b'SPECIAL FEATUREWheatley Plaza. (It was also the year their first actual baby, daughterIn July, Jewelers of America announced that Mark and Candy will Randi, was born.) receive the 2026 Gem Award for Lifetime Achievement, an honor And, as anyone who has more than one child can attest, that sec- that recognizes a career of contributions that have ultimately made ond baby is a lot. the jewelry industry better. Candy recalls the difficulties involved in creating new systems andThey will be presented the award at the Gem Awards gala, sched-hiring more people, all the while still running the Glen Cove store. uled for March 13, 2026, in New York City. Mark remembers feeling stretched thin.So, when the calendar turns to Jan. 1, 2027, and London Jewelers When you have one store, I knew every square inch of that store,centennial celebrations are over, will Mark and Candy retire?I knew every repair taken in, I knew every piece of inventory. WhenA succession plan is in place, with London Jewelers set to pass to we opened the second store, I started spending some time and devel- the next generation of Udells, Randi, Scott, and Zach, who are all oping a clientele there. After a month, Im going, What am I doing?more than capable of running the stores.I dont have enough time in the day for the Glen Cove store and now Im going to start developing something here? Mark eventually delegated the stores operations to his assistant store manager and staff, popping in only two or three times a week.They also tried something then radically differ-ent with their merchandise at the Wheatley Plaza store. They gave each brandDavid Yurman, Carti-er, Rolex, Patek, Ebelits own little boutique area.It used to be, Candy says, that when you merchandised the store, all the jewelry would go to-gether, all the watches would go together, and it was mish-mosh. Nobody separated their jewelry from the other brands at that time because they werent really brand brands.London Jewelers third store opened in 1984, the same year son Scott was born. Originally located in the back of the Americana Manhasset shopping center, the store moved to the front in 1996.In 1996, they also started their expansion east into the Hamptons, beginning with a London Jewel- Candy and Mark (far right) with, from left, son Scott Udell and his wife Jessica Udell; son-in-law Scott Alper and ers store in the town of East Hampton. While it wasdaughter Randi Udell Alper; and their five grandchildrenstill an exclusive area at that time, the stores were more local and less corporate. As Candy recalled when she was inducted into the Retailer Hall ofWere hoping it goes another hundred years, Candy says. Our kids Fame in 2023, when London Jewelers was opening in East Hampton,have the passionand theyre good at it. Theyre really good at it.a neighboring store owner remarked, We dont have any stores hereTheyve worked hard for more than 50 years, expanding a single with gold letters above the door. mom-and-pop store into a mini luxury empire. Today, London Jewelers operates 16 stores on Long Island and inMark was inducted into the Retailer Hall of Fame in 1992, and New Jersey. Candy in 2023.The company ranks as one of the largest fine jewelry retailers inDespite all this, the answer to the question of retirement is a quick North America when it comes to number of stores, sitting at No. 36and emphatic no from both of them.on National Jewelers 2025 list of Top 50 Specialty Jewelers. Candy sums it up like this: I dont play cards, I dont play golf. Im used to getting up and getting dressed every day and going to work A SOLID FUTURE and meeting people and having interesting conversations and seeing The year 2026 will officially mark London Jewelers 100th anniver- whats going on. sary, and Candy says they will be celebrating all year long. The fulfillment she derives from going to work every day doesnt A book is being written about the store, which also will publish amake it easy. special 100th anniversary edition of its catalog. Running London Jewelersjuggling all of their stores, employees, It is working with some of its brands on specialty merchandise,and vendorsis hard work, Candy acknowledges. and there are plans for parties and activations at its stores in NewTheres a lot of aggravation at times and sometimes we look at Jersey and Long Island.each other and we go, Oh my God, what are we doing, this is crazy. There is also a big industry honor coming London Jewelers wayBut somehow a new day comes, and sometimes things are a little next year. better and sometimes they are not. You just gotta stick through it.50 RETAILER HALL OF FAME 2025'