Nothing conveys feel good more than puppies. That’s probably the main reason Royal Jewelers has done so well with their Pearls and Puptails events over the last four years. Last Christmas, the Louisville, Kentucky-based jeweler decided to make the event the store’s main event for the holiday season.
The most recent Pearls and Puptails was scheduled nine days before Christmas, making it a “Howl-iday” event for the family-owned jewelers and their customers. The event is the brainchild of third-generation jewelers Amy and John Schulwolf. She’s quick to admit that the jewelry portion of the event isn’t exclusively about pearls. She’s simply fond of the alliteration in the event’s name.
The Schulwolf family supports many charities and non-profits, as well as local business groups, in the area. But the family is partial to the Kentucky Humane Society (KHS). Amy isn’t just a supporter of the KHS, she’s also a customer. In recent years she adopted her dog Papi from the KHS.
The adoption experience placed a canine best friend in her life. But it also gave Amy better insights into how her store’s annual event could better serve the needs of the KHS and the organization’s mission.
In past events proceeds from sales were donated to the KHS. That was the case for the Pearls and Puptails event at Christmas. But Amy added a few new components to the store’s annual event, notably asking customers and attendees to bring in supplies the KHS needs for everyday operations.
The comprehensive list was surprisingly affordable, ranging from no- to low-cost. In the “Creature Comforts” section of the donation suggestion list gently-used household and pre-owned pet care items dominated the items needed, ranging from blankets, towels and pet beds to heating pads and bed warmers.
Of course daily dog care items were requested, from treats and dog food to leashes and leaders as well as temporary holding pens and puppy training pads. Cleaning supplies and a miscellaneous list of items (mainly plastic bags for pet food storage) punctuated the donation list for the store event. The donation list also had a sales component to it.
“In the past, we’ve simply donated a portion of the sales proceeds from the event to the Kentucky Humane Society,” says Amy. “But there are so many other ways to support the organization. For Pearls and Puptails 2021, the first held since the pandemic began, we thought it would be fun to tie the discount to an item donation from their wish list.”
Customers that made supplies donations had a chance to select an ornament from the event’s “discount tree.” Discounts ranged from 10 percent on up to 70 percent. “One lucky person did choose the top discount and most certainly had a very happy holiday,” says Amy.
A grand prize giveaway was also part of the most recent Pearls and Puptails event. Customers could register online on the store’s website or in-person during the nearly four-hour event, to win a pair of 14K white gold diamond and garnet stud earrings.
Amy and her staff couldn’t help but add in a little Ladies’ Night type of primping and pampering to the event’s activity list. Lessons on holiday make-up tips and tricks were available to event attendees.
Food and beverages for the event were also well thought out and purposeful. Vodka has become a popular drink given the large number of small to large producers creating the hand-crafted spirit. Amy partnered with Tito’s Vodka, an international company, based on the alcohol producer’s record for helping animals.
“Tito’s is international and they are true animal lovers,” says Amy. “The company works with animal rescue groups throughout the US. They brought hand-crafted vodka cocktails to our event. We also had [Tito] reps making them in front of our customers.”
Closer to home Amy did a little local business cross promoting with cheese maker Harvey’s Cheese & Nosh. Similar to Royal Jewelers, Harvey’s is a family-owned business known throughout the city for their high quality cheeses, meats and snack trays.
Of course the main event of the evening was the puppies, all of which were adoption-ready at the event. That night two pups were available for adoption. Customers could also hold and pet the puppies while shopping for fine jewelry, sipping vodka and sampling quality cheeses.
A small holding pen was on the showroom floor. Of course training pads lined the pen’s floor to contain any accidents. Representatives from the local Humane Society were on hand to facilitate the adoption and to help event attendees handle the puppies.
“When puppies are involved, anything can happen for sure,” says Amy. “Kentucky Humane Society takes all of the necessary precautions to protect the store and the puppies.”
The Schulwolf family was pleased with their most recent Pearls and Puptails event. Sales were brisk, the KHS received loads of much-needed supplies along with some cash donations, and each year the “event gets bigger and better,” says Amy.
Additional measures of the most recent event’s success include increasing awareness of Pearls and Puptails as a regularly scheduled store event, and media coverage. Amy and the staff sent out direct mailers to canvass a large audience, email notifications went to the store’s database of customers, and the Pearls and Puptails event was promoted heavily on the store’s social media platforms along with digital advertising.
Partnering with Today’s Woman Magazine helped with media coverage. And, the store hired publicist Randy Blevins, founder and CEO of Think Tank Marketing, to help get the word out. Local print and television news outlets covered the event well.
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