I hear from clients all the time how Blue Nile and other online retailers are cutting into their business. Some customers may come into your store to do their research, and then buy online. Others buy online and bring in their stones to be custom set by you. Either way, you’re losing out on that big juicy sale mainly because online retailers aren’t required by law to collect those state and local sales/use taxes that can add hundreds to the price of a piece of fine jewelry. But brick-and-mortar stores are!

Why it matters
So what if the playing field was leveled and Internet businesses were required to charge those taxes too? As one blogger for the investment website, Seeking Alpha said about the sales-tax-free engagement ring he bought at Blue Nile that saved him $650: “I can with 100% certainty say that if that comparable ring from Blue Nile had cost the same as that in the local jewelry store, I would never have considered for a minute spending $10,000 with Blue Nile.”

What you can do
It’s true, buying expensive jewelry, sight unseen, is risky for most people. But the lure of saving all that money on tax, is too tempting not to chance it. However, the good news for independent jewelers is that we’re getting closer to passing legislation for an online sales tax, thanks to a new bill proposed by Congressman Jason Chaffetz of Utah. But the bill, called the Remote Transactions Party Act (RTPA), needs your help to make sure congress gets behind the legislation. For more about this important issue and an easy way to find your state representatives’ contact info, go to Jewelers of America’s Legislative Action Center and click on “key issues” at the top of the page. Then send your representative an email saying you support sales tax fairness and the RTPA bill.