A gem of a mailer

How does a jewelry and gemstone company that ships 4 to 5 million packages a year ensure that each package shipped experiences a "sterling" delivery? For Jewelry Television (JTV), a Knoxville, TN-based, cable home-shopping network with a companion online "e-store," the secret lies in impeccable customer service and enhanced packaging, among other things. The round-the-clock operations of JTV allow viewers to shop for and purchase fine jewelry and gemstones in the comfort of their homes or offices whenever they want.

JTV has evolved from a small enterprise in the early 1990s as America's Collectibles Network into one of the top 20 jewelry retailers in the country. JTV broadcast its first, live show in 1993 from a studio located in Greenville, TN, originally offering for sale collectible items such as coins, knives, quilts and skincare products. After a decade of successful broadcasts and online sales, the company now focuses entirely on offering fine jewelry and gemstones at reasonable prices. Over the past six years, its revenues have leaped to $250 million in 2003.

And as the retail value of the packages JTV ships filled with precious gems and jewelry is, on average, typically priced at $100 or more per package, the shipments must be as flawless as the gems they carry. JTV says its packaging must be protective and must have tamper-evident features that thwart any "sticky fingers" eager to snare precious gems in-transit.

As the company's operation has grown, so too has the number of packages it ships each day. And as sales and shipments have grown, the need for protective packaging supplies has obviously become more important. That's how JTV found XPAK polyethylene bubble-lined mailers from Polyair (www.polyair.com).

"Our business has been growing rapidly over the past six years, and the timeliness of the delivery and the package quality upon arrival are vital to [our] ensuring complete customer satisfaction," says Eric Dabney, fulfillment operations manager. "About three years ago, we got to the point where business was exploding. There were days when we were running dangerously low on packaging because our distributor was failing to anticipate our needs. We required a distributor that could ensure Jewelry Television was matched with the best protective packaging."

Dabney adds that consumers expect nothing less than perfectly packaged products that arrive in top condition. So JTV decided it was time to revamp its packaging and called distributor Pinnacle Products for help. The company quickly took a shine to Polyair's offerings, Dabney recalls. "Pinnacle said that Polyair's broad range of protective packaging products would ensure that our daily demands would always be anticipated, with packaging supplies delivered before we needed them."

JTV's public relations spokesperson Kelly Kress tells PD that the company previously shipped all of its products by courier or through the U.S. Postal Service, relying mainly on their packaging to get the job done. "Then, we adopted a new system to use First Class mail," she says. "That's when the Polyair mailers came into play." The new mailers are said to be lighter than many kraft and macerated mailers as well as corrugated sleeves and envelopes, so can help cut shipping costs.

Available in 12 sizes that range from 4x8- to 14.25x20 in., the XPAK mailers are made of what Polyair describes as a security PE coextrusion, lined with 3/16-in., high-slip Durabubble PE bubble cushioning. JTV has used four of the sizes and currently is using two. Dabney points out that the mailers are durable and help reduce damage to the company's precious and semi-precious product designs. They include a self-sealing, hot melt-adhesive closure, covered with a polypropylene release liner, which is removed to expose the adhesive, and are moisture-resistant and printable in up to eight colors. The white, outer shell is designed for maximum tear-, puncture- and weather-resistance as well as elongation to handle heavier loads. "The seal makes it easy to determine if tampering has occurred," Dabney adds.

From purchasing agent Paul Moore's perspective, speedy delivery of incoming packaging supplies is more important than ever, considering that JTV now ships more than 12,000 packages each day. In 2004, the company fielded more than 6 million phone calls and shipped more than 5 million packages. "As business expanded, it became clear to us that we need more than just a packaging supplier; we need a partner to work with, as we grow our business. Polyair is incredibly quick in delivering the products to us," glimmers Moore. Now, he says, every customer receives "a jewel of a package."

Currently, Dabney says, JTV doesn't use automated equipment or an assembly line to package the products, but is contemplating a move toward automating the packaging process. Each order continues to be individually processed and packaged by an individual shipping agent at a shipping workstation outfitted with a Mettler Toledo (www.mt.com) weigh scale. Order forms, complete with bar codes, arrive in the shipping department, and a shipping agent scans each code, prints an invoice and places the mailer and the invoice onto the scale to obtain the correct weight. The agent next loads the product into the mailer, along with any literature or other materials, labels the mailer and drops it into an outgoing bin.

"We have considered an assembly line, but haven't found a system we feel satisfies our needs," Dabney says.

Today, the company's customers must get a sparkle in their eyes when they receive baubles cushioned in the bubble-lined mailers, sums up Moore. He adds, "It has been a good experience for all of us." Says Dabney, "We use XPAK as the protective packaging of choice for the majority of our orders."

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