Daniel’s Jewelers Caters To A Diverse Customer Base With A Broad Range Of Price Points And Designs

Daniel’s Jewelers didn’t start out focusing on Hispanic customers, but its stores have always been located in close proximity to areas with Hispanic populations. “Once that became clear and we saw where the market was going and saw the growth, we stepped on the accelerator a bit and figured out how we could tweak the business and specifically cater to that population,” said David Sherwood, Daniel’s Jewelers’ CEO, and a grandson of the company’s founder.

Daniel’s, which was founded in 1948 and is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, has been helping millions of families in their journey to achieve the American Dream. With 106 stores located mainly in California – many units are clustered in and around Los Angeles, and there are also stores in Las Vegas, and locations in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.

Daniel’s Jewelers is growing along with its audience. The nation’s Hispanic ranks were 62.5 million, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates for 2021. That number will swell to 74.8 million by 2030, according to Statista.

The company is expanding to the southeast with three new units in Miami. “Florida, particularly Miami, hits all the marks,” Sherwood said. “Miami is one of the most diverse cities in the country. We know that once we plant a flag in Miami, there’s also Orlando and Tampa. We looked at large urban markets in the southeast and decided that Miami was the top priority for us.”

Daniel’s first store, in Bell Gardens, California, catered to migrant workers who left the Midwest dust storms in the Forties and Fifties to find a better a better life. “There were tons of folks who just picked up whatever they had and headed west,” Sherwood said, noting that post-World War II Los Angeles was exploding with growth. “Car factories were opening up, GIs were coming home and houses were being built. You could find a job and start from nothing and begin a life again. As folks took another step up, buying a house, finding a girl, they celebrated those milestones with jewelry.”

Close proximity to Hispanic populations “is just where our stores have always been,” Sherwood said. “Instead of migrants from the Midwest, it was immigrants from Mexico and Central America.”

Daniel’s has always been focused on families and creating long-term multigenerational relationships in the local communities it serves. The company aims to make jewelry more accessible, unlike some high end jewelry brands, which treat products as if they’re all too precious.

The jeweler sells pre-owned Rolex watches starting at $6,000 with newer models reaching $50,000. “The only places that sell these watches snub their nose at my core customer,” Sherwood said. “They don’t look the part or act the part to feel comfortable in that environment. We started carrying the pre-owned watches because we had that demand. If there’s a particular item that we don’t have, we can source it for them.”

Two thirds to three quarters of Daniel’s stores are located in malls. To take advantage of the foot traffic and invite customers to stop and check out the store, Daniel’s offers a free gift with any purchase. Recently, the company was giving away a crystal puffed heart pendant, a $29.95 value.

“Our goal is to be able to serve that entire breadth of consumers,” Sherwood said. “Someone can come in and buy a simple gift for $20, but because it’s jewelry, it’s different than other forms of retail. People generally don’t know much about jewelry, so there’s a trust factor. If you can get someone to trust you, you can form a relationship with someone even at the $20 level or even with a basic jewelry repair, and you become their jeweler.”

To offer lower price points, Daniel’s gets creative with metals such as Tungsten and Titanium, which are less costly than gold. The jeweler also is focused on lab-grown diamonds, which give consumers more bang for their buck. For example, a 1/4-carat Signature Certificate EcoLove round diamond solitaire ring in 14-karat white gold, is $799.95. There’s also higher-priced engagement rings on Daniel’s web site such as a Signature Certificate EcoLove 3-carat princess cut diamond solitaire in 14-karat gold, for just under $20,000.

In addition to selling jewelry, Daniel’s offers financing options to make products more affordable to consumers. “Customers are beginning their financial life with Daniel’s,” said Leon Brujis, a partner at Palladium Equity Partners, which has invested in Daniel’s and who also sits on its board. “Many customers have no credit or very low credit and we’re a pathway for them as they begin their financial journey,” Brujis said.

As consumers grow and their incomes increase, there’s a whole range of statement pieces at higher prices. “One man’s statement piece is another man’s starting piece,” Sherwood said. “We have beautiful jewelry at every price point. It’s merchandised to fit a price point, so a $1,000 ring might have a bunch of small diamonds in the head, and that same kind of design could be $5,000 or $10,000 or $20,000 because the ring has one large diamond in the head. We try to allow for that for people as their financial situation changes and their tastes change.”

One of the ways Daniel’s caters to evolving tastes is with a lifetime trade-in program. “The person who buys that $1,000 ring because that’s what they can afford for their engagement when they’re 23 years old, can come back in a few years and trade it in for a larger piece,” Sherwood said. “If they paid $1,000 for that piece, they’ll get $1,000 toward their next piece and that allows them to grow into the jewelry that they dream of.”