58          RETAILER HALL OF FAME 2026
legitimate worry.” 
Other trends that are of concern to 
independent jewelers include the decline in 
in-store foot traffic, the rise of the K-shaped 
economy, and the lack of next-generation 
bench jewelers. 
“K-shaped” is the term economists use 
to describe the country’s growing economic 
disparity.
High-income households continue to ac-
cumulate wealth while middle- and low-in-
come households accumulate debt, suffo-
cating under the weight of rising housing 
costs and higher prices for necessities like 
food and gas.  
Emily says she’s noticed a dropoff in 
spending among Kloiber Jewelers’ 
middle- 
class customers, while overriding 
economic  
trends have prompted Kyle, owner 
of Bullock’s Jewelry, to change his 
approach to lab-grown diamonds.
Kyle was, by his own admission, 
“heavily” into lab-grown diamonds 
in the early days but has re-evaluat-
ed out of concerns about declining 
foot traffic and middle-class  
consumers’ pullback in spending.
He now stocks only a small selec-
tion of lab-grown jewelry set in silver, 
not gold. 
“[Lab-grown diamonds] serve a 
purpose and a function much like sil-
ver does,” Kyle says. “You could never 
sell enough silver jewelry to make up for 
not selling gold and diamonds.”
At Fliegauf Jewelers, owner Greg says 
custom work is a big part of the business, 
made possible by the skills of Pete Ben-
son, who has been the store’s full-time, 
full-service bench jeweler for 35 years.
“That’s really where we shine now, 
remounting customers’ stones into some-
thing new,” Greg says. 
Greg says Benson will probably put 
in another five years behind the bench 
before he retires and Greg must figure out 
how to lure a new bench jeweler to a more 
rural area of New Jersey.  
“It’s going to be tough,” he 
acknowledges. 
From Karsten’s perspec-
tive, the challenges facing 
independent jewelers are 
always changing, and they are 
store- 
dependent too. What’s a 
problem at the Peter Frank-
lin Jewelers store in Angola, 
Indiana, might not neces-
sarily affect business at Van 
Horne Jewelers.  
Still, he’s hopeful about 
the future, particularly at 
Van Horne Jewelers. 
They threw a 100th 
birthday party for the store 
on July 17, offering exclu-
sive savings and giving out 
At top, Helen and O.L. Bullock of Bullock’s Jewelers and, at bottom, Robert (left) 
and Hattie Robson of Robson’s Jewelers
Above, a young Paul Hargrave helps to supervise the relocation of the store’s safe in 1984 with his dad Norman (at 
right in the gray T-shirt) and his grandmother Grace Hargrave (foreground). At right, a record of watch sales at 
Kloiber Jewelers.
100
SPECIAL
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