Spokeswoman Melissa Berryhill said Sam's has been very pleased with sales results to date, and that a roll out chainwide will be completed by the beginning of the retailer's new fiscal year on Feb.
1, 2001. Berryhill was not able to offer specifics on the pace of the roll out or how many clubs would have the new program in advance of the holiday season. However, jewelry was not one of the categories featured in the Sam's holiday catalog recently mailed to members.
The changes to the jewelry department are the result of Sam's decision in April 1999 to not renew its contract with Jan Bell Marketing, the company that previously operated the jewelry departments. Jan Bell staffed the approximately 270-sq.-ft. departments, managed the inventory and paid Sam's a tenancy fee of 9% of net sales. The typical merchandise offering consisted of 300 jewelry items, 100 watches and 200 other items such as fragrances, figurines, sunglasses and writing instruments.
With Sam's in control, the size of the department and the number of skus hasn't changed. The big difference is the overall appearance and inclusion of some high-end name brands and higher price points.
The Sam's Club in Springdale, Ark., featured watches by Cartier, Breitling, Tag Heuer and Omega priced at $3,444, $2,698, $2,249 and $1,749 respectively. Previously, Movado brand watches in the $500 to $800 range were the most expensive found at Sam's.
The assortment of gold jewelry now includes expensive products, such as an assortment of a dozen gold diamond rings priced in excess of $2,000. A white gold necklace with nine carats of diamonds was $5,617.
A display case was added to the rectangular jewelry bullpen, which occupies the same front of store location as the old fixture. It features an assortment of department store brand fragrances and finer quality gift items such as Mont Blanc pens, Waterford and Baccarat crystal, and Limoge figurines.
The black fixture package gives the department a classy look, to the extent that is possible in a typical warehouse club environment with a concrete floor. The previous fixture was royal blue and white.
Jan Bell has known for more than a year it would no longer be operating the jewelry departments, so it has been selling down inventory and not restocking certain items. Despite a contribution from the jewelry department that wasn't as strong as it could have been, Sam's has managed to post same store sales growth in the upper single digits. If club members greet the new brands and pricier offerings with even a modest degree of enthusiasm, potentially large comp increases in jewelry could boost total store results.
As for Jan Bell, Sam's decision to operate its own jewelry department ends an affiliation with the club industry that goes back to 1984 and Price Club. When Price Club and Costco merged in 1990, the combined company decided to operate its own jewelry departments. Jan Bell still had deals with Pace and Sam's, but when Sam's bought the Pace division from Kmart in 1994, Jan Bell was left with one customer who accounted for 93% of its revenue.
With so many eggs in one basket and perhaps sensing that Sam's would eventually decide to directly operate its own jewelry departments, Jan Bell acquired the Mayor's Jewelers chain of 24 stores in July 1998. Less than a year later, Sam's said it didn't plan to extend its contract with the company. Jan Bell has since changed its name to Mayors Jewelers and operates 32 stores.
