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Woman wearing Accessories by Park Lane jewellery

Back to Market News

INTERVIEW FOR BRIDAL BUYER MAGAZINE

7th October 2007

ARTICLE FROM BRIDAL BUYER MAGAZINE

Fourteen years ago, Stuart and TracY

Robinson were selling scarves and hair

accessories in and around North

Yorkshire when they became aware of

the potential in the market for a classic

diamanté and crystal jewellery range. And what

started as an observation grew into a fullyfledged

business plan and Accessories by Park

Lane was the result.

From the beginning the Robinsons realised

that the level of their success depended not only

on the right product, but also on the degree and

quality of their marketing campaign and from

the start, this is where the company has had an

edge in the marketplace.

We decided to approach the evening and

bridalwear market in a way that wasnt being

done,says Stuart. There are a lot of jewellery

companies out there and we knew that we had

to make a big initial impact in order to get

noticed and this is the reason that our brochure

has always been paramount. We take a lot of

time photographing the collection and are

meticulous about the layout, design and quality

of print.

But as in all areas of business, with the arrival

and growth of the Internet, and the speed with

which users adopted new technology, a glossy

brochure was not enough to hold attention. Park

Lane was one of the first in the industry to

develop a website every bit as inspiring as its

brochures. It wasnt always easy, says Stuart,

but we know that the key to our success is in

making the retailers purchasing decision as easy

and hassle-free as possible.

Park Lane is now one of the UKs leading

costume jewellery distributers and, although the

products are sourced and manufactured

overseas, the companys warehouse and head

office still have the beautiful open field views of

Knaresborough, North Yorkshire.

JEWELS IN THE CROWN

Park Lane has never rested on its laurels. The

2007 collection features no less than 350 styles

one of the most comprehensive available in the

UK. We produce one main catalogue each

year,says Stuart, but as the range alters

slightly with the seasons, we often produce an

additional smaller catalogue later in the year.

And new products are fast to join the line-up on

the companys trade-only website.

Despite its constant additions of new, fashionright

pieces, Park Lane continues to run its most

popular items such as its simple stud earrings

that come in round, square or oblong cut and in

a veritable rainbow of colours season after

season to meet demand from retailers.

And the company gets its retailers involved in

the decision-making process when it comes to

new designs many of his customers have, Stuart

believes, a particular good eye for what is up and

coming. Style research is on-going influenced in

no small way by the fashion catwalk trends but,

at the end of the day, he has to admit that gut

feeling and an awareness of whats new in the

bridal market plays a major part in deciding

design direction.

In recent years, bridal gowns have become

sleeker and more simple in structure, which is

great for us as it means that there is a real

demand for jewellery, from discreet and elegant

necklaces and bracelets to the ultimate in

statement-making glitz.

It is very important that we get our

predictions right and thankfully we usually

do. We keep a very close eye on forthcoming

colours across the complete fashion spectrum

but especially in the prom, evening and

bridalwear arenas. In this market quality is

paramount and thats where we really excel.

Our customers are discerning and not prepared

to be fobbed off, so if we want to keep them

happy and keep them as customers we

have to use only the top grade cubic zirconias

and Austrian crystal.

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Park Lane currently has about 250 UK stockists,

customers who are there not just for the choice

and quality of the product, but also for the

complete service offered. We do excellent

business at BRITISH BRIDAL EXHIBITION. but in between shows our customers increasingly

want access to the range 24/7. Our website has

made this possible. We have our own warehouse

and carry stock of all our 600 styles which means

that we can offer a delivery time of just five

working days. And the company also provides a

bespoke service for something a little bit special,

although here the lead time here is about eight

weeks with a minimum order of £150 or three dozen

of a particular style.

At the end of the day, our success comes

down to producing the right product, listening to

our customers needs, hard work and the

support of a great bunch of people in our office

and warehouse in particular Heather who

manages the business in my absence, says Stuart.

SHOW-OFFS

Asked about retailers and how they could

improve their accessories business, Stuart believes

that bridal accessories need to be promoted

more seriously. There is a lot of money to be

made outside of the actual bridal gown,? he

says. The average mark-up for our products is

between two and four times the cost price but,

1 A WELL-THOUGHT-OUT MARKETING

PLAN IS ESSENTIAL TO THE SUCCESS

OF ANY BUSINESS. GET THIS RIGHT

AND, PROVIDING YOU HAVE THE

RIGHT PRODUCT, YOUR EMPIRE

SHOULD THRIVE.

2 Talk to the distributors, agents

and manufacturers of the products

you sell. Tell them what does well

for you and what your brides are

buying or looking for.

3 STOCK A RANGE OF DIFFERENT

JEWELLERY STYLES INSTEAD OF JUST

FOLLOWING THE LATEST TREND.

DIFFERENT GIRLS WANT DIFFERENT

LOOKS AND IF YOU DON?T HAVE

WHAT THEIR HEARTS ARE SET ON,

YOU?VE LOST A SALE.

4 An illuminated display case is a

must and, where jewellery is

displayed on manequins, it must

complement the dresses.

5 NO MATTER HOW SUCCESSFUL YOU

BECOME, ALWAYS STRIVE TO BE BETTER

NEVER REST ON YOUR LAURELS.

FIVE OF THE BEST

...tips for retailers

in order to sell, the pieces have to be displayed

in a favourable and appealing way.

Some retailers are very professional,

whereas others will just scatter a few pieces on

a top shelf and hope for the best. In all

honesty, an illuminated cabinet is the minimum

that a store should have. After this, display

busts are a good idea and it is essential that

someone in the store possesses the ability to

match the jewellery to a dress.

And Park Lanes close attention to detail

doesnt stop with the actual product. A

woman who chooses to wear our jewellery is

discerning in every way. Not only does she want

a beautiful necklace, bracelet or ring, but she

also expects the box and wrapping to live up to

the image. We see our packaging as an added

and very important selling point, underpinning

the quality product and service that we offer.

INTO THE FUTURE

Nearly 15 years on, does the company plan to

branch out into tiaras and hair accessories?

Initially we decided to set our benchmark at being

the best in the bridal jewellery market before we

considered moving on to anything else. But in

the future, who knows?

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