The Inn at Penn ballroom was aglitter and aglow on Friday, September 19th as the iconic Simon G. fine jewelry company graced it with its presence. Lustrous gold, silver, diamond, and precious stone pieces sparkled under polished glass cases, and students clustered around to gaze at them, perhaps with visions of their own future engagement or wedding. Banners and videos throughout the ballroom displayed signature Simon G. pieces. As the elegantly appointed stage awaited the presentation from Simon G.’s leadership, the excitement was palpable. It was the launch of The Wharton School’s Baker Retailing Center’s annual Ideathon, sponsored this year by the renowned luxury jewelry brand. Teams of six to seven students would be challenged to come up with sterling ideas to expand Simon G.’s market presence and promote its future success. They had less than 24 hours to prepare convincing three-minute presentations and be ready for two minutes of intense questioning by the judges.
But it wouldn’t be all work on that high-powered, sleepless night. The students were gifted with goodies including a gold stud earring from the Simon G. company itself, Simon G.-branded merch, a personalized trucker hat, a portrait by a professional sketch artist, and a beaded bracelet-making activity, not to mention meals, snacks, and of course plenty of coffee. Above all, they had a shot at winning the competition. The two first-place winners of each of two challenges would win $10,000 for their team, and the two second-place winners would win $5,000 for their team. Plus bragging rights!
A Luxury Brand Built From $200
Representatives of the Simon G. company took the stage. Brooke Brinkman, Chief Marketing Officer, told how the jewelry firm had been founded by the current CEO’s father Simon Ghanimian, a Lebanese immigrant who arrived in New York City with only $200 in his pocket. Ghanimian wanted to go to school to study engineering but couldn’t afford the tuition, Brinkman said. “So he relied on his roots—his father was a shoemaker and his grandfather was in the jewelry industry—and he was brought up to learn that if you have a skill you can do with your hands, you’ll never go hungry.”
Ghanimian found work in New York’s jewelry district and eventually moved to California, where his own unique jewelry creations found a following and he launched his business. (The name “Simon G.” was thanks to a county registrar, who shortened the last name to G. on the premise that no one would have been able to pronounce it.)
Today Simon’s son, Zaven “Zee” Ghanimian, serves as CEO. The firm is celebrating its 45th year and boasts 900 retail locations in the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean. Its beautiful designs “have graced red carpets for many, many years,” Brinkman said. But it faces challenges as any business does, and Brinkman outlined some of them. How would this legacy luxury brand move into the future and appeal to a wider, younger audience? How would it withstand competition and the increasing prevalence of e-commerce?
Making the Case
The Ideathon teams were randomly assigned one of two challenges set by the company. Challenge #1 involved Simon G.’s retail partners, which account for nearly 90% of the company’s sales. These retail partners carry (and sometimes promote) competing brands; how could consumer messaging be tailored so that shoppers are committed to buying Simon G. before they even enter a store?
Challenge #2 was about the company’s future for 2026 and beyond. In a crowded fine jewelry market and an increasingly digital world, how could Simon G. grow long-term desirability, loyalty, and sales while staying true to its heritage?
And the Winners Were…
The first-place winner for Challenge #1, wowing the judges and winning $10,000, was Team Ice Ice Baby. Entertainingly presenting the scenario of Travis Kelce proposing to Taylor Swift, the team pointed out that men, not women, are the actual purchasers of engagement rings and that many would welcome guidance in navigating the choices flooding the market. Taking an AI focus, Team Ice Ice Baby pointed out that Simon G. appears much less frequently than its competitors in ChatGPT prompts related to engagement rings. They described how Simon G. could “make small tweaks” to its web content to improve AI discoverability. In their scenario, the hypothetical “Travis” would then get directed to Simon G’s website and to a microsite with a retailer. He would be provided with inventory level information and various locations he could visit to buy the perfect Simon G. ring. “From AI to ‘I Do,’ that’s our proposal to you!” the team chanted.
Garnering the $5,000 second place prize for Challenge #1 was Team Twinkle. Asserting that Simon G. lacks differentiation in the market, they described how the company could offer a rental option to win over younger buyers on a budget. The lower barrier to entry would also entice these customers to consider purchasing Simon G. pieces in the future. A companion aspect of Team Twinkle’s strategy was to focus on “the power of community and the power of storytelling.” They told how images of the rental jewelry on the website would contain pop-up stories from previous users celebrating their special moments. New rental customers would receive a “Sincerely, Simon G.” postcard invitation to lend their own unique voice to the Simon G. story.
For Challenge #2, a team called the Quaker Bakers walked away with first prize. They impressed the judges with their concept of “Love Milestones”: four sequential jewelry collections, each tied to a relationship event, which they said “captured the entire journey of love from the promise to the legacy.” Notably, they outlined an augmented reality (AR) jewelry try-on system—designed to “reduce the friction” of actually getting customers to the store—and presented a live demo. The Quaker Bakers asserted that their innovation would result in a 94% increase in conversion rates and other benefits for companies like Shopify, Vogue Business, and Sephora.
Winning second place in Challenge #2 was Team Simon Says, which proposed a Simon G. “Something Blue” collection to capitalize on the tradition of brides wearing something blue at their wedding. The team highlighted that there is currently no dominant player in the huge $10 billion wedding-day jewelry market, and that over 42% of Gen Z buyers prefer colored stones. To boost customer lifetime value, the team said, each jewelry box would come with a card guiding the recipient to a digital heirloom registry where she would begin acquiring customized jewelry pieces for each of life’s significant events. The team projected a 25% increase in site visits, 18% in purchases, and $2 million in profit by year one.
An Evening to Remember
The students had high praise for the Ideathon event. Shikha Patel of the Ice Ice Baby team noted that most of their group didn’t know each other in advance but ended up working well together—and winning one of the two first prizes! She reflected on what she would take away from the experience: “Don’t be afraid to get into the hard ideas and hard questions,” such as the team’s AI concept, she said. “I feel like a lot of us—especially myself—tend to go for the easier option initially, just because it’s a lot of work and you want to get it done and do a good job… But I think we won because we put in the extra effort and thought deeply, even though it was a little more complicated solution.”
Participant Addison Jakubowicz said she had a terrific time and appreciated working with her teammates. “There’s a lot of great talent here at Wharton, and it’s really exciting to see all the ideas people can come up with.”
Participant Pia Gupta also enjoyed the Ideathon and said it was her first real case competition. She felt that she benefited greatly from going through the process, learning “how to attack a problem like this with such a limited amount of time.”
Brinkman, and Simon G.’s CEO Ghanimian, had glowing words for the Ideathon teams. “We were literally blown away—there were so many incredible ideas,” Brinkman said. “There are pieces from nearly all of your presentations that we’ve discussed and believe can be utilized.” So thank you again for your efforts, your energy, and your commitment to the task at hand. It was amazing to watch the process unfold.”
Ghanimian told the students, “Simon G. has always been about innovation, craftsmanship, and pushing boundaries in our industry” and said the participants “brought the same spirit to the table… The strategies, the insights, and the fresh perspectives you’ve shared were very impressive.” The CEO added, “It was really cool to see 150 students ask the same questions I ask myself at night!”
