[dropcap cap=T]he first store I was associated with was located downtown on a busy street. The shop was located on the second story directly above the retail store, connected by a stairway located outside the store. You would have to exit the store, go next door and then go up the stairs to get to it. [/dropcap]
One summer day a customer was in to pick up his custom engagement ring, and it wasn’t quite ready yet. We called upstairs to the shop and were told that the ring was just now ready for polishing and it would be ready in five minutes.
A minute or two later we heard a huge racket coming down the stairs, the door next door exploded open, and a wild-eyed jeweler dashed across the sidewalk in front of our eyes (and behind the back of the customer). He darted into the street, and dodging cars threw up both arms and commanded two lanes of traffic to come to a halt. On hands and knees he scurried about amongst the cars, found the ring, flashed us a grin and ran back upstairs to finish polishing.
The ring had bounced out of the polishing machine and straight out the window into the street below. The customer never knew a thing when the ring was delivered a few minutes later. We did get a screen for the window soon after.
[h4]Mark Clodius[/h4]
Clodius & Co., Rockford, IL
[span class=note]This story is from the February 2011 edition of INSTORE[/span]