HOW TO BECOME A JEWELER A SIMPLE GUIDE TO SUCCESS

1
Paolo Costagli www.paolocostagli.com
2
HOW TO BECOME A JEWELER A SIMPLE GUIDE TO SUCCESS
As in every other profession, you must have a
passion for your work. To become a successful
jeweler, you have to feel a deep love for
gemstones, for gold jewelry, and feel the call
inside you.  This will drive you during the
various challenging moments of creating a career
from zero, like in my case. I am, in fact, one of
the few jewelry designers that was not born into
a family of jewelers. I came to New York with no
connections, no community and no initial
capital.  All I had when I arrived in New York
was enormous enthusiasm, excitement, and
curiosity for colored gemstones. I was thirsty to
learn everything about jewelry design, jewelry
making and of course selling jewelry.
3
(No Transcript)
4
BECOME A GRADUATE GEMOLOGIST, TO DEEPLY
UNDERSTAND PRECIOUS STONES
As part of the process of how to become a
jeweler, I recommend to get a Graduate Gemologist
degree from G.I.A. . This is important because it
will give you a strong basic knowledge of any
gemstone that you will use as a distinctive
feature in addition to your own unique designs.
Becoming a Graduate Gemologist will also serve
you during buying trips in the country of
origins, when it is not uncommon to find
simulants mixed in parcel of colored
stones. Moreover, it will give authority when you
will need to explain the detailed properties of a
gemstones when selling to the final client, who
will trust your expertise. The G.G. course will
also give you the opportunity to forge
friendships that could eventually develop into a
network of fellow members of the trade that you
could do business with years later on during your
career.
5
STUDY THE MASTERS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT MAKES FINE
JEWELRY
A very important step in becoming a fine jeweler
is to learn the details of the quality of the
workmanship used from the 20s to the 50s by
American and French famous jewelry houses.
Studying the construction of signed jewelry, such
as observing the back part of every single signed
jewel that you can get your hands on, the shape
of the holes, the smoothness of the surfaces, the
cleanliness of lines, the absence of metal to the
limit, the softness of the hinges, the comfort of
the fit, all will give you the benchmarks for
constructing your own jewelry collection.
6
GET TO THE CUTTING EDGE OF THE INDUSTRY BY
PARTICIPATING IN GEM AND JEWELRY SHOWS
When becoming a jeweler, it is incredibly
important to participate at least two shows
within the jewelry trade, such as the GJX and
the AGTA in Tucson every February and the JCK in
Las Vegas. At these jewelry shows, you will have
the opportunity to look at a humongous variety of
gemstones, asking as many questions as you
possibly can to the dealers who are, generally,
very knowledgeable, and also to understand the
latest trends in jewelry design. The knowledge
gained at one of these jewelry shows can help you
adjust your style accordingly without, of course,
copying anybody.
7
CREATE A COHESIVE COLLECTION TO PRESENT TO
RETAILERS
Once you have found your own inspirations and
your own unique, cohesive style, it is important
to start organizing the individual jewelry
categories.

• In my personal experience a brand new collection
  should be made initially of the following items
• 4 necklaces
• 10 pairs of earrings
• 5 rings
• 2 bracelets
• 2 bangles
• This configuration would be sufficient to display
  a two pad cohesive presentation that can be
  offered to any potential retail and will project
  a solid idea of what the collection is about to
  the final private client.

8
ASSIGN CORRECT RETAIL PRICES THAT MAKE SENSE IN
THE SPECIFIC MARKET YOU ARE TARGETING.
While working on the categories for the
collection, you need to research the retail
prices of other comparable silhouettes within
your target market in order to position you own
retail prices correctly.  One of the mistakes
that I did at the beginning of my career was not
to look around and see what prices other brand
were using for a jewel comparable to mine.
9
FIND A REASONABLE MANUFACTURER TO SUPPORT YOUR
PRODUCTION
From my experience of becoming a jeweler, it is
important to find a good manufacturer that is
available and excited to work with on new
projects, with the understanding that he/she will
have to support you with quick alterations at any
given moment. Quick alterations are one of the
fundamental keys of success when working with
historical retailers. No matter how trustworthy
you feel a manufacturer is, do not forget to have
them sign a simple, but clear, non-disclosure
agreement (NDA). With the signed NDA, they commit
not disclose information regarding your designs
to third parties.
10
GET THE COLLECTION PHOTOGRAPHED BY A PROFESSIONAL
TO GET MORE SALES
In our digital era, good, if not excellent,
pictures of a jewelry collection are becoming a
fundamental tool for various reasons for
insurance purposes it is necessary to photograph
every jewel as it would be identified in a much
easier way in case of theft  sales associates in
retail stores sell the jewelry they have
available by sending pictures to their clients
half away across the world on a continuous basis
 clients visiting your website expect to be able
to see various views of the product you present
in order to trust you enough to purchase it.
11
CREATE A LIST OF RETAILERS TO FEATURE YOUR
COLLECTION
Creating a list of retailers to feature your
collection is another fundamental step to
becoming a jeweler. Once your unique jewelry
collection is in place and photographed, you have
to create a wish list of prestigious retail
stores that want showcase it this could be
difficult at times because probably every other
jeweler wants to be in the same retailers you
want to be in.
I remember clearly that it took me five years and
4 very detailed interviews to get in the one of
the most prestigious jewelry store in the United
States. It takes a lot of perseverance and
determination to continue knocking at the same
doors that seem inexpugnable we just have to
remember that it is never personal and our
consistency, our effort, to better our jewelry
design will be recognized for sure.
12
(No Transcript)
13
INVEST IN A GOOD WEBSITE WITH A GENEROUS RETURN
POLICY TO SELL JEWELRY TO THE WORLD
Never like today, having a good website is
fundamental to become a jeweler. It is a
necessary investment, a real presentation of your
product to the world. My team and I spent
countless hours building our website and
tailoring it precisely to the image we want to
project to our jewelry clients. In my case, I
think of our website as our store front
therefore, my team and I continuously update it
with new pictures, new content, new ways to
welcome our visitors. We work to improve the user
experience of our site, by making it easier to
navigate and merchandising the products in a
concise manner.
14
Thank You
Address 555 MADISON AVENUE AT 56TH STREET SUITE
1300 Pincode 10022 CountryUnited State