Look Book

26 www.thejewelrybook.com U P C O M I N G H O L I D AY S M A R K E T I N G RIBBON CUTTING Bow-making is an art that Hands Jewelers in Iowa City, Iowa, likes to share. For 25 years, bow-making classes have been part of its annual Cookies & Carats affair that kicks off its holiday season. Thirty-minute classes are held on the Sunday afternoon after Thanksgiving, where a store gift wrapper teaches others to make a signature rose-shape bow available in myriad colors. Owner Bill Nusser resurrected the bow in the mid-1980s after a fi ve-year cost-saving hiatus. After recreating them, Nusser vowed never again to let a package leave without a rose made in a stiff synthetic satin with a nice sheen. The class is festive and serves as a bonding experience for families who know the bow well. "One client told me that when his wife saw the bow under the Christmas tree, she knew she was getting a gift from Hands," adds Nusser. Magazine Marketing Davis Jewelers' holiday gift guide has evolved over the past 15 years from a product catalog produced in house to a pro- fessionally produced magazine executed by a custom publishing house. Ashley Davis Sigman, vice president of the Louisville, Ky.-based store, decided to enlist outside help to elevate the look of its holiday mailer. Today, it is a proper magazine fi lled with articles about brands she carries (think Roberto Coin) and pictures of products she has in store. A beautiful vendor-supplied model cover on thick paper stock com- mands attention, and a letter in the front of the book invites readers to the issue. An insert with a $50 store gift card—a store- instituted staple for years—completes the tome. The result? "Last year was the fi rst year we worked with the new look, and we had our best December ever," Sigman says. Bow-making is an art that Hands Jewelers in Iowa City, Iowa, likes to share. For 25 years, bow-making classes have been part of its annual Cookies & Carats. Davis Jewelers' holiday gift guide has evolved over the past 15 yearss.

• Cover