IDEX Online Research: Specialty Jewelers Challenges - Loss of Market Share & Share of Wallet

In the fourth analysis of this weekly series, IDEX Online Research analyst Ken Gassman examines the challenges of loss of market share and share of wallet poses to specialty jewelers in the U.S.

For the first half of the decade, U.S. specialty jewelers have generally enjoyed good business conditions. However, there are some challenges facing the jewelry industry as we move into the second half of the decade.

A decade ago, specialty jewelers held 50 percent share of the total U.S. market; that has steadily declined to a 48 percent share in 2006, as the graph below illustrates.

Source: US Dept of Commerce

 

Jewelry sales growth has slowed over the past two decades, as the graph below illustrates, though it is expected to remain at current levels for the foreseeable future.

 

Source: JIRI

 

 

Not only have specialty jewelers lost market share and jewelry industry growth slowed, but jewelers have lost consumers’ share of wallet. In 2006, only about 0.8 percent of consumer spending was for jewelry, down from 1 percent a decade ago (graph below).

 

Source: US Dept of Commerce

 

 

Specialty jewelers account for about 22 percent of the total retail outlets for jewelry and 48 percent of total U.S. jewelry sales. Many other merchants vie for consumers’ spending on jewelry, as the graph at below illustrates. 

 

Source: US Dept of Commerce

 

The top four specialty jewelers account for about 24 percent of total industry sales. This is far below many other retail categories where the top specialty merchants account for 50 percent or more of total industry sales, as the graph at right illustrates. Clearly, the U.S. jewelry industry remains fragmented.

 

Source: US Dept of Commerce

 

Next week: the fifth and last part of the series, Industry Consolidation.