PA Jewellery are delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted in two categories for this year’s UK Jewellery Awards. We have made the shortlist in the Employer of the Year and Sales Team of the Year categories for the national competition alongside some of the country’s largest and best-known jewellery companies.
Managing Director, Ian Cookson said “I am thrilled that we have been shortlisted for these awards. It reflects the hard work that is put in by our team every day”.
PA Jewellery has had a challenging year which has seen many changes for the company. In February 2018 our founder and owner Mike Marsh passed away. In October we became an employee-owned company with a newly formed Employee Ownership Trust acquiring a majority share. This was the culmination of a project that Mike had been passionate about and was an important new step for the company. Ian believes it was important in securing the shortlisting for Employer of the Year: “Being an employee-owned company shows that we put our employees at the heart of the business; the whole team work together to make the company successful, and everyone has a stake in that success.”
Our sales team has a combined jewellery retail experience of 150 years, giving us a wealth of experience and knowledge. We encourage and assist employees in acquiring relevant qualifications, for example by studying with the Gemmological Association of Great Britain (Gem-A): presently six members of the sales team hold Gem-A’s Diploma in Gemmology with the post-nominals FGA, four (soon to be five) also holding the Diamond Diploma (DGA) qualification. Two of these are Gem-A prize-winners, including Zoe Lewis who was awarded both the Christie’s Prize for Gemmology and the Tully Medal as the best global candidate in the 2018 Diploma in Gemmology.
Ian describes PA’s team as a ‘work-family’: “we have known and worked together for a long time and all help each other out. We work as a team rather than as individuals which improves the experience of the customer and means they are always getting the best possible service. We don’t operate a high-pressure sales environment but ensure our customers can benefit from our experience and expertise.” Being shortlisted for Sales Team of the Year reflects the success of this approach.
The winners in all categories will be announced at the Awards Ceremony which will take place at the Artillery Garden in London on 3rd July 2019.