Today we’d like to introduce you to Wayne Jason.
Wayne, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I spent 8-yrs. working for a jewelry company with 16-stores, first as a salesman, then a store manager, then a district manager. I could see they were not doing things right, they sold off 8-stores and I told my boss what they needed to change. He didn’t want to listen so I quit. They went bankrupt a year later. I did training seminars for other jewelry companies who wanted to hire me to run stores, but ‘been there, done that’, so I opened my own store. I didn’t have money, didn’t come from a family with money, so friends who knew that I would succeed at anything I tried loaned me whatever they had, $2,500-, $5,000-, and I borrowed enough just to build my store. Wholesalers I knew from my previous company gave me merchandise on consignment.
Most people told me that I needed more money in the bank as business’s needed at least six months to a year to get started. I told them “If I don’t have money I can’t lose any.” The people who REALLY knew me knew that I would succeed. I made a profit my first month in business! I paid back all of the money I borrowed in the two or three years exactly as planned with interest! I bought my own equipment and hired a great goldsmith and started designing my own jewelry as well so I could eliminate a middle man, have jewelry at a lower cost, and offer one of a kind pieces that people couldn’t find anywhere else.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I made more and more money every year and the road was smooth. When the economy was poor and things slowed down, I had to re-invent myself. I have studied positive thinking and the use of mental visualization, and got a mental picture of being the best jeweler in Pasadena. I re-modeled my store, spent some money advertising, ended up getting voted “Best Jeweler in Pasadena” 7-yrs. in a row by our local Pasadena Magazine. I saw companies springing up that were buying gold. I thought, “None of them are buying diamonds though.” I started advertising that “We buy gold AND diamonds.” Other jewelers needed money to pay bills, they could buy gold and sell it off right away, but didn’t want to buy diamonds to sit on more inventory. I had some money put away at this time, so I bought gold to sell and bought diamonds below wholesale prices that I could sell to my customers at great prices and make my own jewelry with. So, I made it through the tough economy that way.
Please tell us about Wayne Jason Jewelry Designs.
CUSTOM JEWELRY! We are best known for designing and making one of a kind pieces. Especially today when a lot of people are buying on the internet, one thing they can’t do is take apart an old piece of jewelry, have someone carve a wax mold for a new design, let them try on the wax mold to see how it fits, make adjustments to it, cast it, and set the old stones into a new design. We can make a ring, pendant, bracelet or earrings from a picture off the internet or a magazine. Our customers love taking part in the creation of their new piece of jewelry also. Most of the jewelry in our display cases are pieces that I’ve designed and we’ve made, so what they see is unique AND made in the U.S.A!
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
My first answer would be NOTHING! But coming from a family that was always broke and parents that never had money, I was always very conservative and never wanted to over extend myself. I think I might have been more successful in the end if I would have borrowed more money and put in more inventory, but I never wanted to borrow more than I was POSITIVE that I could pay back.
Pricing:
- We are a medium priced jeweler. Our higher end IN STOCK items are $1,000- to $5,000-.
- We custom make items in any price range with no limit. $20,000- to $100,000-
- We sell designer sterling silver from $30.00
Contact Info:
- Address: 105 W California Blvd Bl
Pasadena, CA 91105 - Website: www.waynejasonjewelry.com
- Phone: 626-795-9215
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: waynejasonjewelry
- Facebook: Wayne Jason Jewelry Designs
Eric Bernstein
April 18, 2017 at 23:12
As a long time customer exceeding 4-decades who knows your artistic design and unique one-of-a-kind designer jewelry, I hope this article is read by many and sparks new interest leading to more customers. The mass produced jewelry sold on the internet is just that; mass produced, inexpensive and low quality. Mass produced and low quality online jewelry compared to the personal way you hand create a custom piece of fine jewelry found nowhere else except on the woman or man wearing your creation based on the customer’s ideas. I know this all too well as you created the diamond wedding ring I still wear and my late wife’s diamond wedding ring, upgrading the ring throughout the years by adding larger diamonds through each decade, plus all the misc. jewelry both you and I worked together to design, plus items purchased off the shelf. There is something to be said about the smaller sole proprietor where there is attention to detail, understanding the customer, and taking the extra step to satisfy all who walk through the front door of Wayne Jason Jewelry Design.
Rollie Davis
April 19, 2017 at 02:53
I saw a real My in a magazine and took it to Wayne. He said it’s gorgeous and I have some ideas. Knowing his amazing detail and design expertise I let him do his thing. He did not disappoint My emerald ring was surrounded by fire opals and diamonds. Putting the picture to shame and at an affordable price. I’ve been a customer and friend ever since. Repair design Wayne doesnit sll and treats you like you’re his best customer.