Gene the Jeweler Wants to Help Others — But at What Cost?

BY NOW, YOU PROBABLY KNOW that Gene the Jeweler’s watch-battery replacement service is not exactly profitable.

You know what else isn’t profitable? His gold-buying operation.

It’s not really even a gold-buying service, per se. People bring in collections of jewelry that they have acquired from who-knows-where — inheritances, in some cases.

Gene and his staff sort through it and tell them what’s real gold and what’s not, and how much it might all be worth. (Not much, usually.)

In most cases, there’s not much payoff for Gene. The owner of the jeweler usually takes the jewelry and leaves, perhaps selling it elsewhere.

Gene hopes the people he helps will remember his store and perhaps come in and buy something — someday.

He calls his gold-evaluation effort a “community service.” But to us, it sounds more like a time suck.

What do you think?