Wilson Diamonds

Sep 8

In their own words

“We look for people that don’t have jewelry sales experience. We hire personalities and work ethic. We want a higher education. Once we hire them, they go through a significant training process, and we usually don’t allow them to help customers for six months. That results in outstanding salespeople. For most of my staff, it’s a college job, but they’re here four to six years after getting a degree, and they’ll work here the whole time they’re in school.”

-Shane Corrigan

Jason’s Interview with Shane

Jason

We're back on Meet the Jewelers and today we're talking to Shane from Wilson Diamonds. How did you get into the jewelry industry?

Shane

I actually got into it through marriage, nepotism at its finest. I had grown up in the area here in Utah County. I went to high school here and had a great experience growing up. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I went on a two-year mission to Italy and taught English. I had dated a girl before I left and got very serious about trying to start a family. I was just starting school at Brigham Young University. I needed a job and interviewed here seventeen years ago. The girl that ended up marrying me was actually the owner's daughter. We ended up getting married about eight months later and the rest is history.

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Richard ran the jewelry business. He started it with his brother many years ago. Then Richard ran it on his own, hired staff, and grew the business. He brought me on after a few years and said, “Hey, I can't do this forever. I'd love for you to take over. Let’s discuss how a buyout would work.” He informally retired a few years ago. He's still involved a little bit here and there. It's worked out fabulously. I love the store. I love the consistency of it. I love that it's kind of a local staple.

Jason
What's it feel like when they come in?

Shane
A big thing for us is a ton of selection, really warm, inviting salespeople, and no pressure. We do a ton of customization. That's become a huge part of the bridal industry, especially in the last ten years. None of our salespeople are on commission, so we take that very seriously. Making sure it's a warm and inviting place where they can get education without a lot of pressure.

Jason
Let’s take a moment to talk about charity work that you're most proud of.

Shane
We have a monthly budget that we allow for that. You have success if you can find a way to help others have success with no strings attached. Special Olympics is something that we've done. Local high schools, sports teams. A really wide variety of things. I wish I could be more specific, but it's just been a lot of different stuff over the years.

Jason
How many people are part of the group now?

Shane
Between about twenty-three and twenty-seven right now. One of our foundational things is staff education and training.

Jason
Why do you think customers can trust you?

Shane
I don't think it's just one thing. The biggest thing is we help you understand the value. We do heavy research to make sure our prices are in line with even the most inexpensive online jewelers. We have a text feature on our website where you can literally just text us and it comes to a live salesperson during business hours.

Jason
Here's your chance to say whatever you like.

Shane
Come on in and look around. We would love to meet you, interact with you, hear your story. One benefit to coming in is that we have free freshly baked cookies that we give out. Come get a cookie and experience it for yourself.