National Jeweler Hall of Fame 2008 - (Page 10)

MAJORS 20th Annual Retailer Hall of Fame 2008 Helzberg makes reinvention its mantra Photo credit: Mark Steele By Joseph Dobrian NORTH KANSAS CITY, MO.—A retailer of any size must be nimble at adapting to the changing needs of the consumer, flow easily with macro trends that impact business conditions, and seize upon the advantages offered by the latest technologies. The biggest lesson that H. Marvin Beasley has learned in nearly 50 years of retailing is that the larger the operation, the more crucial change is to staying on the leading edge. Beasley, the chairman and chief executive officer of North Kansas City, Mo.-based Helzberg Diamonds, has made a name at retail chain operations nationwide. Starting out in the 1960s with Gunst Corp., a wholesale distribution company, he moved in 1972 to Best Products Co.— then the largest U.S. catalog showroom operator. He served as vice president of the jewelry division from 1983 to 1989 before joining Helzberg, where he held various executive titles before rising to his current position in 2004. The latest two initiatives that Beasley is considering for Helzberg are a shift away from mall stores toward more freestanding units, and creating a new and distinct Web-based operation. “The trouble with malls is that so often, in the center court, you’ll see us in one corner, Zales in another, Kay Jewelers in another—and we Photo credit: Mark Steele Left: H. Marvin Beasley, chairman and CEO of Helzberg Diamonds. Above: Helzberg Diamonds is looking to move away from its mall base to more free-standing stores, like this one at right in Snellville, Ga. The mall store is in Park Meadows, Colo., in the Denver area. all look alike,” he says. “We’re doing whatever we can to make ourselves different, in terms of color, tagging the merchandise, and the biggest change we’ve made in the past couple of years is to become very strict about not negotiating on price.” Helzberg’s main competitors are also making price adjustments, and for good reason, Beasley says. “All of us understand that to make money, you have to have an acceptable gross margin, and this is more of a challenge when you’re paying more and more for utilities, for advertising or for your employees’ health care,” he says. Moreover, better goods are getting harder to procure as the middle market consolidates, but Beasley expects this will benefit larger jewelers such as Helzberg in the long run. “You’re going to see more manufacturers selling directly to larger jewelers, and more wholesalers going out of business,” Beasley says. “You saw the same development in the grocery business in the 1960s, when the supermarket could offer significantly lower prices than the corner grocer.” However, Beasley warns, larger retailers will have to stay alert to customer requirements or else their competitive advantage will evaporate. He cites the rapid decline and collapse of his old company, Best Products, as an example. “One of Best’s main competitors, Ward’s TV, was pretty well put out of business by Best,” Beasley recalls. “But the company reinvented itself as Circuit City, a perfect example of a company that woke up and realized that the old format wasn’t working. Our main failure at Best was that we didn’t do the same thing a few years later. We didn’t realize how mass merchandising and specialty retailing had changed the picture. We rested on our laurels too long and failed to notice that the customer no longer had the HELZBERG >page 15 10 I National Jeweler I 20th Annual Retailer Hall of Fame 2008 www.nationaljewelernetwork.com http://www.nationaljewelernetwork.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of National Jeweler Hall of Fame 2008

National Jeweler Hall of Fame 2008
Contents
Alfredo Molina
Michael Pollak
H. Marvin Beasley
Past Inductees

National Jeweler Hall of Fame 2008

https://www.nxtbookmedia.com