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The internet is red-hot for buyers and sellers of sterling flatware
By Carol Connare
What’s not to love about shopping for sterling flatware on the internet? Most sites have a far larger selection than any single department store. New silver patterns are readily in stock and can be shipped right away. Finding replacements is a matter of a few keystrokes on a search page instead of endless phone calls. On many sites, you correspond with a particular salesperson maintaining the human touch. Almost universally, you’ll pay less for silver bought on the web than in a retail store. Best of all, if thoughts of that Chippendale fish knife are keeping you up past bedtime, you can log on
and shop in the middle of the night!
From established jewelry stores that have ventured online to start-ups that operate out of backwoods warehouses, the silverware business is booming on the web. It’s no surprise sterling flatware sales have risen in the latter half of the 1990s in consort with the growth of sterling flatware-specific shopping sites on the web.
With hundreds of websites at their fingertips, silver-surfers must narrow the field –– finding those sites that suit their particular interests and purchasing styles. We ventured beyond the computer screen to meet the people behind some of the most successful websites selling silver flatware today.
From the Ground Up
Ryan Ryals, 29, of Auburn, Washington, personifies the dot.com revolution. After creating a successful silver website for what’s now a competing company, Ryals struck out on his own. In 1998 Ryals kick-started Silversuperstore.com out of an 800-square-foot warehouse with one computer and two phone lines. He was the only employee. Not quite three years later, he employs 14 people, operates a 3,500-square-foot facility, just opened a small retail store. He’ll easily top $2 million in flatware sales this year. Ryals guesses that figure puts him in the top five of silver flatware sellers on the web.
“Just a few years ago, when I started out, I didn’t know anything about silver. I didn’t even know the difference between sterling and stainless,” admits Ryals. He and his
wife now have a set of Lion by Wallace, “because my wife is a Leo,” admits Ryan. “The web has taken off for a lot of reasons,” says Ryals. “Buyers are no longer limited to local department stores carrying only the top 20 patterns. We can reach customers that were unserved before. And, buying from us is much cheaper. At Silversuperstore, we work from a wholesale frame of mind. We mark up the cost of flatware between 10-15% over what we pay, whereas a department store typically works down from a suggested retail price.”
Indeed, by shopping on the net, you can usually save $50-$75 a place setting, on
average. Internet entrepreneurs like Ryals keep their costs down by buying sterling
flatware in large quantities and controlling overhead; they don’t have to maintain a
department store in an expensive shopping district.
“I know of some silver shopping sites that operate out of the owners’ house, or are nothing more than a P.O. Box.” Home to Silversuperstore.com, Auburn is a small town of 35,000 people. “Real estate is inexpensive here,” says Ryals.
Silversuperstore customers fit the profile of most buyers who purchase new sterling on the web: they purchase whole sets of sterling flatware for their own use, spending, on average, between $2,000 and $3,000. “They’ve reached middle age and are
finally getting a nice set of silver,” explains Ryals. “But we do 50% of our business in November and December, so a lot of sterling flatware is purchased as gifts, too.”
Something Old, Something New
Venerable companies are seeing unprecedented growth on the internet, too. Littman’s of Norfolk, Virginia, has been selling sterling flatware and jewelry since 1892, specializing in estate silver.
“Two or three years ago, we started our web site,” says Don Hornstein, who runs the family-owned enterprise. Don’s grandfather, Leon Hornstein, started the company with his brother-in-law, Charles Littman. There’s a fun photo (below) from 1923 on their web site, www.littmans.com, showing one of their earlier shops filled with ukuleles, steamer trunks, and plated ware. “Already the web has come to represent 10-15% of our retail trade.”
But unlike lots of other silver websites, visitors to Littmans.com can’t actually
purchase their silver directly from the web. “I force them to call us, and listen to my
or one of my employees’ expertise,” says Hornstein “because much of our business
is in estate silver, and for that, I believe it’s better to talk one-on-one. I fear connecting our database live to the internet. Even though many dealers do it, I’m not sure I ever will.”
What the web does for Littman’s business in spades, says Hornstein, is pre-screen customers. The most popular part of his site is the search section –– visitors can virtually paw through Littman’s silverware drawer. Web shoppers access over 650
patterns of in-stock silver, and hopefully find what they’re looking for. When they do, all that’s left to do is pick up the phone and place an order.
“For us, it’s a very efficient sales presentation,” says Hornstein. “Practically all of our business from the web is brand new business.”
Littman’s specializes in estate and replacement sterling flatware, but also offers new patterns for sale.
“The competition is stiff in the market for new silver,” says Hornstein. “The customer really wins out. But the way I see it, you don’t need a lot of service for new sterling. You get the pattern the customer wants to their door for the best price. With estate silver, the service aspect is more important. There are a variety of knowledge levels among dealers. What we’re saying is that when you come to us, you get the benefit of our experience –– about the history of the silver, what goes together, the care of it, etc.”
Multichannel Marketing
For many sterling flatware retailers, the web was a natural extension of their
previously existing business. In the case of Ross-Simons, it has outperformed their
wildest expectations.
“We’ve had triple-digit expansion in our web sales every year since launching late in 1996,” says Ann Driscoll, director of internet marketing for Ross-Simons of Providence, Rhode Island. Begun in 1952 as a jewelry concern, Ross-Simons has morphed into a
multi-million dollar company, selling tableware, gifts and collectibles, and jewelry through a national catalog, 11 retail stores, and its web site, Ross-Simons.com.
“In the industry, what we do is a buzzword: we’re multi-channel marketers,” explains Driscoll. “Even we didn’t expect the growth we’ve seen on the web.” Internet sales account for 10% of Ross-Simons annual gross. In 1999, they saw 400% growth in terms of website demand, and another 200% in 2000. “It will level out at some point,” says Driscoll, “but while others are starting to slow down, we continue to grow.”
Though it’s hard to track exactly who its web customers are, they know that 6%
of new internet buyers have set foot in one of Ross-Simons retail stores. “They see our URL on the catalog or some other collateral –– it’s on everything –– and they choose that avenue to reach us,” says Driscoll.
Ross-Simons’ experience mirrors findings by the Silver Information Center. Their annual study of the sterling flatware market notes that “catalog, TV, and internet buyers have often viewed a pattern elsewhere (in person) and then choose shopping from home for convenience and/or price.”
“By far and away, the clearance section is the most popular section of our site,”
says Driscoll. “Even I shop there!”
Smart Surfing
Silver surfers are getting great prices, fast service, and more selection than ever. But it’s wise to be cautious, too. There are no certification requirements, standards setting boards, or organizations governing who is qualified to sell silverware on –– or off –– the internet. The best place to start is with professionals you trust. Visit websites of silversmiths who you recognize as reputable, and check out their links for recommended dealers. Most services should be free on the web, such as pattern identification, pattern search, and bridal registry. If there’s a charge involved, steer clear. Surfing the web for silver can turn up specialty services such as knife reblading, silverware repairs, and garbage disposal damage repair.
Taking one’s silver appetite to the net is a bit ironic. We can use the latest
technology to find heirloom silver or purchase new classics that will last for
lifetimes. In many ways, this tool of the future has given us greater access
to the past.
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