What are the prerequisites for joining?
The Independent Jewellers Collective (IJC) are currently partnering with Australia’s finest proactive Jewellers. With no sign-up fees or any lock in contracts, we are welcoming partners with the highest ethical standards and professional integrity Australia wide. All applicants are required to satisfy a standard credit application, provide store imagery and high-resolution business logo/s.
What are the benefits of joining?
We empower independent retailers to engage in the most unique and innovative ways, and partner with specialists in their field to bring the most up to date expertise and assistance where it counts. We offer a hands-on approach in our offerings and all IJC partners will receive structured annual visits from our management team, to assist them with all key areas of modern retailing, as well as ongoing training and development throughout the year. Read more about our benefits.
What unique benefits are offered?
The IJC vision is to create an unparalleled level of one on one support, a true partnership, ensuring independents stay relevant to the upcoming generations of jewellery buyers. By re-educating, rejuvenating and elevating jewellers and supply partners on a new journey of modern retailing, aligning them with vital business checkups, recommended proven strategies and critical best practice initiatives.
Working with a dedicated team of industry experts with over 70 years combined experience, devoting all efforts in improving the profitability and ultimately the survival of independent business.
Our bespoke offering brings together the best there is in financial acumen, leading technology, strategic marketing, innovation and business know-how.
The retail world is ever-changing and being innovative is a necessity. It takes raw ideas and a great team to stay ahead of the game. Our brilliant team brings to life original ideas that keep our partners ahead of their competitors. Read more about our benefits.
What is the cost of membership?
We have a low monthly membership fee – this is used to contribute to our extensive marketing and operational support.
At IJC we give back to our partners by providing them rebates to utilise on our extensive menu of business services, typically providing them several thousands of dollars annually to directly assist them grow sales or reduce costs.
What level of marketing support do you offer?
At the Independent Jewellers Collective – we do things differently.
Our marketing team have years of experience in creating specialist jewellery campaigns and know that creating great content that truly resonates with the target audience requires knowledge of what’s going on in our industry.
Nobody knows their customer better than our partners - so we work together as their creative and strategic jewellery marketing partner.
We aim to work with our partners on drilling down on who their target customer or potential really is, guiding them on refining their marketing message and product mix to ensure they’re in business for generations more.
Our focus will be refocusing our partners on their point of difference, strategically elevating our partners brand and ensure its relevant to the upcoming generations of jewellery buyer.
In addition to branding strategies, we will deliver a suggested strategic calendar of events for our partners to plan their promotional activities around, ensuring all modern touch points are covered and consistent. Including aligning with the international shopping events and traditional jewellery peak trade periods.
Our campaigns will provide our partners with a cohesive strategy encompassing in-store support, direct marketing, social media, paid advertising, training and more.
What is the basis of your B2B and internal digital technology?
The IJC Management team are well versed in all aspects of digital strategies and marketing best practices, with years of experience in developing and administering such platforms. We have the added advantage in that our Chief Technology Officer is a first-class programmer himself, so we have the luxury to integrate our offerings with the best of any third-party platforms and develop our own infrastructure in house as well.
We have custom built our Ezi-Billing Platform that has an integrated B2B dashboard for all internal communications and resources as well as its own bespoke B2B order platform that we will use to work with our supply partners to assist them with sell-through in any way we can.
In addition, we have aligned with the best e-commerce and direct marketing solution partners, to grow our stores digital businesses as well as their bricks and mortar offerings.
Technology at IJC is something we are very strong in and we will no doubt continue to evolve internally and partner with the best third-party service providers moving forward so we can react fast and always stay nimble in this space.
What other promotional support is on offer?
We want to help our partners attract the right clientele with simple consistent modern styling and messaging that hits the spot and truly connects with their target audience.
We will be moving away from the old-fashioned one size fits all approach of a standardised POS pack, will be upgrading / polishing the look of stores by introducing, modern signage, and simplified merchandising systems, this will incorporate all the items listed below and more.
Touch points include:
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Look books, Printed Catalogues & flyers / Digital solutions
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In-store support
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Curated image library
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Social content with ‘click to buy’
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Administered EDMs
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Website Updates, Gift Guides, Blog posts, Future Shoppable Catalogues & More
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TVC / Radio, Press production
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Gifts with Purchase promotions
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Visual Merchandising assistance
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Database growth strategies and more
Do you support local jewellery manufacturers?
IJC will work alongside many local jewellery manufacturers and supply partners. IJC will not purchase and hold any items of stock, instead we will exclusively rely on the expertise of our supply partners. The best support we can offer in this climate is to provide the most effective - communication platforms for support to supply through to retail, which we have as part of our communication dashboard. Everyone needs sell through, and between our own B2B offerings and our hands-on approach to support – we aim to provide as much education to both our retail and supply partners to keep them aligned and drive sales. This is best support we can offer the industry as a whole.
What Training and Education is offered?
Training and Education is at the core of everything that IJC stands for. Our business model ensures that all partners are building up reserves to use specifically on training or services to better their business overall.
All IJC partners will receive a comprehensive Business Performance Checklist that will offer them scores and feedback on every business KPI. They will also receive a first in industry subscription to a complete sales, management and personal well-being package from one of our IJC Vault partners as part of their membership.
We will host several training events throughout the year including state-based training annually to allow for key staff and managers to attend sessions in a very cost-effective solution.
We will also be hosting relevant International education and networking trips.
We believe our smaller group size, strong training and development focus and our one on one assistance is one of the biggest draw-cards for IJC and it is something we are very passionate about.
What strategies and support will you offer retailers to cope with today’s tougher retail environment?
Everything we offer at IJC aims at specific one on one support for our partners, our business model also ensures that our stores are always accruing funds to make use of our vault of services. Upon joining the Independent Jewellers Collective, partners will receive a FREE Business Health Check, covering staffing levels, stock holding, merchandising, marketing and overall business performance and profitability. All delivered in a “real world” solution package, this is at the heart of our offer and recommendations will be provided on what levers to pull and when to make the biggest impact on their bottom line.
Why should you join?
IJC is perfect for proactive retailers that want to grow their business and share in a tight network of like-minded business owners. We offer a very simple and inexpensive business model that offers maximum hands on support in all the areas that they would need help in. We have a very experienced management team that specialise in assistance for independent jewellery retail. We also have some unique third-party partnerships that we offer in our IJC Vault of services to ensure they have access to specialists in every area of their business. We are in business, to keep you in business for generations to come.