Diamond Dashes Are a Store’s Best Friend
Jewelers everywhere have learned: If you really want to get people to run to your store, dangle a platinum-set engagement ring in front of them. Take these two recent success stories:
Tacori and Michael C. Fina (New York City) Some 150 couples—a 17 percent bump from 2009—registered for Tacori and Michael C. Fina’s second annual scavenger hunt, “Diamond Dash: Dash for a Diamond & a Cure.” Participants had to be unmarried and willing to get engaged on the spot if they won. While there was no registration fee, charitable donations to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society were encouraged. (Store founder Charlie Fina passed away from leukemia in 2009.) To date, the store estimates that $25,000 was raised as a result of the 2010 Dash and related events. The winning couple walked away with a $20,000 Tacori ring—and Michael C. Fina brought in even more: “We sold 20 diamond engagement rings as a result of the dash last year,” says Teegan Conti, the store’s public relations and special events coordinator.
A 1.5 ct. t.w. round diamond in a platinum mounting from the Modern Collection; $15,000; Ritani, White Plains, N.Y.; 888-474-8264; ritani.com
Ritani and Fink’s Jewelers (Richmond and Roanoke, Va.) For its first-ever Ritani Diamond Dashes, Fink’s Jewelers received some 1,000 entries between its locations in Richmond and Roanoke, Va. The jeweler picked 350 couples per store; dashers had to be at least 18 years old and submit a compelling short essay about why they deserved to win the Tacori platinum and diamond engagement rings. Fink’s worked with SCVNGR to create both events, which marketing director Lindsey Kirby says generated tremendous brand awareness and visibility. “For towns the size of Roanoke and Richmond, the Dashes were kind of like an Amazing Race at a local level,” she says. Fink’s made numerous wedding-related sales immediately following the Dashes, and the bright yellow T-shirts worn by participants are still spotted around town. Not surprisingly, Fink’s has already stockpiled a whole year’s worth of save-the-dates. Says Kirby: “We are hosting nine Diamond Dashes in 2011.”
Flower Power
Platinum tulip brooch with 35.75 cts. t.w. square-cut rubies, 44.78 cts. t.w. square-cut sapphires, and 19.67 cts. t.w. diamonds; $370,000; Oscar Heyman, New York City; 800-642-1912; oscarheyman.com