Rocksbox is changing its business model.
The jewelry platform, which is owned by Signet Jewelers Ltd., is shutting down its rental service this month and transitioning to be a full e-commerce platform selling secondhand pieces across fashion, demi-fine and fine jewelry.
According to Rocksbox president Allison Vigil, the shift is meant to allow the company to reach a larger customer base and reflects changing customer behavior.
“[Rocksbox] was founded in 2012 as a subscription model and at the time it was a really innovative way to drive discovery and get new trends, new styles and new designers into the hands of customers,” Vigil said. “We have loved that experience of bringing that to life for our customers. It’s just been incredibly fun to hear their stories of discovering new styles, expressing themselves in new ways and getting their hands on special pieces. We want to be continually at the forefront of delivering that kind of emotion and experience to our customers and we’re feeling like times are changing a little bit. The subscription [model] now instead of being a fresh way to discover, feels a little bit like a barrier to accessibility.”
Rocksbox’s subscription model was structured as a $21 monthly service that delivered three pieces of jewelry to subscribers. Users were able to swap out their three pieces as many times as desired and to purchase them.
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Vigil explained the new business model will also allow Rocksbox to expand its jewelry assortment. The executive declined to share brand names, but said Rocksbox will be adding on new jewelry brands later this summer.
“We really see an opportunity to bring our unique lens on curation to the market and look at our curation as an opportunity to really work with folks who celebrate our same values,” she said. “[We are] looking at designers who also share a passion for sustainability and circularity in many forms, so our curation will reflect that.”
Rocksbox offers fashion jewelry brands like Kate Spade, Kendra Scott and Lele Sadoughi, as well as its own demi-fine offerings and pre-owned fine jewelry styles from Signet’s other brands, like Kay Jewelers, Zales and Jared.
The company recently expanded its jewelry offerings in 2021 with its demi-fine styles, which are created with sterling silver and 18-karat gold plating. The move was Rocksbox’s first initiative after being acquired by Signet.
Price-wise, Vigil stated Rocksbox’s fashion jewelry offerings range from $35 to $250, and its demi-fine and fine jewelry styles range up to $800.
Overall, Vigil said the goal of Rocksbox’s rebranding is to offer more customers the ability to experiment with their self-expression through jewelry.
“What we’ve found is no matter [what], it seems that customers have the desire to find something unique and find it at a great value,” she said. “Secondhand jewelry offers a great way to do that. There are some customers who also love the circularity of it and keeping something in circulation rather than producing a new piece, but ultimately we’re finding it comes down to finding really that uniqueness at a great value.”
