True Tales: Short-Lived Happiness

Published

15 years ago

May 5, 2009

Stories from the front lines of retail

A nice, enthusiastic guy calls several times, making sure we would be ready for him to bring in his girlfriend for an engagement ring. He says, “Money is no object. I have a great job and it is full time.”
At noon, he comes in the door with a very surprised, scared, nervous girlfriend. We help her make three choices for an engagement ring. She has tears in her eyes. We’ve been chatting back and forth and I ask how long have they been together. “One month” was the answer. They left with him saying he’d be back to finalize the deal. He never did return. A month later he came in and asked if we were hiring. I had to tell him no. He hung his head and left. I felt sorry for him and wondered about his girlfriend. From the happiest guy in the world to the most sad in just 30 days.
— TERRY AND SANDY SMITH
GOLDSMITH JEWELERS, LITTLE FALLS, MN

When There’s No Succession Plan, Call Wilkerson

Bob Wesley, owner of Robert C. Wesley Jewelers in Scottsdale, Ariz., was a third-generation jeweler. When it was time to enjoy life on the other side of the counter, he weighed his options. His lease was nearing renewal time and with no succession plan, he decided it was time to call Wilkerson. There was plenty of inventory to sell and at first, says Wesley, he thought he might try to manage a sale himself. But he’s glad he didn’t. “There’s no way I could have done this as well as Wilkerson,” he says. Wilkerson took responsibility for the entire event, with every detail — from advertising to accounting — done, dusted and managed by the Wilkerson team. “It’s the complete package,” he says of the Wilkerson method of helping jewelers to easily go on to the next phase of their lives. “There’s no way any retailer can duplicate what they’ve done.”