Parneet Kaur launched The Jewel Jar in the year 2020. The business is online-only, however over the last few months and with the lead up to Christmas, Parneet shifted her focus to customer-facing events, including hosting events in conjunction with brands such as Whitewall Galleries.
As enquiries for gifts began to increase, Parneet arranged a Virtual Shopping Day, which saw a takeover of her Instagram. Talented women joined the channel across the day to talk about confidence, self-empowerment and what jewellery does for them. This was broken up with video content showing off The Jewel Jar range and ended with an interview with Parneet herself.
Parneet Kaur told the newsweekly, "This year my campaigns have been focused around the feeling of joy, and I’ve shared stories and insight into how jewellery can really take people back to a special or happy moment. You can put on a necklace and remember how you felt when a loved one first handed it to you, or how you felt when you raised that glass of champagne.”
Parneet has seen a huge change in the way that people are shopping this year, with customers choosing sparklier and more colourful jewellery. They’re opting to go big with their accessories and truly make the most of an occasion to dress up - but they’re also looking for ways to bring glamour into their everyday wear. Vibrancy, beautiful champagne coloured jewels and yellow gold as opposed to rose gold, have been the winners of the season. “I’ve really loved seeing this transition, and I hope that in years to come we still see customers embracing the opportunity to dazzle,” she said.
When it comes to Christmas gifts, her customers are being really tactical and choosing pieces that can be worn again and again. The Double Hoop Earrings by Esme Crystals, the Floral Chain Earrings by Shaya and our range of Starsign Link Chain Necklaces by Zariin are Parneet’s top Christmas sellers. She further said, “When you see them, you’ll see that they can be dressed both up and down, can be worn with a multitude of colours and are a beautiful example of East meets West. And everything is sent out in the most beautiful, luxury packaging that I developed this year - so it’s a very special gift.
“I also noticed this Christmas that my customers have taken a bigger interest in the story of The Jewel Jar. People get in touch to ask more about the production and the background of the items which are all handmade in India, but also to know more about my own background. It feels like they want to more proactively support Indie brands and are conscious of where their money is going, which is really wonderful! And means that they find unique Christmas gifts too.”
Commenting on the commotion surrounding the panic of another lockdown, Parneet said, “The approaching feeling of another lockdown or heavy restrictions being back in place is incredibly nerve-racking! I launched just before lockdown in 2020 so have always been heavily online only. And so in 2021, I’ve taken the chance to be physically in front of the customer. I hosted two events in partnership with Whitewall Galleries; one in Manchester and the other in York, I regularly exhibit my items at Covent Gardens and Spitalfields Market and I attend large shopping events such as the Artisan Fair at Beaulieu. It’s been incredibly powerful to promote the brand in this way, and thought of going back online would be a real challenge. But ultimately, it’s about being safe and if that’s what we need to do, I’ll simply have to make it work!
“In the past, I’ve offered personal Zoom calls where customers can have one-on-one time with me to run through our designs and shop on a more intimate level. This is certainly an area I’m keen to pursue further if we do face restrictions. And I think the way that social media works now means that customers already have such close access to me and the brand, so hopefully with this will keep us connected no matter what the next step in the journey looks like.”
