Buffalo, NY (PRWEB) November 7, 2005

Rembrandt Charms, a privately-held jewelry manufacturer and distributor in Buffalo, New York, is focusing on bringing teen shoppers into their local jewelry store with its teen vogue and teen people holiday ad campaign.

“We serve over 12,000 retail jewelry stores nationwide, with the majority being small, “Mom & Pop” businesses that have been in the family for generations. The single, greatest challenge for these customers is competing with mass merchants and discount stores.” states R. Christopher Lux, founder of Rembrandt Charms.

It’s no secret that discount stores such as WalMart and Target threaten the continuation of small businesses, especially niche businesses like jewelry stores.

Rembrandt’s business mirrors that of its customer: small in size, independent, and family owned and operated. As with any family owned business, loyalty plays a key role, and Rembrandt is fiercly loyal to its customers. Rembrandt could sell its charms directly to consumers, instead, Lux made a bold move, by spearheading an aggressive consumer advertising campaign with the goal of referring consumers to their local jeweler. The campaign is succeeding. To date, over 250,000 consumers have been referred to jewelers through Rembrandt’s website.

“Our consumer advertising campaign has worked well for us. We’ve chosen a diverse selection of publications* in which to advertise, along with a compelling message to direct people to our website. From 2001 to 2004, our free charm promotion (spend $ 100 and receive a free sterling charm) had a strong response. By sending consumers to our website, they were able to see a tremendous selection of charms which could be purchased at a jeweler in their area. We averaged over 5,000 consumer referrals a month for a three year period.” says Jennifer Hillman, communications director.

In 2005, Rembrandt launched a new consumer campaign. It started out as a Mother’s Day, web-based contest, titled, “Mother’s Love,” tell the story of your mother’s life using up to ten Rembrandt Charms to illustrate it. Rembrandt received such an overwhelming response it decided to turn it into a monthly, web-based contest titled, “The Story of Your Life,” told with a Rembrandt Charm bracelet (www.rembrandtcharms.com/yourlife/). Every month one grand prize-winner receives the charm bracelet of their design.

The contest has been wildly popular, reaching a cultish-status. It has been written about in blog sites, in trade journals and in regional newspapers across the country. The winners have been as diverse as an 8-year old girl and a husband writing on behalf of his wife. Some of the stories are tear-jerkers while other stories make you laugh out load (www.rembrandtcharms.com/charmingstories).

With the success of these consumer campaigns, Rembrandt decided to reach out to the teen market with a full page ad in December/January’s issue of Teen Vogue (ranked #8 on Advertising Age’s “A-List”).

“Targeting the teen audience was a deliberate decision to help independent jewelers compete with the discounters and mass-merchants.” explains Lux. “Teens have many choices where to shop. Our ads are designed to introduce them to their neighborhood jeweler through a targeted campaign that is being run in Teen Vogue and Teen People.” explains Lux.

Jewelry is one of the top 5 items teen girls buy. “A Rembrandt charm fits perfectly into a teen’s budget either for herself or as a gift.” explains Karen Filbert, senior account manager, Rembrandt Charms. “Charms are vital to the independent jeweler. They allow jewelers to appeal to a mass audience on a personal level – while offering a variety of styles and prices.”

In addition to Rembrandt’s print ads, the campaign includes a “Story of Your Life” contest with both Teen Vogue and Teen People. The web-based contest asks girls to tell the story of their life by using up to ten Rembrandt charms to illustrate it. The grand-prize winner(s) receives the bracelet of thier design.

“For our retail jewelers, this is more than a charm sale; it’s an opportunity to attract new customers. If teenagers have a positive experience purchasing a charm from a retail jewelry shop, they will be more likely to continue that relationship, especially when they are ready for the larger ticket items, such as watches and engagement rings.” says Lux.

Rembrandt Charms offers thousands of handcrafted charms, the world’s largest collection, in sterling silver and karat gold. Jewelers have relied on Rembrandt Charms’ superior quality for over 35 years.

*Rembrandt Charms have been featured in Southern Living, Family Circle, Woman’s Day, Bride’s, Modern Bride, AARP, Teen Vogue, Teen People, People Espanol, Lucky, Marie Claire, Seventeen, InStyle, FHM, Mid West Living & Country Living.

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