Jay Brower and Howard Hoff
(PRESS RELEASE) NEW YORK — The jewelry industry continues to have resources available to help retail businesses recover and thrive from the impact of the pandemic. On Thursday, Sept. 23, at 1 p.m. eastern. The Plumb Club will host a live webinar moderated by executive director, Lawrence Hess and featuring expert panelists Howard Hoff, Partner-in-Charge, Commercial Business Group and Jay Brower, Partner, State and Local Tax Leader at the premier accounting firm Marks Paneth.
The webinar will focus on the Employee Retention Credits (ERC) and that program’s interplay with the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) forgiveness calculation available to the jewelry industry. Further, the panelists will provide jewelry retailers with an overview of the CARES Act and the Consolidated Appropriations Act as it is pertinent to the ERC and PPP loan forgiveness. Retailers will also get insight and knowledge on:
- Qualifying for and claiming ERC for your business for 2020 and 2021
- Optimization analysis of the interplay of the PPP loan forgiveness applications and the ERC being requested
- Taxation of the ERC received
“Many retailers may feel that the resources available to help with issues related to the pandemic have been exhausted at this point,” said Lawrence Hess, executive director of The Plumb Club. “There are still a number of opportunities that retailers can avail themselves of. This timely webinar will help them understand and optimize the help that’s still available.”
All jewelry retailers are invited to register for this important and timely webinar here.
Family Legacy, New Chapter: How Wilkerson Turns 89 Years of History Into Future Success
After 89 years of serving the Albany community, Harold Finkle Your Jeweler faced a pivotal decision. For third-generation owner Justin Finkle, the demanding hours of running a small business were taking precious time away from his young family. "After 23 years, I decided this was the time for me," Finkle explains. But closing a business with nearly nine decades of inventory and customer relationships isn't something easily managed alone.
Wilkerson's comprehensive approach transformed this challenging transition into a remarkable success story. Their strategic planning handled everything from advertising and social media to inventory management and staffing — elements that would overwhelm most jewelers attempting to navigate a closing sale independently.
The results speak volumes. "Wilkerson gave us three different tiers of potential goals," Finkle notes. "We've reached that third tier, that highest goal already, and we still have two weeks left of the sale." The partnership didn't just meet financial objectives—it exceeded them ahead of schedule.
