With nearly 40 years in the jewelry business, Joseph Jewelry is dedicated to “giving a seamless customization experience to customers that finishes with a masterpiece.” The company focuses on every aspect of the customer experience to accomplish this mission.
The brothers, and business partners, Joseph and Danny, began their journey in the jewelry business by mastering the art of fine jewelry design. With a quest to provide customized jewelry at an affordable price, they took a hands-on approach to run the family business. Today they staff master artisans, gemstone specialists, CAD designers, and a master hand engraver.
The innovative company was one of the first jewelers in the Seattle region to offer custom ring design using 3D technology. The wax image produced by a 3D printer gives clients a realistic model of the finished product before the ring creation begins. With designers on site, the company can make adjustments to custom pieces during the planning stage, without any additional cost to clients.
This forward-thinking company uses the latest technology in every part of their business from the showcases and store design to the way they build their rings. They lead with technological advances. Store manager, Anthony Hoag, notes, “We definitely use technology to distinguish us from our competition.”
The Problem
When Joseph Jewelry set out to renovate the store in Bellevue, Washington, the company evaluated every point of the customer experience to find ways to improve the process. Although the company specializes in custom pieces, customers often visit the store looking for ideas. When customers are unsure of what the perfect piece will look like, they often consider many designs from various showcases throughout the store.
As the manager watched customers select pieces to preview in different cases, he saw his staff fumbling for the correct key, struggling to open and close locks, and constantly unlocking and relocking the cases. Company leadership wanted customers to be comfortable while they browsed, looking for the perfect design for their occasion.
The management team knew there had to be a better way to keep the jewelry secure, without having a negative impact on the customer experience. Using a nearly century-old lock and key system was cumbersome for employees and frustrating for customers as they had to wait to see each piece they wanted to consider.
The Solution
With an eye on improving the customer experience without compromising the security required in a jewelry store, Joseph Jewelry partnered with Senseon to install their keyless locking system. Anthony Hoag concluded, “The Senseon system paired nicely with how we feel about technology. Before Senseon, we used the old school approach. When a tumbler fails, you’re replacing the mechanics of that. There’s really no way around it. Senseon uses an RFID device rather than a mechanical key device.”
“With the traditional key approach, first you have to make sure you’re not losing those keys. If the employee left their key in the showcase and stepped away, now it’s free access to everyone.”
The new technology not only improved the customer experience but improved security as well. With the new Senseon keyless locking system, the manager could assign each employee with an access card. There are no more keys that employees had to maintain. Now with a swipe of the card, the case opens. The case also automatically relocks after a designated time, eliminating the risk of an employee leaving the key in the tumbler or forgetting to relock the case. The manager also has the option of programming the cards to access certain cases or all cases, customizing employee access based on store needs.
With Senseon each employee has their own credential, relieving management of key management tasks.
Another major benefit of the new locking system is the aesthetics. The locking device is completely invisible to the customer, which improves the look of the store and ads a degree of sophistication.
Senseon’s undermount locking slides provide the seamless aesthetic Joseph Jewelry’s management was looking to achieve.
Now when an employee wants to open a case, they simply tap their RFID key card over the lock. Mr. Hoag, describes the customer experience, “I don’t know how many times we’ve opened the case and you get the, “Oh!” They get it, they see it.”
The Results
From both an aesthetic and security perspective, Joseph Jewelry found Senseon’s keyless access control system to meet every need. When it came time to open a new store in Seattle, Washington, the company enlisted the help of Senseon once again to provide their keyless locking system in the initial design rather than as a retrofit into an existing store. To learn more about how Senseon is transforming the jewelry business, visit our Jewelry Security page or contact us!
