Founded in 1942, Allum & Sidaway is a family run jewellers with stores in Salisbury, Gillingham, Ringwood, Shaftesbury, Dorchester and Plymouth – and a founding member of the Company of Master Jewellers. We spoke to Director Abi Stradling to find out more about the business’ Valentine’s pop-up welded jewellery event, which won Allum & Sidaway our CMJ February retailer of the month prize.
Tell us about your business and what you specialise in.
Allum & Sidaway is a fourth-generation family-run jewellers with six stores spanning four counties across the southwest of England. We sell fine jewellery, coveted brands and watches alongside extensive services including piercing. We also have a wedding dress boutique situated on the first floor of our Salisbury store.
How would you like to see the business grow in the next 12 months and beyond?
We are looking to strengthen our regard as a destination for all things bridal in our locations. We want to grow some of our services including welded and invest in selected brands.
As a business how do you keep your staff motivated to work to their best of their abilities?
Our store managers and Tracey, our training and development director, do a great job creating unique incentives and spotlight focuses. Managers share what motivates their teams to give us the opportunity to implement global best practices. We have A&S bingo in place at present, giving store teams the chance to win a prize for completing squares such as booking a return appointment, getting a review and offering hospitality, with the intention to refresh focus on customer service.
We use quarterly 121’s that ensure performance and motivation remain in focus.
Can you explain more about the event you held?
We held a pop-up welded jewellery event at our Gillingham store, timed for Valentine’s Day. This is the first event of this nature that we have tried. We incentivised joint appointments with discount off.
How did you promote it to customers?
We planned a combination of physical and digital marketing and utilised flyers, posters and aboards alongside an email campaign plus socials with budget.
What are the benefits of holding events like this?
To increase revenue and also increase awareness of the service we now have on the company. To create a unique client experience, consisting of a unique gift and personal experience all in one.
Have you held pop up events like this before and are you planning on any more events like this in the future?
This was the first pop-up event for our welded service. Yes, we are likely to trial this premise in another location later this year.
What do you enjoy most about being part of the CMJ?
The support and communication with suppliers and fellow retailers. And the events! We are really looking forward to seeing everyone at the next Trade Event.
