J.Köhle: what a jewelry clasp specialist looks like when it takes quality seriously
I hold a weakness for companies with a solid history. If it is a family-run business, even more so. In this article about the J.Köhle company, let's look a little into their world.
A long history
J.Köhle was founded in 1872. It soon started to make a name for itself. As we learned before, it was by popular demand that they had driven towards a niche that would become their focus, the specialty: clasps. It was in 1919 that the Köhle family took over the business. And from then on it has been all and only about clasps.
Creating jewelry clasps
This German company prides itself on creating clasps of outstanding quality. And they have done so with an open mind towards innovation and technical developments, thus keeping them always cutting edge in design and functionality. The company today creates premium quality clasps in virtually all price ranges, but did you know they also create necklace clips and pearl necklace shorteners?
Truth be told, as much as I have grown to appreciate and really look at clasps, due to my years living in Valenza, where jewelry manufacturing was happening all around me and where so many designers and manufacturers influenced me on how to observe and look at jewelry really, I still had this idea that a clasp manufacturing company isn't really innovative or high on design and innovation. Instead, the J.Köhle company proved me wrong. Margit Kühnel, sister of the company's owner, Karina Ratzlaff, travels to many trade shows around the globe and keeps a finger on the pulse of whatKöhle customers really want. By conducting surveys and listening and observing, she brings that kind of insight back to the company.
J.Köhle and more
Although J.Köhle is all about clasps mainly, they do create some exquisite, well-made jewelry too, such as pearl rings and earrings. They also manufacture superior quality wedding bands, which are distributed through the G. Kühnel Company. J.Köhle is adding a growing number of OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) products to its already extensive range.
Working with J.Köhle
Quality and design are essential, but when it comes to working together, nothing beats a great customer-manufacturer relationship. Making contact with your supplier in a smooth, efficient and pleasurable way creates a platform for a reliable, long-lasting relationship. J.Köhle has a very competent sales team that speaks directly over the phone with customers, offering personal consultation. The staff, all of them qualified experts in design, manufacturing, sales and logistics, is there to assist customers cooperatively and kindly. This may seem obvious, but everyone who works with others knows it isn't. Excellent customer experience starts at point A and should carry through to the very end.
Mindful and responsible
Customer experience is something I personally work with a lot, doing research about best practices and writing about it in trade magazines. It is what I try to teach, or inspire, every time I speak with a company, train staff or write about it. Having a great product isn't enough. Having a great sales team isn't enough. Where the customer experience starts, often online, and where it ends, should be entirely consistent.
And here is what I also like about J.Köhle: they are mindful of their responsibility for the health of the environment, with clean air and pure water as their highest priority. They are in compliance with the German Ethics Code and the CIBJO Ethics Code. An interesting detail: Karina Ratzlaff is head of the German CIBJO delegation. More about the CIBJO Ethics Code here. They truly live and work by these guidelines. How good it would be if all brands and companies in luxury and jewelry did the same.
J. Köhle GmbH & Co. KG, Stolzestr. 3, 75175 Pforzheim, Germany. Telephone: +49(0)7231-6002-0. Telefax: +49(0)7231-6002-44.
