Better Merchandising Processes and New Roles Drive Fine Jeweler’s Future

A fine jewelry retailer with stores across the United States faced strong competition and irrelevancy. The jewelry industry faced unprecedented disruption with the introduction of lab-grown diamonds, global supply chain complexities, and increasing consumer economic pressures. The retailer struggled with antiquated, overly complex merchandising processes and poor communication practices, risking its ability to remain competitive.

Further, the retailer’s recent strategic reorganization necessitated role clarity for resources responsible for planning, merchandising, and product development, particularly where processes straddled different functional areas.

In a collaborative effort with the retailer, Parker Avery conducted cross-functional interviews to define better merchandising processes and aligned roles. During the discovery phase, Parker Avery:

• Explored every process that involved the impacted teams through rigorous interviews and follow-up discussions
• Drafted initial current and ‘to-be’ process flows
• Refined and finalized the future-state merchandising processes with the client
• Documented detailed process narratives
• Analyzed job descriptions and discovered inconsistencies in roles and responsibilities
• Identified communication gaps and leadership misalignment

Key project outcomes included:

• Finalized future-state process flows and narratives
• A RACI matrix to support the implementation of the new merchandising processes
• Detailed training documentation for the process and new tools and facilitated work sessions to align teams
• Recommended leadership development and coaching program(s)
• New communication tools and templates
• Interim and future organizational structure(s), implementation approach, and sustainment plan recommendations