Jewelry Store Puts The Sparkle

Into Special Events

By Nancy K. Crevier

Valentine’s Day is the time for candy, flowers, and sparkling jewels and Quality Gem at 74 Stony Hill Road has been putting the twinkle into the February 14 holiday for many Newtown residents for 25 years. Quality Gem is located in an elegant and impressive building just one-tenth of a mile over the Newtown line in Bethel on Route 6. It was built in 2004 by jewelry storeowner Dennis Janofsky, and is a far cry from the early days of the business.

“I started out making jewelry in my home on Redwood Drive in Bethel,” recalled Mr Janofsky. “I had everything set up on our dining room table. Sales were mainly by word-of-mouth and it was really something I just did in my spare time. I was working at a gem lab in the City at the time,” said Mr Janofsky. “That was in 1982.”

The first expansion Quality Gem underwent, he laughed, was when he put a leaf into the table. “Then I went to two tables in the den.” By 1987, the side business had grown too large to be accommodated in his home, and Mr Janofsky moved into a small storefront on the corner of Old Hawleyville and Stony Hill Roads, where the store continued to expand its clientele, making the move in 2004 to larger quarters necessary.

A 1973 graduate of Fairleigh Dickenson University in New Jersey with a BS in business and business marketing, Mr Janofsky did not plan to go into the jewelry business. “I always liked diamonds and jewels, though. I was intrigued by them,” he said. As a child, his grandmother let him dismantle windup alarm clocks when he visited. “I’d take them all apart and I loved all of the little parts and springs.”

The poor job market after he graduated from college found him working first in an automotive parts business and then in the receiving department of Eagle pencils. It was then that he decided to hearken back to his interest in jewels. He attended the Abbey School of Jewelry in Manhattan, where he learned the trade of jewelry making, and then received his graduate gemologist certification from the Gemological Institute of America in New York City.

Quality Gem is a family business, with his brother Robert serving as the company’s “go-to” man for behind the scenes business, and his daughter Julie serving as the marketing and advertising person, and providing her services in sales. Mr Janofsky said that Quality Gem strives to offer a homelike atmosphere and does not believe in high-pressure tactics to make sales.

“My father is always saying, ‘We’re not looking to make the one sale; we’re looking to make a customer,’” said Ms Janofsky.

One such longtime customer is Cathy Geckle of Newtown. It was through her suggestion that Quality Gem was selected to create the one-of-a-kind diamond star pendant for the C.H. Booth Library 75th Gala event this past fall. “She told us the theme of the gala, ‘Diamonds in the Sky,’ and let us run with the idea,” said Ms Janofsky.

“We always go to Quality Gem when we are buying a gift of jewelry, and my husband has bought me many gifts there over the years, including a beautiful ring last summer for our 40th anniversary,” said Ms Geckle. “Dennis is incredibly generous to various organizations, so of course I thought of him right away when we were planning the library gala event. We didn’t even come close to paying what the necklace is worth, and Dennis donated the rest,” she said.

There are several reasons that the Geckles keep coming back to Quality Gem, she said. “If something doesn’t fit or if you don’t like something about a piece, they will fix it. They keep a record of purchases so that you don’t duplicate gifts and if you want something that they don’t carry, Dennis will find it for you,” she said. Mr Janofsky has also reworked old pieces of jewelry into new pieces for her.

“The whole family is very, very nice,” said Ms Geckle.

Coming up with fresh ideas for custom-made jewelry is not foreign to Quality Gem, where two designers and one model maker regularly work with Mr Janofsky to design pieces for clients or for sale in the storefront.

“My father hand selects the gems from various vendors,” explained Ms Janofsky. “Then he will ask our designers to come up with something to highlight the beauty of the stone. He is very particular about the quality of a gem.”

Along with the quality of a gem, Mr Janofsky also looks at the price and how sellable the piece will be in his store, he said. “Our customers are fairly conservative, so we tone things down from what might sell in New York City or California. I have to keep in mind that just because I love a piece doesn’t mean that it will sell.”

Quality Gem tries to develop pieces that will be worn regularly by its customers, rather than elaborate works that may be taken out only once a year. “Those kinds of things don’t move as quickly in our store,” Mr Janofsky said.

Mr Janofsky is also responsible for selecting jewelry made by other jewelers to fill the many cases at Quality Gem, and he is just as selective about those finished pieces of jewelry as he is with stone selection, he said.

With Christmas behind them, the biggest season for jewelry stores, the staff at Quality Gem is looking toward Valentine’s Day, another holiday that draws customers into the store, said Mr Janofsky. Valentine’s Day jewelry shoppers are more apt to be looking for a novelty heart item or a smaller purchase that says, “I love you,” than to be spending the larger amounts they might during Christmas, he said. Earrings and bracelets are very popular gifts for Valentine’s Day, said Ms Janofsky, as are heart-shaped pendants. “We probably sell more engagement rings during the holidays than during Valentine’s season, oddly enough, though,” she said. It may be because, historically, Valentine’s Day shoppers tend to leave their shopping until the last minute.

This is where the Quality Gem “Wish List” can come in handy.

“The ‘Wish List’ helps gift buyers,” explained Ms Janofsky. “A customer may buy a necklace for Christmas, but wait until Valentine’s Day or another occasion to buy earrings that match. It’s an easy way to help clients remember what the piece was that they liked, or for customers to let others know what pieces they have admired,” she said.

Marsha Moskowitz does not need a wish list for shopping at Quality Gem, she said. The Newtown resident has been a customer for many years, relying on the expertise of the staff to guide her when purchasing jewelry for gifts.

“I’ve developed a great rapport with [the Janofskys],” said Ms Moskowitz. “They are so friendly and I feel very secure leaving my jewelry there with them.”

Ms Moskowitz also appreciates the professional staff that provides excellent service without making a customer feel pressured to buy, she said. “They take care of you. I always say to my friends, ‘It’s the only jewelry store with Quality in the name,’ and I mean it.”

“You’re buying more than a fleeting memory like that of a Broadway show or a nice dinner out when you buy a piece of jewelry,” said Ms Janofsky. “A piece of jewelry is an ongoing reminder of a special occasion.”