Eileen McClelland

Top Experiences That Should Be on Every Jeweler’s Bucket List

Published

8 years ago

October 13, 2015

Eileen McClelland

A few months ago, we asked INSTORE’s Brain Squad to share the top experiences that should be on every jeweler’s bucket list.

The overriding theme in nearly all of the suggestions is to be sure you take time now to do at least some of the things on your list. Don’t wait for retirement, which you keep putting off anyway.

“Do anything that gets your adrenaline flowing and gives you joy,” says Denise Oros of Linnea Jewelers in La Grange, IL. “Learn something new as often as possible. Travel more. Be a tourist even if it is just in your own city. Hike, run, bike, fly, boat. Just go, get out, do! Live longer, love harder and laugh more. Regrets not allowed. That should be on everyone’s Bucket List.”

While the whole story will be published in December, here are a few top suggestions:

Set a goal. Seek to sell big diamonds – over 5 or 10 carats, for example.

Take some time off – soon! Take Christmas week off. Or take weekends off for a while, just to see how the other half lives. Or take a six month sabbatical.

Have an adventure: Drive across the United States. Hike Half Dome in Yosemite. Go on a night dive. Take a cruise. Rent an apartment in Manhattan for a month. Get a pilot’s license. See one of the Wonders of the World.

Take a jewelry-related trip. Visit the Gem Gallery of the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. Visit the Hong Kong jewelry show. Visit a gem mine. See how a diamond is cut in person. Join a buying group. Stay longer than you need to at the Tucson gem shows and take time to explore. Take GIA courses.

Take your business to the next level. Remodel your store. Spend some time learning jewelry design and/or working on the bench. Enter INSTORE’s America’s Coolest Stores contest.

Wilkerson Testimonials

Wilkerson: “They Feel Like Family”

Newton’s Jewelers in Fort Smith, Ark., was a true institution. But after being at the helm for most of his life, owner (and descendent of the original founder) Kelly Newton decided it was time to retire. He chose Wilkerson to handle the sale. “I’ve known the owners of Wilkerson for a long, long time. I felt at home with them,” he says. The final retirement sale was just a “blast” and the Wilkerson sales team made it so very simple and straightforward, says Newton. Would he recommend Wilkerson to others? Absolutely. “They’ve done incredible work,” says Newton. “They feel like family.”