Last year in an interview I said that one of our biggest challenges was to ‘maintain a unique identity in a crowded marketplace’. This is an ongoing challenge & one that we thrive on. Walking to work this morning I spotted a new jewellery store that has opened on the main walk way around Korcula old town. I started to think about how we can ensure that our identity is not lost amid the mass of stores here, and what makes our store different to others.
I have the best views on my walk to work.
I firmly believe that our main unique selling point (USP) is the fact that ALL of jewellery is made here by us in Korcula, it is only available in our store in Korcula and in two boutiques in Dunedin, New Zealand. Each piece of our jewellery is handcrafted, using traditional filigree techniques that have been passed through many generations of the Seba family. It brings us much joy to know that we are keeping a centuries old tradition alive. By adding a Korcula flavour/modern twist to our pieces we are able to introduce a fresh approach to filigree making, keeping filigree relevant for today’s jewellery lovers and wearers.
I have written before about the various steps that go into creating each of our pieces, from the traditional filigree bead – see Creating Our Filigree Beads, part i, ii & iii to the wide variety of bespoke requests that we have enjoyed creating.
One of our first bespoke creations created for an UK based customer in 2011.
If you don’t see what you like in our store we are happy to create something especially for you, our bespoke service is offered to customers worldwide and we are yet to meet many of the people we have created pieces for. Items can be ordered online and discussed via email – sebacroatia@yahoo.com – feel free to contact us if you would like to know more about this service.
Both Doka & I enjoy sharing how we create our filigree pieces, and are here to answer questions in Croatian, English, Albanish or German.
We hold daily filigree demonstrations in our Korcula store (Seba Dizajn) where people can watch and learn about how we create our jewellery. There is a full working table in store and a lot of our pieces are created on site during the summer months.
Daily in store filigree demonstrations.
We are passionate about our creations and ensure that each piece is worked to the highest standard, ensuring a product that will be enjoyed for many generations. Our unique pieces include several designs inspired by our Korcula environment, some of you will be familiar with our ‘Cathedral Window‘ Series – each pendant, and newly introduced pair of earrings, has a framework that is based on the window of St Peter’s Cathedral – the oldest (of 17) church here in Korcula. We have recently added a pendant to our collection that we first made in our first year of opening (2011) that is based on some of the amazing stonework found here in Korcula.
Korcula stonework inspired pendant.
Our use of social media to promote both our business and Korcula is another feature has helped us create a unique identity here in Korcula. There are a number of Korcula businesses with fabulous facebook pages and we enjoying interacting with them and our ‘friends’ all over the world. We also use Twitter (@SebaDizajn), Pinterest, Google+ & this blog to help share our filigree world.
It is always interesting hearing about how people ‘found us’ and each of the social media listed here has been responsible for introducing a customer or two.
The constant updating of our stock also helps keep our business alive and fresh, making it interesting for those who are returning to visit and for us 🙂 If you are in Korcula come and visit, we would love to meet you. If you are further away, leave a comment below, we enjoy hearing from our readers all over the world. Where in the world are you?
