In this guide 6 sections
Before launch, give every piece a record for metal, purity and weight, attach stone details and certificates, and settle how ring sizes and resizing work. Insure each parcel, add checks to high-value payments and follow a fixed photo shot list. Prove every step with a test order.
Fields a jewellery record must hold
A bangle needs different fields from a T-shirt. Add metal type, purity mark, gross weight, net metal weight and finish as separate entries, because buyers compare weights and a free-text line cannot be filtered.
Weight often drives the price of gold and silver pieces, so decide early whether each price is fixed or follows a metal rate. If it follows the rate, the shop needs a rate table updated each day and a rule for when a cached price expires. Stale prices cost margin.
Add a stock type field as well. Pieces cast to order, pieces in the safe and pieces on consignment from a wholesaler behave differently at checkout, so label each kind of stock on the page.
- Metal and purity mark
- Gross weight and net metal weight in grams
- Finish: polished, matte or rhodium plated
- Length, width and clasp type
- Care and tarnish note
Stones, certificates and hallmarks
For a diamond or gemstone, store carat weight, cut, colour, clarity and the laboratory that graded it, then attach the certificate number and report scan as a download. Buyers of larger pieces ask first.
Treat the certificate as data tied to the piece, because a one-off ring has a single report and one unit of stock. A catalogue ring set with a standard stone has many units and no report for each, so mark which kind a page describes. Never promise a report you cannot supply.
Check the hallmarking rules of each country you sell into, since some require an assay office mark on the piece before it can be offered for sale. Ask an adviser what applies to you.
Ring sizes, resizing and made-to-order pieces
Wrong ring size is a common reason for returns, so show a printable gauge and a diameter table and name the system the sizes follow. UK letters, US numbers and European circumferences do not line up, and a buyer abroad may not know which one your site uses.
Decide which designs can be altered, because eternity bands and channel-set rings cannot be resized without damage and should be marked as final size on the page. For made-to-order pieces, state the lead time in working days and collect the finger size at the order stage, never after payment has cleared.
Set the return terms before launch. A ring resized to a buyer’s finger or engraved with a name cannot return to the shelf, so mark those pieces as final sale beside the buy button.
- Size system named on the page
- Printable gauge and diameter table
- Resizing allowed or final size, per design
- Lead time for made-to-order
Insured shipping and secure payment for high-value orders
Use a carrier that offers declared-value cover and a signature on delivery, record the declared value on each shipment and photograph the contents before sealing the carton. Keep the outer box plain. No brand and no contents on the label.
High-value orders attract card fraud, so pick a gateway that supports 3-D Secure, compare billing and shipping addresses and hold the largest orders for a call back. Never store card numbers yourself. Tell buyers a call may come.
- Declared value recorded on each shipment
- Signature required at the door
- Photo of contents before sealing
- Manual review rule for large orders
Photography standards for small shiny items
Metal mirrors whatever surrounds it, so shoot inside a light tent with diffused light, a white sweep and a polarising filter until reflections stop. Lock the tripod height.
Write a shot list for every piece, covering front, side, clasp, worn on a hand or neck for scale and a macro of the hallmark. Name each file with the style code. Retouch dust, never gemstone colour.
Check every image on a phone before upload. Most buyers see a ring at thumbnail size, so the stone must read clearly there, and zoom should open a file large enough to show prongs and engraving.
Jewellery store launch checklist
The checklist holds five blocks on a single page, mirroring this article: record fields, stones and certificates, ring sizing, shipping and payment, and photography. Each line carries a tick box, an owner and the number of the test order that proved it, so sign-off needs no meeting. The foot has a sign-off line.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Should every piece have its own product page?
One-off pieces do, since each has its own weight, stones and report, while catalogue designs can share a page with variants for metal and size. Keep the two kinds in separate collections.
How do we show a price that follows the metal rate?
Compute it from net weight and the current rate when the cart is built, and lock it at checkout so it cannot shift mid-payment. Show the time of the last rate update.
What photos do buyers expect for a stone?
A clear top view, a side view and a shot in daylight, with the certificate scan beside them, because colour differences make buyers say a stone looked different. Skip heavy filters.
Can GullySystem build this store?
Yes. GullySystem builds jewellery catalogues with weight and purity fields, certificate attachments and rate-linked pricing, and shares one stock list with a showroom counter.