A unique new direct-to-consumer (DTC) venture for fine jewellery and watches has been created with the launch of the Aston & Rose brand by multi-channel retail group Scotts & Co. This follows the company’s move into fragrance retailing with the acquisition of The Garden Fragrance Company in April 2021.
This month, Scotts & Co. will mail a ‘VIP Preview’ edition of the Aston & Rose catalogue direct to 750,000 of its best customers. 
Scotts has a customer file of more than five million affluent, ABC1 consumers—believed to be the largest such database in the UK.
The stylish Aston & Rose catalogue will feature a specially curated collection of exclusive rings, earrings, pendants, brooches and bracelets, many featuring precious gems such as sapphires, emeralds and diamonds. Price points are from £30 to £330. The range will also include premium watches and desirable gifts such as Steiff Collector Bears.
Nigel Swabey, CEO of Scotts & Co., believes the DTC market for distinctive jewellery and watches has huge growth potential because impactful, personalised direct mail is currently under-exploited by manufacturers and retailers in both sectors. He said: “With the launch of Aston & Rose, we aim to rewrite the rule book across products and distribution by engaging directly with affluent jewellery purchasers in their own homes.
“We already have over 40,000 customers on our database who have purchased jewellery through our other catalogue brands. But the launch of Aston & Rose will enable us to take our approach to this market to a different level. The Aston & Rose catalogue will have a much higher average order value. It includes exquisite diamond, sapphire and gold items costing hundreds of pounds each.”
Swabey added: “We intend to create compelling propositions based on the emotion and appeal of beautiful jewellery, while offering the same level of customer service and attention to detail that people expect in a physical store. For example, many Aston & Rose gift items can be personalised at no extra charge.”
Based on the initial reaction from customers, Scotts is confident that the Aston & Rose catalogue will be highly profitable in its first season—with sales close to £1m expected this Christmas.
McKinsey & Company has said that DTC and online marketing of fine jewellery and watches currently lags far behind other luxury categories. However, their analysis suggests that direct and online sales of fine jewellery will increase from 13 per cent to around 21 per cent of the total global market by 2025—with global direct and online watch sales likely to grow from 5 per cent to around 9 per cent during the same period.
According to analyses by market measurement firm Nielsen, Scotts now publishes and distributes more mail order catalogues than any other UK company. It also has what is believed to be the UK’s largest database of affluent ABC1 customers.
The company was established by Robert T. Scott in 1991 as a catalogue retailing business with a single retail store in Stow-on-the-Wold. From the outset, “Scotts of Stow” specialised in products for the kitchen and home. The business was acquired in 1996 by Nigel Swabey, an experienced catalogue retailer and founder of numerous specialist catalogue titles since 1973, including Kaleidoscope and Innovations. Through a series of acquisitions and spin-off catalogue launches, the company has expanded its product range to include product categories as diverse as consumer electronics, gifts, artificial flowers, garden plants and equipment, health and wellness products, jewellery, and fragrances.
Scotts of Stow continues to be the largest business in the group with some two-thirds of group sales turnover.
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