share of all jewelry purchases (compared to Wal-Mart at 4.6%, a substantial amount of that being costume jewelry, which Sterling does not sell). Sterling has a leading 8.8% market share in the speciality jeweler market share (highest in the sector), compared to Zale Corporation at 7.4% (#2 position).
Sterling has been one of the largest corporate sponsors of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and holds many fundraisers for the hospital, always donating all profits made from the fundraiser. Since 1999 $10.5 million dollars has been raised, with $2.4 million in 2006 alone. The company also sponsors many other charities and causes, such as the West Side Relay for Life benefitting cancer organizations.
Kay Jewelers
Sterling's main brand is Kay Jewelers, which uses the memorable "Every Kiss Begins with Kay" in its advertising campaigns. Established in 1916 in Reading, Pennsylvania by Sol and Edmund Kaufman when they opened in the corner of their father's furniture store, there are now 861 Kay Jewelers stores as of 4 August 2007.
Most Kay stores are in malls, but many new stores are being opened outside malls in power strips and lifestyle centers. Every store will have the similar basic collections, including the upscale designer jewelry brands LeVian and Sea Magic by Mikimoto, as well as the Leo Diamond, but every location will still have unique and varied selections as well.
Jared The Galleria of Jewelery
Sterling's main focus is now on growing their jewelery superstore concept, known as Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry. Jared stores are freestanding and carry about four to five times the selection of a typical mall jewelers location, including an extensive collection of unmounted diamonds and settings. Unlike many jewelry stores, Jared locations have a large custom design and repair department, a children's play area, and an espresso/refreshment lounge. Their TV commercials use "He Went to Jared!" as a memorable tagline. All stores carry TAG Heuer watches, with many carrying other luxury watch brands such as Cartier, Omega and Rolex. In addition, many high-end national jewelry brands are also carried, such as Scott Kay, Tacori, and Elara. There were 137 Jared stores as of 4 August 2007.
JB Robinson Jewelers and Regional Stores
Sterling also operates stores under the following regional names: JB Robinson Jewelers (established in 1929 by J.B. Robinson in Cleveland, Ohio), Marks & Morgan Jewelers (established 1909), Belden Jewelers (established 1910), Osterman Jewelers (established 1922), Shaw's Jewelers (established in 1910 by Henry Shaw), Weisfield Jewelers (established in 1917 by Leo Weisfield in Seattle, Washington), LeRoy's Jewelers (established in 1910 by Henry Shaw in Akron, Ohio), Rogers Jewelers (established 1910), Goodman Jewelers (established 1907), and Friedlander's Jewelers. The regional stores are located in malls, usually when there is already a Kay store in the mall. JB Robinson (also known as JBR), the largest regional chain, has different merchandise (such as Tissot Swiss watches) and is substantially different from a Kay store. JBR's tagline is "A Heritage of Trust Since 1929", but recently the trademarked tagline "Go Where Love Takes You" has appeared on their August 2007 catalog cover. JBR is positioned to target a very slightly higher market than Kay. There were 114 JB Robinson Jewelers locations on 3 February 2007.
The other regional chains have somewhat similar merchandising to Kay, but will still have many noticeable differences, often depending on the type of customers in that region. The regionals' (excluding JBR) collective tagline is "Go Straight to the Heart", which many people will connect to their radio jingle. Every regional brand has its own specialized logo, colors, and displays, as well as sometimes dramatic differences in merchandise depending on the clientele. For example, several Osterman locations carry Rolex and Omega watches. There were 352 regionally branded stores (including JB Robinson locations) on 4 August 2007.
Sterling Jewelers has expressed a desire to merge many of their regional stores under the JB Robinson name to form a second national mall brand, but assert that they need over 500 stores for national tv advertising to be profitable. They are in talks with rivals over potential buyouts to rapidly expand JB Robinson. New JBR stores are being opened in states that previously only had Kay and regional nameplates, and some regional stores are gradually being converted to JBR.
Previous Nameplates
Previous store brands and nameplates that Sterling Jewelers Inc. used to own or use include "Sterling Jewelers" (original Sterling brand), "Hudson-Goodman Jewelers" (original Sterling brand), "Adison Jewelers" (Osterman acquisition), "Orange Blossom Jewelers" (Osterman acquisition), "Ringmaker's" (Ringmaker's and Allen's acquisition), "Allen's Jewelers" (Ringmaker's and Allen's acquisition), "Marcus" fine jewelry counters in department stores (Kay acquisition), and "Black, Starr & Frost" (Kay acquisition).
Exclusive Jewelry Brands
Sterling Jewelers Inc. carries a growing number of exclusive fine jewelry brands, such as the Leo Diamond and Sea Magic by Mikimoto cultured pearls. Jared stores exclusively carry the "ideal ideal-cut" Peerless Diamond and Hearts Desire diamond collections, along with the Veneto collection of sterling silver. Sterling exclusively promotes "Perfect Partner" matching jewelry ensembles. LeVian is another showcased brand, though it is not exclusive.