GREENSBORO, N.C. — You'd be hard-pressed to find a company in any city in the U.S. that has been in business in the same city for 130 years. But that's exactly what we have in Schiffman's Jewelers.
"I mean, the story started with my great-grandfather, who was a little German watchmaker, and he ultimately started our company because the train came through Greensboro, and he needed to get on the next train. He had a layover in Greensboro. He found a store here on Elm Street," said CEO Lane Schiffman.
"He said, let me buy this store right now and all this merchandise, but it's not of the quality that we're gonna sell at Schiffman's. So he put it on the street. So you could say we started as a sidewalk sale," Schiffman laughed.
The store, which opened in 1893, grew and grew. Generation after generation continued the tradition of fine jewelry. They were even one of the first advertisers at WFMY News2 in the late 1940s when TV was new.
"They needed advertising because television was new, and he was a great marketing guy," said Schiffman, "And so he did live commercials. He was way ahead of his time."
"Our organization is built on our relationships with our clients and our friends. My dad, my grandfather, and my great-grandpa, I think they all more or less died behind the counter. I mean, we all work, and we like to work, and we love being here, and we love to serve." continued Schiffman.
"Yeah, we were not leaving Elm Street where we started. We are committed to Elm Street ."