Page 35 - Cross-Border Magazine Nr.3
P. 35

LET’S TALK ABOUT SELLING JEWELLERY

            ONLINE, PACKAGING, AND GOING

            INTERNATIONAL WITH ANDREJ SCHATTE

            FROM VALMANO.





            THINK INSIDE






            THE BOX!











            Text: Janine Nöthlichs // Photos: Léon van Bon


            Think inside the box? Yes, exactly! The way your product is wrapped and packed is important
            for the feeling and experience the customer has when unboxing their order. Unboxing videos
            have become a social media phenomenon, most likely because of the emotional power of the

            moment of receiving and unpacking a package. This should be a moment online sellers are very
            aware about. By creating the right experience, they can do a lot to strengthen their bond with the
            customer and the overall image their brand transmits. Who wants to receive a two-thousand-
            dollar watch packed in bubble wrap? In Berlin, we met Logistics Manager Andrej Schatte of the
            jewellery pure-player Valmano and spoke about the importance of packaging, the history of the
            young Berlin-based market disruptor and their international aspirations.




                  an you tell us a bit more about how Valmano was   Which channels are you using?
                  founded?                                    “When Germany stabilised, we added an Austrian site to ‘prac-
            C“The company emerged from a joint venture of the Pro   tise’ a bit in the international business. In the run of this year we
            Sieben Sat 1 AG, an investment group very similar to Rocket   will add a dot-com website to serve international customers.”
            Internet, called Epic Companies. They started several e-com-
            merce ventures but ceased to exist in 2014. Valmano is one of the   Aren’t you afraid the brands that you are selling will start
            very few that still exists, and Valmano was performing positively   selling directly to the consumer and push you out of the
            at that time. We were founded in 2013, and attracted a second   market?
            investor, a large holding company from Luxemburg called   “No, I think we are rather convenient for them. Everything we
            Fiparel, owned by the Antwerp-based jewellery seller Wechsler.   do in terms of marketing and branding, they do as well, but
            Since December they have been our complete owner.”   not with the focus on selling. Selling is what we specialise in.
                                                              Moreover, we take care of the fulfilment and the whole process
            What is the strength of Valmano?                  around that.”
            “Large jewellery sellers have long focused on the physical retail
            world and are only slowly starting to explore the online world.   Which are the special challenges in the online
            The market for watches and jewellery online is present, but still   jewellery sector?
            quite small. We are good at what we do. If you are looking for a   “Theft is a very important factor that we constantly have to
            good online jewellery merchant in Germany, you won’t beat us!”  watch out for. A second crucial thing is customer experience.







 34                                                         35
   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40