The importance of pricing your jewellery properly
Blog
As part of the new book ‘Start and Grow a Profitable Jewellery Business’ with Jessica Rose, a handful of talented and successful, handmade jewellers were invited to be interviewed about various different elements of their business.
Each jeweller was chosen specifically to talk about a particular area of focus within their business which they were doing brilliantly at, to share their real life experience and demonstrate how its done. One of these areas of focus was pricing…
Knowing how to price your handmade jewellery isn’t always easy, and although there are basic formulas, to some extent, pricing is an art more than a science and it’s something you will have to adjust numerous times.
For this chapter of the book, Jess invited established handmade jeweller Sima Vaziry who has many years of experience in pricing her work, to share her top tips and advice on the art of pricing!
Here’s what Sima had to say…
Sima at her studio
How long have you been a jeweller for?
I have been a jeweller for about twelve years. It is a second career after working for 25 years as a graphic designer.
How did you start making jewellery?
I was always artistically inclined, painting and crafting from a very young age. I became attracted to graphic arts as a means to overcome language and cultural barriers in my new life. After completing a diploma in graphic design, I went on to obtain her BA in Visual Communications (graphic design) at Ravensbourne and completed a Master’s at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, which led to a successful career as a graphic artist and designer.
I started making jewellery as a hobby while still working as a graphic designer and in 2008, I attended a number of evening and weekend jewellery classes, including courses at Holts Academy and Central Saint Martins. This helped me to discover what suited me and allowed me to best express my creative side. I started working from my kitchen and also undertook City Lit’s adult learning workshops.
I then developed a condition called fibromyalgia, which made me unable to continue working as a graphic designer. I was bed bound for a long time until I had the right treatment was found and managed to start moving again, but I was still unable to sit for long periods in front of a computer. I started designing and making more jewellery instead and I enjoyed it very much.
Friends and family started to show interest and ended up purchasing some of my pieces, which was very encouraging. Eventually, when people who I didn’t even know started buying my jewellery, I knew it could be the beginning of something more. To know that there were people out there who wanted to wear my creations was immensely satisfying.
I exhibited my jewellery for the first time at the Afghan Fashion Show in 2010, a charity event held in October. The evening proved to be a great success, raising awareness and money for charity and I was delighted to take part.
It was that evening that I serendipitously came to attention of the British Museum who were looking for items for their shop in support the major upcoming exhibition, Afghanistan: Crossroads of the ancient world, and they eventually chose twenty of my designs from my first collection, Hidden Heart. The Museum displayed and sold the pieces from its Grenville Room and online from 3 March to 17 July, 2011.
I felt very honoured and excited when my collection proved to be one of their most popular and fastest selling ranges ever, and some of those designs continue to be part of their core to this day. Since then, I was also commissioned to design a further five collections for the British Museum in support various major exhibitions and continue to supply them with jewellery.
Around that time, I realised that I could not continue working from home as I needed to produce bigger quantities so I found a shared studio space a fellow designer at Craft Central, which made production much easier. As I was feeling a little better physically, I was also able to start teaching at the London Jewellery School in Hatton Garden in April 2010 which was very enjoyable as I love to share the knowledge I have gained. Some time later, I moved to my own studio, still at Craft Central.
Now I work from my shop at the OXO Tower, Southbank, London, where I continue to make my collections, create bespoke items for private clients and supply the British Museum. I also pass on my knowledge through teaching and delivering talks in and around London and in 2021, I published a book called Patterns of Afghanistan.
My handmade and storytelling jewellery is inspired by Persian, Afghan and Middle East art, calligraphy, architecture and textures and is a contemporary interpretation of the traditional. It reflects the culture of my heritage and personal experiences, as well as the design disciplines acquired during my academic and professional life. My pieces are versatile and comfortable to wear in a modern world, whilst keeping their link to the ancient beauty inspiring them.
Sima’s logo design
have you always been confident in your pricing?
It was a learning curve at the beginning as I was used to selling my design skills but then had to take other factors into consideration like overheads, materials, packaging etc. It was also important to compete with other designers in the same level and I knew that it wouldn’t work as a business if I couldn’t make a profit and have a healthy cashflow.
have you ever had to raise your prices?
Yes I have, due to rising material and other costs though I have also reduced some prices to reflect when I have, for example, been able to source materials in larger quantities.
how did you go about doing this?
I reviewed the costs as well as changing overheads and adjusted accordingly.
How often do you revisit your prices?
I don’t really have a schedule for this – I just keep an eye on things and adjust as necessary.
Do you think it is important for jewellers to charge enough for their work?
It is crucial to charge enough as otherwise it can’t be a business and must make a profit if it is to survive. You don’t want to be in a downwards trajectory. It is also important to take all the costs, including hidden ones, into consideration.
How has pricing your jewellery helped your business to grow?
Pricing correctly allows for a healthy profit and helps with sales. This then allows for re-investment, expansion and taking next steps.
What one piece of advice would you give for anyone starting out right now?
Recognize your target customer/client. You should be able to describe exactly who they are, which age group, what interests they have, how much they like to spend etc. If you are aiming at very young customers then you will be making very different items with different pricing than for more established buyers. It is also worth bearing in mind that the end user of your work may not be the buyers – your customers may buy for their younger family members or spouses etc. so you have to appeal to them.
Anything else you’d love to share?
Make sure you are seen, go places where you can meet people and always wear your own work. Opportunities rarely present themselves if nobody knows about you.
Customer service is extremely important – you want your customers to trust you, feel safe and looked after, and to know that if things go wrong, you will solve their problem and not let them down.
Pay attention to detail, good workmanship and durability is important. Don’t confuse your clients and make the pieces easy to wear.
When selling to the trade, set yourself a minimum price and don’t go below it as they will negotiate hard with you, unless it is a huge marketing opportunity that will pay off in a different way like exposure.
Want to know more?
If you’d like to learn more about how to price your handmade jewellery properly and hear more from other jewellers like Sima, then you’ll find it all here in the new book - ‘Start and Grow a Profitable Jewellery Business’ with Jessica Rose.
want to learn more about pricing & setting up a jewellery business?
If you’d like to learn more about pricing and how to set up a jewellery business then why not consider becoming a member and joining our flagship programme - The Jewellery Business Bootcamp which is open for admissions at the start of every year. Click below to find out more…
