Headlines

Kids’ Jewelry Sold at J.C. Penney, Dillard’s Found to Have ‘Astonishingly High Levels’ of Toxic Metals

Published

9 years ago

March 22, 2016

INSTORE Staff

“If I was a parent, I would avoid it entirely.”

A Washington state investigation has shown that pieces of jewelry adorning children’s dresses that were sold by national retailers such as J.C. Penney and Dillard’s contained toxic metals, the Seattle Times reports. The article says that the state’s Department of Ecology tested 27 pieces of jewelry from dresses purchased last October – at physical stores and online – and found that five of the pieces had extremely high levels of cadmium and lead. The dresses are specifically marketed toward young girls, who would be at risk if they were to swallow the jewelry or put it in their mouth, for example.

“These are astonishingly high levels,” Charles Margulis, media director for the Center for Environmental Health in Oakland, CA, told the news outlet. “Five out of 27 is way too high a risk to take. If I was a parent, I would avoid it entirely.”

As part of a prepared statement issued to the news outlet, a J.C. Penney spokesperson said: “JCPenney has an established standard for cadmium in all children’s products, including jewelry. We require our suppliers to meet that standard and to have test data to support their compliance. In light of the recent reports, we are reaching out to our children’s product suppliers to ensure that they are meeting our requirements. As soon as we learned of these test results, we removed these items from our inventory and they are no longer available for purchase.”

You Wouldn’t Cut Your Own Hair. Why Run Your Own Retirement Sale?

After being in business for over a quarter of a century, Wayne Reid, owner of Wayne Jewelers in Wayne, Pennsylvania, decided it was time for a little “me time.” He says, “I’ve reached a point in my life where it’s time to slow down, enjoy a lot of things outside of the jewelry industry. It just seemed to be the right time.” He chose Wilkerson to handle his retirement sale because of their reputation and results. With financial goals exceeded, Reid says he made the right choice selecting Wilkerson to handle the sale. “They made every effort to push our jewelry to the forefront of the showcases,” he says, lauding Wilkerson for their finesse and expertise. Would he recommend them to other jewelers who want to make room for new merchandise, expand their business or like him, decide to call it a day? Absolutely he says, equating trying to do this kind of sale with cutting your own hair. “The results are going to happen but not as well as if you have a professional like Wilkerson do the job for you.”