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Bloomberg
Signet Jewelers Ltd, the owner of jewellery chains Jared and Kay, gave another sign the US jewellery industry is past the worst of it, with preliminary comparable sales turning positive in August following a challenging start to the summer. Shares rose.
After reporting a 31.3% decline in same-store sales in the second quarter ended on August 1, the company reported a stronger start to the third quarter. August same-store sales rose about 10.9%, it said, and online sales rose 65.2%.
Signet, which also owns Zales, joins rival jewellery retailers in reporting a recent turn for the better. After a difficult start to the pandemic, Tiffany & Co returned to profitability in the summer quarter, while Macy’s Inc said Wednesday luxury items, including diamonds, are performing disproportionately well.
For years, the jewellery industry had been hesitant to embrace online shopping because it sells special and
expensive items that customers want to see and touch before buying. That’s changing quickly during the pandemic. Second-quarter North America e-commerce sales grew 72.7% for the company.