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Industry Response to National Tragedy

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
Hi All,
I mostly lurk here as I don’t have any gorgeous jewelry of my own to share but will eventually be in the market for an engagement ring. I’ve been disappointed with a lot of the jewelry/diamond accounts that I follow as they have been either promoting their business or have been totally silent on the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

So far I’ve seen Jewels by Grace, Alex Park, IDJ, and CVB post but their responses were underwhelming, IMO.

I’m just curious if anyone else has noticed this or have seen companies posting thoughtful responses to these tragedies. I’m also curious to hear from those who are in the trade and who post here as to why they haven’t or won’t post.
 
Q

Queenie60

Guest
Hi All,
I mostly lurk here as I don’t have any gorgeous jewelry of my own to share but will eventually be in the market for an engagement ring. I’ve been disappointed with a lot of the jewelry/diamond accounts that I follow as they have been either promoting their business or have been totally silent on the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

So far I’ve seen Jewels by Grace, Alex Park, IDJ, and CVB post but their responses were underwhelming, IMO.

I’m just curious if anyone else has noticed this or have seen companies posting thoughtful responses to these tragedies. I’m also curious to hear from those who are in the trade and who post here as to why they haven’t or won’t post.

What do you want to hear from them? Maybe it's best that they keep their feelings to themselves as they cater to a wide group of PS'rs. Just my thoughts.
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
What do you want to hear from them? Maybe it's best that they keep their feelings to themselves as they cater to a wide group of PS'rs. Just my thoughts.

I want to hear from them that they believe Black Lives Matter, that they’re taking steps within their company to support Black employees, that they’re doing work to promote inclusivity and diversity, that they’re signing petitions, that they’re donating, etc.

I don’t want to support companies that are doing nothing right now or are being quiet about their efforts...::shrug::
 

Yekutiel

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 11, 2007
Messages
122
I want to hear from them that they believe Black Lives Matter, that they’re taking steps within their company to support Black employees, that they’re doing work to promote inclusivity and diversity, that they’re signing petitions, that they’re donating, etc.

I don’t want to support companies that are doing nothing right now or are being quiet about their efforts...::shrug::

we believe every life matters. this forum is about Diamonds and Jewelry.
 

monarch64

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 12, 2005
Messages
19,221
@m1918 the tone of your thread topic seems a little witch-hunty to me. Maybe I've formed the wrong impression, but putting small businesses on blast for their response or lack of response or "underwhelming" response does not seem productive when it comes to the task at hand, which is supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, black-owned businesses, etc. Here are links to lists of black-owned jewelers for those who would like to show their support with their spending:





 

Rockdiamond

Ideal_Rock
Trade
Joined
Jan 7, 2009
Messages
9,711
Take a hypothetical situation.
A potential customer calls a shop owner asking about their products. Of course, the shop owner would discuss their goods and or services.
Say the discussion takes a different turn.
The customer makes a negative comment about a politician- or a movement. Something like "Don't you just hate......( insert group or politician)
What should the shop keeper do?
Say they disagree...should they tell this potential client to jump off a bridge? And if they do so, what's the message?

Karl makes a very good point. Business might actually be a strong place to start finding common ground. From where I sit....we've all got to find ways to allow other people to feel differently than us, without making them into a monster in our own mind.
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
@m1918 the tone of your thread topic seems a little witch-hunty to me. Maybe I've formed the wrong impression, but putting small businesses on blast for their response or lack of response or "underwhelming" response does not seem productive when it comes to the task at hand, which is supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, black-owned businesses, etc. Here are links to lists of black-owned jewelers for those who would like to show their support with their spending:






Thank you for the resources!

I can see how the topic can come across as “witch-hunty” but that really was not my intention. I understand that putting businesses “on blast” (which I don’t think I did) is not the answer but companies that are staying silent are also not productive towards addressing the task at hand.

I feel frustrated by the lack of response I’m seeing and was curious if others felt the same or were seeing impressive responses.
 

elizat

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Mar 23, 2013
Messages
4,000
@m1918

I don't normally wade into these things, but a business is in a no win situation if it takes a strong stance. Emotions are high. Some will applaud an activist stance. Some will not and be angry by it.

Spend your money where you like and send your message that way. If it's at a black owned jeweler, great.

But I think calling out small business that is trying to walk a delicate line isn't the answer. Nobody will ever be happy with one response. This is complicated and always has been. What realistically do you want these businesses to do? They operate on small scales and many with tight margins. If they donate to a bail fund and post it, some will say it's pandering or just too little and insulting, angering some even more. Or what if they donate to the "wrong" cause or charity?

Further, none of us know what anyone does in private. Maybe they are donating and doing things you don't know about. I never advertise when I donate something. If you need to advertise that you have donated and want recognition for it, you donated for the wrong reason.
 

Starfacet

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Nov 25, 2017
Messages
2,009
So far I’ve seen Jewels by Grace, Alex Park, IDJ, and CVB post but their responses were underwhelming, IMO.
I'm personally refraining from judging people and businesses on their level of social media reactions as I think this would be counterproductive. No one can please all the people all the time. I'm appreciative of anyone who has taken some kind of stand, but for those who haven't, I respect their decision as well.
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
@m1918

I don't normally wade into these things, but a business is in a no win situation if it takes a strong stance. Emotions are high. Some will applaud an activist stance. Some will not and be angry by it.

Spend your money where you like and send your message that way. If it's at a black owned jeweler, great.

But I think calling out small business that is trying to walk a delicate line isn't the answer. Nobody will ever be happy with one response. This is complicated and always has been. What realistically do you want these businesses to do? They operate on small scales and many with tight margins. If they donate to a bail fund and post it, some will say it's pandering or just too little and insulting, angering some even more. Or what if they donate to the "wrong" cause or charity?

Further, none of us know what anyone does in private. Maybe they are donating and doing things you don't know about. I never advertise when I donate something. If you need to advertise that you have donated and want recognition for it, you donated for the wrong reason.

You’re right. Many companies are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. I saw some brutal comments attacking Nordstrom for putting out a statement in support of Black Lives Matter but I respect them for being vocal about their stance.

I posted above what I’d like to see businesses do. I should not have said that I was underwhelmed with some small businesses’ responses because I was happy to see that they had posted regardless of my initial reaction.

I will send my message through my money and by whose businesses I support and recommend. Personally, I don’t want to support businesses that have stayed quiet.
 

elizat

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Mar 23, 2013
Messages
4,000
@m1918

Here is where it gets tricky. Say Nordstrom- does that mean you will shift your shopping to to it in a greater way? Or will your buying habits stay as is? To me, that's a risk a business has. It's one thing for a large bank, like Bank of America, to pledge money when it was probably actively using redlining when it was no longer even legal. But for a retailer that is already struggling financially, it's a risk to be an activist.

But, will those that are pleased Nordstrom stood up patronize it to make up for the shoppers that don't like an activist stance, to make up for lost customers?

And what impact does it have long term on the business? What about managing customer expectations? If you do a one time donation, will your customer base then depart if it's not regular, even if it's not sustainable? I think it's a hard decision to make.
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
@m1918

Here is where it gets tricky. Say Nordstrom- does that mean you will shift your shopping to to it in a greater way? Or will your buying habits stay as is? To me, that's a risk a business has. It's one thing for a large bank, like Bank of America, to pledge money when it was probably actively using redlining when it was no longer even legal. But for a retailer that is already struggling financially, it's a risk to be an activist.

But, will those that are pleased Nordstrom stood up patronize it to make up for the shoppers that don't like an activist stance, to make up for lost customers?

And what impact does it have long term on the business? What about managing customer expectations? If you do a one time donation, will your customer base then depart if it's not regular, even if it's not sustainable? I think it's a hard decision to make.

I don’t disagree with you that it’s tricky for companies or that it’s risky...I just wish it wasn’t! Or that for business owners it was worth the risk.
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
Greenwich St. Jewelers, Platt Boutique Jewelry, and Ivy & Rose Vintage might appeal to you @m1918
They have been posting resources on their IG feeds

Thank you! I will check them out!
 

bludiva

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Sep 23, 2017
Messages
3,076
Hi All,
I mostly lurk here as I don’t have any gorgeous jewelry of my own to share but will eventually be in the market for an engagement ring. I’ve been disappointed with a lot of the jewelry/diamond accounts that I follow as they have been either promoting their business or have been totally silent on the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

So far I’ve seen Jewels by Grace, Alex Park, IDJ, and CVB post but their responses were underwhelming, IMO.

I’m just curious if anyone else has noticed this or have seen companies posting thoughtful responses to these tragedies. I’m also curious to hear from those who are in the trade and who post here as to why they haven’t or won’t post.

i actually think staying silent is appropriate for companies that haven't demonstrated commitment to community prior to this. a lot of the emails i'm receiving from various brands come off as hollow virtue signaling. a respectful silence is sometimes the best thing they can do.
 

Dancing Fire

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 3, 2004
Messages
33,852
The one thing all diamond vendors have in common...
Not one have refused to take my money yet!.. :lol:

The political view of the vendor won't stop me from doing business with them whether they agree or disagree with me politically.
 
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Rockdiamond

Ideal_Rock
Trade
Joined
Jan 7, 2009
Messages
9,711
Just throwing this out there....
Say you have a friend you really love. Say you find out they are supporting "the other side" from you. You just lost a friend...maybe.
But if it had been possible NOT to broach this subject, maybe you could have kept your friendship.... so many of us losing friends....it's just so sad....
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
i actually think staying silent is appropriate for companies that haven't demonstrated commitment to community prior to this. a lot of the emails i'm receiving from various brands come off as hollow virtue signaling. a respectful silence is sometimes the best thing they can do.

Thanks for sharing your POV. I agree that there are some companies that seem to be posting or emailing in more of an attempt to save face and it doesn’t feel genuine. I’ve seen a lot of companies be silent about what’s happening but are continuing to promote their businesses which to me, isn’t a respectful silence.
 

m1918

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
130
Just throwing this out there....
Say you have a friend you really love. Say you find out they are supporting "the other side" from you. You just lost a friend...maybe.
But if it had been possible NOT to broach this subject, maybe you could have kept your friendship.... so many of us losing friends....it's just so sad....

It depends on what the other side is. I don’t want to have friends that I cannot have an open discourse with, even if we disagree. I have many friends who have beliefs that I may not agree with. But, if we disagree on the fact that Black lives matter, then that’s a friend I’d lose.
 

Arcadian

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Sep 17, 2008
Messages
9,086
They should stay genuine, stay focused. A business shows it cares by the people they hire, keeping their staff diverse. They make sure the staff earns a living wage. They treat ALL customers fairly.

All of this didn't just happen 2 weeks ago.
 

bludiva

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Sep 23, 2017
Messages
3,076
Thanks for sharing your POV. I agree that there are some companies that seem to be posting or emailing in more of an attempt to save face and it doesn’t feel genuine. I’ve seen a lot of companies be silent about what’s happening but are continuing to promote their businesses which to me, isn’t a respectful silence.

agree it is not the time to send a message about XYZ sale or business promotion either. i don't know if people who do email marketing campaigns consider that sometimes they need to take a pause.
 

smitcompton

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Feb 11, 2006
Messages
3,254
Hi,

M1918. I happen to agree with you. Any business just has to say ,We deplore what happened to George Floyd. We send our sympathy to the family. Totally appropriate.

Simple statement.

Annette
 

1ofakind

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Aug 22, 2012
Messages
1,126
Have you surveyed the grocery store where you shop, Restaurants where you eat, the gas stations, every mom and pop store, the server who brings you your dinner, the cook who prepared it, the farmer who provided the produce and/or meat, the truck driver who brought it from one place to the other, the owner of the processing plant? I hope you don’t buy stuff from China because their human rights record is abyssmal. How far do you want to take this? You have quite a list of demands.....make a public statement, have m1918 approved HR policies, donate to m1918 approved causes.....and that’s just to engage in simple commerce. I’d hate to think of the requirement list for a more personal relationship....the application must be brutal.
 
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