Laugh with sign of the times.

The sad demise of jewellery galleries like Makers Mark in Sydney and Melbourne has left a gap in the retail jewellery market- this store in Melbourne’s CBD has yet to find a permanent tenant.

Sounds inviting doesn’t it, but it also raises the question of where exactly does the value of a business lie? Is it the location, the brand name or the people who make it work?

If a jeweller can afford to sell this diamond for such a discount, was it really worth $78,000 in the first place? What would you think if you were a prospective buyer?

Yet another sign of the increasing encroachment of the internet on retail stores. This eBay billboard was seen around Melbourne before Christmas.

How times change. Think back 10 years and ask yourself, if you would have ever believed that Tiffany & Co., the business, would be advertising on Port Melbourne bus shelters.

When in doubt, always state the bleeding obvious! Better still, if you’re open for business, make sure your lights are on.

So does this mean the prices on the tickets are not the store’s best prices? That’s not exactly very encouraging for the customers knowing they are being overcharged.

Sometimes it’s best to call a spade, a spade! Though, always get someone else to check your spelling, even when trading is tough!

There is no such thing as ‘common sense’. If there was it would be ‘common’ (everyone would have it) and we wouldn’t need signs like this!

There are sales and then there are sales! In Asia, they don’t just reduce prices to increase sales- when things get tough they shock you, as this business clearly shows in Thailand.

Times are much tougher for some retailers. Imagine being in a sunset retail category; an industry in decline of that has passed its peak or boom?

Unlike jewellers many retail categories have little scope for product differentiation and the online model becomes a last resort.

Heavy discounting cheapens diamonds and gives consumers a lower overall impression and confidence in the jewellery industry.

The jewellery market has been truly ‘globalised’ but there are still cultural differences in the way advertising messages are communicated as this Hong Kong jewellery store shows!

No, this sign does not appear in an Australian shopping centre but one wonders if De Beers will ever expand into the local market? The new De Beers store was due to open in Dubai.

Fashion and fine jewellery meshed seamlessly as Bulgari’s new Mediterranean Eden jewellery collection took centre stage at a gala to raise more than $60,000 to help the National Gallery of Victoria acquire a rare coat for its fashion collection in May.

Bulgari’s perfume strap line recently caught Jeweller’s attention. “The essence of a jeweller” is most intriguing to us- can anybody tell us what the essence of a jeweller smells like? Is it polish, perhaps?

Rules are rules, right? Go on admit it…I bet you’ve thought about developing a similar set of Store Rules!

Gee, that is special! How can you possibly knock back an offer like that? We think this retailer might just be fighting back against the tide of discounting.

Many people in retail at the moment would probably agree with this sentiment, but the question is... is it really 30 per cent off of is that just fiction?