Fred Meyer Jewelers Gets Ready for the JCK Show
JCK connected with Julie Keeney, vice president of Fred Meyer Jewelers, to talk about what the retailer is looking forward to at the JCK Show, how they strategize their event, the brands they look for, and more, all below.
How many years have you been coming to the show?
Wow, for as long as I can remember we have had a team at JCK! I believe that our team has been represented at the entirety of JCK shows except for 2021.
What are some of your customer favorite brands that you stock in store that showcase at JCK?
Our customers love Kallati, Effy, Cirari, and Truly by Zac Posen. We also have many vendors that support our internal brands, which is very important to our core business.
How do you plan your time at the JCK Show? Do you schedule a lot of visits, wander about the aisles, or a bit of both?
We do both. We all build schedules to see our vendor partners, and in recent years we have also included time for JCK Talks and focused time to browse for new looks and ideas.
What are you most looking forward to this year?
I always enjoy the camaraderie. Our team gets to spend time with each other and our vendor partners, and we enjoy the various events at night where we have the opportunity to network with other members of the industry.
What's the coolest or most memorable thing you've discovered during your time at the show?
A few years ago, I appreciated a presentation where AI was used to come up with design ideas that would appeal to a particular customer group. Last year it was fun to see the innovative lab-grown diamond shapes.
How are the recent surge in gold prices impacting your business, and is there anything you're doing to plan accordingly for shopping this year? The same question can be asked for tariffs.
Those customers that want gold are still buying. In the industry, we worry about the high price, but today’s customer doesn’t remember when it was so much less. Jewelry is not something the customer shops for so frequently that pricing is closely noticed, like the price of eggs we are all experiencing. We will be continuously looking at ways to meet our customer’s entry price points, where gold is no longer going to fit that bill.
As far as tariffs are concerned, we have been in a lot of conversations with our partners. We have such longstanding relationships; we are confident that together we will find a path forward.
Fred Meyer Jewelers is a 127-store retail chain, but its story began in 1973 with a single shop in Albany, Oregon. Back then, customers could visit to their showroom to purchase jewels from a catalog. Today, shoppers can visit locations throughout Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, and Alaska—as well as online.
With brand names like Effy, Kallati, Rembrandt Charms, Cirari, and a number of exclusive store brands, the retailer has a generous array of sources to keep its showrooms well stocked with product all year long.
JCK connected with Julie Keeney, vice president of Fred Meyer Jewelers, to talk about what the retailer is looking forward to at the JCK Show, how they strategize their event, the brands they look for, and more, all below.
How many years have you been coming to the show?
Wow, for as long as I can remember we have had a team at JCK! I believe that our team has been represented at the entirety of JCK shows except for 2021.
What are some of your customer favorite brands that you stock in store that showcase at JCK?
Our customers love Kallati, Effy, Cirari, and Truly by Zac Posen. We also have many vendors that support our internal brands, which is very important to our core business.
How do you plan your time at the JCK Show? Do you schedule a lot of visits, wander about the aisles, or a bit of both?
We do both. We all build schedules to see our vendor partners, and in recent years we have also included time for JCK Talks and focused time to browse for new looks and ideas.
What are you most looking forward to this year?
I always enjoy the camaraderie. Our team gets to spend time with each other and our vendor partners, and we enjoy the various events at night where we have the opportunity to network with other members of the industry.
What's the coolest or most memorable thing you've discovered during your time at the show?
A few years ago, I appreciated a presentation where AI was used to come up with design ideas that would appeal to a particular customer group. Last year it was fun to see the innovative lab-grown diamond shapes.
How are the recent surge in gold prices impacting your business, and is there anything you're doing to plan accordingly for shopping this year? The same question can be asked for tariffs.
Those customers that want gold are still buying. In the industry, we worry about the high price, but today’s customer doesn’t remember when it was so much less. Jewelry is not something the customer shops for so frequently that pricing is closely noticed, like the price of eggs we are all experiencing. We will be continuously looking at ways to meet our customer’s entry price points, where gold is no longer going to fit that bill.
As far as tariffs are concerned, we have been in a lot of conversations with our partners. We have such longstanding relationships; we are confident that together we will find a path forward.