Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/201303
Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company Founded: 1913 Headquarters: Jewelers Park, Neenah CEO: Darwin Copeman Employees: 206 Members: Nearly 10,000 commercial and 300,000 individual policyholders in all 50 states and Canada; total coverage is more than $17 billion. Growth: Since 2009, the company has seen a 29 percent growth in premium dollars and its policyholders' reserves/surplus has risen to over $175 million – or 39 percent growth. Industry ratings: Jewelers Mutual has been rated by A.M. Best as an A+ company 26 consecutive times. It was recognized by Wards 50® in 2013, 2012, 2011, 2006 and 2005. Wards evaluates 3,000 insurance companies based on a five-year average performance for a number of factors. Industry endorsements: Jewelers Mutual enjoys exclusive endorsements from major trade organizations in the U.S. and Canada, including the American Gem Society, Canadian Jewellers Association, Jewelers of America, Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America, Canadian Jewellery Group, DiGem, and Jewelers Vigilance Canada. The company has given more than $6.1 million in support of the jewelry industry. Website: www.jewelersmutual.com and that's the extent of my jewelry. Now, on the other hand, I love giving my wife jewelry as gifts, if that counts.'" It did. "Obviously, my responsibility is to lead an insurance company," Copeman continues. "We have many, many experts within these four walls that grew up in the jewelry industry, who ran retail jewelry stores, that were designers and craftsmen, who have deep certifications in a variety of aspects of jewelry development, marketing and sales, etc. So my need to be expert in jewelry isn't as great as knowing that we need to find the right talent that can serve the industry." Since Copeman joined the company in 2009, Jewelers Mutual has seen a 29 percent growth in premium dollars. Its policyholders' reserves/surplus has risen to over $175 million – or 39 percent – strengthening the company should catastrophe strike or the economy stumble, he says. Taking the helm in the midst of the Great Recession was a challenge, he admits. Jewelry sales were down and thus insurance sales were also down. Copeman took advantage of the slowdown to beef up the company's technology. Jewelers Mutual invested millions to overhaul its information technology, calling it the Emerald Program. Copeman had a depth of experience in overseeing technology in previous insurance positions and observed that when he started at Jewelers, "we were driving around 28 | Insight • N o v e m b e r 2 013 Click to hear Jewelers Mutual CEO Darwin Copeman talk about the idiosyncrasies of the jewelry insurance industry. on an old '47 Plymouth chassis with a great big old V8 engine, with huge speakers and fat tires." He knew it would not support the business growth he envisioned. Although the board had approved an IT upgrade just six years earlier, Copeman made a successful case for the investment. Using software from Silicon Valley company Guidewire, some 25 to 40 IT consultants from Green Bay-based Skyline Technologies and PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) worked at Jewelers Mutual from 2011 until this past July, completely revamping its policy administration systems. Thwarting thieves for loss prevention D avid Sexton, vice president of loss prevention consulting at Jewelers Mutual, has seen technology make a significant difference in reducing jewelry crime since he joined the company in 1980. Today, a crime database run by the Jewelers Security Alliance gathers information from all over the country and instantly disseminates it to law enforcement. It works hand-in-hand with the FBI to investigate major thefts. Thieves in the jewelry industry have become more sophisticated than ever, says Sexton, who serves on the alliance board. "There are basically two kinds of criminals," he says. "We have the opportunistic criminal who asks to see the most expensive Rolex, grabs it and runs out of the store. Then you have what everyone dreads: Organized crime and career professionals. Those individuals have to be caught and put in jail because if they're not, they will plague the industry." In the past year, says Copeman, a new and dangerous phenomenon has occurred, called "tiger kidnappings." "Picture yourself as a retail jeweler, closing up shop," Copeman explains. "You drive home, where three or four men grab you, walk into the house, sit with your family and hold them hostage while others drive you back to the store and force you to open up the safes. The bad guys take all the time they want, cleaning out the store and the safe, while you are worrying about what are they doing to your family back at your house. We've had several instances of w w w. i n s i g h t o n b u s i n e s s . c o m