When a woman, who didn't think she'd be able to afford anything at her best friend's jewelry show arrives, she can't take her eyes off the displays. She approaches. (After she greets her friend and lays the obligatory kiss upon the hostess's cheek of course!)
She walks up to the table covered with a pink table cloth showcasing the black and silver jewelry.
She picks up a gunmetal bracelet stack. 4 new bracelets slide onto her wrist and she turns her arm, admiring how the bracelets look on wrist. "How much is this set?"
And I tell her, "Everything we sell is $5.00!" Now this is the point when one of several responses can occur.
1. The Dumbfounded Expression followed by, "THIS is $5.00?"
2. "No way!" and the shopper turns to the person next to him/her and exclaims, "Can you BELIEVE this is $5.00?"
3. "You gotta be kidding me. All this stuff is just five bucks? What about this?" (Holds up a necklace and earring set" I grin, "Yup, that is just $5.00!" (She holds up another set, "What about this one?") I'm used to this behavior and again, still smiling, "Yes, that is also five bucks!" And typically this is the shopper who then starts loading her shopping basket with jewelry, getting something for everyone on her list. Sometimes this shopper can set off a shopping frenzy, where people are just grabbing stuff off the hooks and loading baskets! Favorite moment!
So what does best friend do? She plays the cool card.
She returns the bracelets to the black velvet display tray!
She glances at the necklaces, drifts over to the earrings and finally settles next to the fruit and cheese platter. She keeps an eye on the bracelets while choosing a plump, green grape. More guests arrive and I worry that those gunmetal bracelets will go home with the wrong person. I do what any really great jewelry consultant would do, I grab them from the display tray and place them into a shopping basket. I'm scanning the growing crowd for the woman I know wants them; that very first arrival, the best friend.
It never ceases to amaze me. No matter how many signs we put up, someone still won't believe I'm selling $5.00 accessories. Tonight it is the best friend. She keeps eye balling the place, and she keeps glancing at the spot where the bracelets were! As she comes back to the display for round 2 I hand her the basket. I say. "Here you go. I saved these for you!"
And right on cue, as if this is a movie set, and I'm the Director cuing another actress, a woman steps up and says, "Oh there they are! I was going to get those and when I came back over they were gone!"
I see the best friend hesitate, staring into her basket and I mention the price again.
"Well for $5.00 those are a great deal! AND we can't get that style anymore! Those are one of a kind bracelets!" Which is true! Once we sell out of something not in our Blockbuster line, chance are pretty good we'll never see it again! No matter how popular it was, it's gone!
All eyes are now on the best friend. What is she going to do? Will she keep those bracelets or not! No one moves and we watch as she slips them over her wrist again. She looks up at me and smiles.
"I can't believe these are only five bucks!" And then she reaches for a pearl necklace set and puts it into the basket. "Do you have a ring that will match this necklace?" And with that I'm off to look at rings with her. It's a good day for me and Paparazzi!