Reminiscing…

By Eileen Eichhorn

My staff often wonders why I chose to decorate the jewelry store windows myself, even washing them when the weather cooperates. I prefer putting the jewels out in the windows daily and placing the beauties safely in the vault each evening. It was my first job in my father’s store in 1965. He told me on the first day I entered the building that the windows were my responsibility. I could do anything to entice customers to enter. I took that command to heart!

Now, 50 years later, it serves as a daily reminder of those first days at Eichhorn Jewelry and the simplicity of it all. I could count the number of items in the building in a half hour in those days with my grandmother. Today, the inventory covers several thousand square feet and takes a dozen employees to manage. Many customers are unaware of the sheer number of different jewelry items and unusual gifts we have in stock, from hundreds of loose diamonds and gemstones to baby cups, an expanded vintage jewelry area and more! Some ask what the most expensive item in our collection is. That depends on what day the question is presented – we may have just sold it!

I know it is overwhelming to many newcomers when approaching our entrance and opening the door. Where to begin to shop? Before the door ever opens, my father said, “YOUR windows will help customers in their selection.” “Just a hint of what lies inside” his words continue to resonate in my head.

I love MY windows. They were my first introduction into the wonderful world of real jewelry. Through several renovations, the windows have changed very little from the original architecture of 1928. Only the jewels continue to change at Eichhorn Jewelry, Inc.