Price Up, Units Down: How to Sell Smarter (and Stock Smarter) in 2026

If 2025 felt like you were doing more work for the same “good month” photo… you weren’t imagining it.

National Jeweler shared a clear read from Edge Retail Academy’s aggregated data: gross sales were up (+4.7%) while units sold were down (-5.6%), and average retail sale (ARS) climbed (+10.9%)—classic “price up, units down.”

Translation: dollars didn’t disappear, but volume didn’t show up the way it used to. Customers were still spending—just more selectively, with fewer items per transaction and more pressure on conversion and execution.

So if 2026 is a “sorting year,” the winners won’t be the stores that hope harder. They’ll be the stores that sell smarter and stock smarter—with clean POS visibility, disciplined reorders, and fewer “why do we still have 14 of those?” moments.

Before you move ahead, if you'd like to upgrade your jewelry & watch POS, try Luxare. Contact us here or book a demo directly.

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Let’s talk about what the data actually signals—and what to do next.

What “price up, units down” really means (in human terms)

It means some combination of:

• higher average tickets (price/mix)
• fewer items leaving the case
• fewer transactions or lower item count per ticket
• traffic pressure + more selective shoppers

Edge Retail Academy’s figures show this wasn’t just a weird month—it ran across much of 2025, including Q4.  And National Jeweler added a key context note: Sensormatic Solutions projected U.S. in-store holiday traffic flat to down ~3%, with traffic trending modestly lower for much of the year.

When fewer shoppers walk in, your business stops being a volume game and becomes an execution game.

The category clues: where the story shows up

National Jeweler’s breakdown shows the same pattern across multiple categories: units down, ticket up.  A few highlights worth translating into retailer actions:

• Precious metal jewelry (no stones): sales up ~5% while units fell close to ~17%, and average ticket jumped more than 20%—consistent with higher metal prices and mix shift.
• Colored stone jewelry: sales up just over 4%, average ticket up nearly 12%, units down close to 8%.
• Watches: sales up nearly 5%, units relatively steady, but margins compressed (revenue up doesn’t automatically mean profit up).
• Repairs/services: up more than 14%—a reminder that services stabilize results when discretionary units soften.

2026 isn’t about finding one magic category. It’s about operating tighter—conversion, clienteling, inventory discipline, and service attach.

The 2026 retail reality: the levers you can actually control

National Jeweler frames 2026 as a year that “rewards execution,” calling out fundamentals like conversion, clienteling, inventory discipline, and services.

Here’s how to operationalize that without turning your team into full-time spreadsheet artists.

1) Win on conversion (because units aren’t going to save you)

When units are down, conversion becomes your most controllable growth lever.

Retailer playbook:

• Measure conversion weekly, not “whenever someone remembers”
• Track closing rate by category (bridal vs fashion vs watches vs services)
• Use your POS to identify:
  • what’s getting tried on but not sold
  • what sells fast after being shown
  • what sells when paired with a story (“why this piece”)

Small change, big impact:
If traffic is flat/down and conversion rises even a few points, you can offset a meaningful chunk of unit decline—without spending more on ads.

Related Read: From Search to Store: How Jewelry Retailers Can Turn Digital Discovery into Real Sales in 2026

2) Treat clienteling like a business model, not a nice-to-have

If people shop less frequently, your job is to be the reason they return.

National Jeweler’s point is blunt: when customers visit less, proactive outreach and reactivation protect lifetime value.

Retailer playbook:

• Build lists inside your POS/CRM:
  • “Valentine’s buyers (last 30 days)”
  • “Watch buyers (last 12 months)”
  • “Bridal customers coming up on 1-year anniversary”
  • “Customers who did repairs/services but haven’t purchased since”
• Run weekly outreach that sounds human:
  • “Free cleaning + prong check week”
  • “Watch bracelet sizing appointments”
  • “New arrivals in your price range”

Clienteling is how you sell fewer, better transactions—consistently.

3) Inventory discipline is the new margin protection

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: in a higher-cost world, aged inventory is expensive.

National Jeweler calls out that in a cost-volatile environment, tighter assortments, faster turns, and open-to-buy discipline protect cash flow and margin.

And that cost volatility isn’t hypothetical. The World Gold Council’s 2026 outlook points to ongoing uncertainty shaping gold, and Reuters reported Morgan Stanley forecasting gold could reach $4,800/oz by Q4 2026.

Retailer playbook: “Aged inventory triage”

• Define aging buckets (example): 0–90 / 91–180 / 181–365 / 365+ days
• Decide rules before you’re emotionally attached:
  • Refresh photography / merchandising at 90 days
  • Promo or bundle strategy at 180
  • Remount / redesign / vendor swap at 365
• Incentivize the team to move aging pieces (spiffs can work when targeted).

Aged inventory isn’t “just sitting.” It’s tying up cash while your replenishment buys get riskier.

4) Reorder discipline: buy less, sell better

In “price up, units down,” overbuying becomes the silent killer:

• cash tied up in slow movers
• panic promotions
• margin erosion
• and eventually: “We’ll just hold it until next season” (famous last words)

Retailer playbook: sell-through first

• Reorder based on:
  • sell-through rate
  • weeks of supply
  • margin contribution
  • vendor lead time reliability
• Separate buys into two lanes:
  • Core replenishment (the winners you reorder)
  • Newness bets (small, measured, tested)

Your POS should make this easy:

• “Top sellers by category/price band”
• “Aging report by vendor”
• “Sell-through by collection”
• “Margin by discount level”

This is how you stop guessing and start buying with confidence.

5) Protect gross margin with cleaner discounting rules

When units soften, discounting becomes tempting. Sometimes necessary. Often sloppy.

But 2025’s data shows gross profit rose (+5.5%) even as units fell—meaning many independents held margin with better execution.

Retailer playbook: discount with intent

• Create guardrails:
  • max discount by category
  • promo windows (not endless “sale vibes”)
  • discount approval rules
• Use POS reporting to answer:
  • What discount levels actually convert?
  • Which categories get promo-dependent?
  • Which items sell full price when presented correctly?

Not all discounts are equal. Some are just margin donations.

6) Make services (and repairs) your stability engine

One of the most telling lines in National Jeweler’s breakdown: repairs and services were up more than 14%.

When people buy fewer items, they still:

• resize rings
• service watches
• replace batteries
• tighten prongs
• clean heirlooms before events

Retailer playbook: attach services to product

• “Complimentary cleaning in 60 days” card
• “Annual prong check reminder”
• “Watch sizing + quick inspection”
• service appointment blocks

Services increase repeat visits—and repeat visits make everything else easier.

The practical 2026 dashboard

If you only track six things weekly, track these:

1. Conversion rate (by category if possible)
2. Average retail sale (ARS)
3. Units per transaction (the “selective shopper” meter)
4. Aging inventory % (how much cash is trapped)
5. Sell-through on new buys (are your bets working?)
6. Service/repair revenue trend (your stabilizer)

Where Luxare POS fits

“Sell smarter and stock smarter” is not a vibe. It’s a workflow.

Luxare POS helps retailers operationalize the 2026 fundamentals:

• real sell-through visibility (what’s moving, what’s not)
• aging inventory tracking (before it becomes a problem)
• cleaner reorder discipline (less guesswork)
• better merchandising decisions (based on real signals)
• reporting that doesn’t require a spreadsheet degree

If 2025 taught anything, it’s that resilient retailers aren’t lucky—they’re organized.

Quick FAQs

What does “price up, units down” mean in jewelry retail?
Sales dollars are rising mainly because average ticket/pricing is higher, while fewer units are sold—so growth is driven by price/mix, not volume.

What should jewelers focus on in 2026 if units are down?
Execution fundamentals: conversion, clienteling, inventory discipline (turns/open-to-buy), and services/repairs as stabilizers.

Why is aged inventory riskier in 2026?
Higher and potentially volatile input costs (like gold) raise the carrying-cost risk, while selective consumers reduce easy sell-through.

Bottom line

2026 probably won’t hand you “easy growth.” National Jeweler’s framing is right: it’s a year that rewards the basics—done consistently.

So the strategy is simple (not easy):

• improve conversion
• clientel like you mean it
• stop overbuying
• turn inventory faster
• make services a core pillar
• use POS insight to run the business with fewer surprises

Because in a “price up, units down” world, execution is the strategy.

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Contact us here to understand more about our jewelry POS or watch POS can help you strategize better. You can also book a demo here.