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BY KAYLEEN REUSSER
When customers come to Dan and Jane Geimer for a purchase, they usually do so with smiles.
That’s because the Geimers own Daniel’s Jewelers on West Market Street in Bluffton. “The people Jane and I service are celebrating anniversaries, engagements, birthdays, birth of a baby or other achievements,” says Dan Geimer. “They’re excited, which makes us happy.”
The Geimers purchased the business located on the northwest corner of the intersection of Market and Johnson Streets in downtown Bluffton in January 1994 (and are thus celebrating their 15th anniversary this year). That same location had housed other jewelry businesses since 1892, most recently as Bertsch Jewelers.
On the day in late 1993 when the Geimers drove through Bluffton from Fort Wayne and spotted the “For Rent” sign in Bertsch’s window, they had been thinking of purchasing a jewelry business.
Dan Geimer was no novice to the jewelry business. The Decatur native had worked for area jewelry stores, including Koerber and Baber Jewelers, Kay Jewelers, and Gulley’s Jewelers at Southtown Mall.
While managing Gulley’s Jewelers, Geimer learned about goldsmithing, wax carving, and jewelry design work. At Kay’s Jewelers he completed a jewelry store management program.
In 1992 he received a diploma from the Gemological Institute of America, which included two courses in diamonds, diamond grading, colored stones, colored stone grading, and gem identification. “This type of training equipped me to offer evaluations of an item’s value,” Geimer says.
When the Geimers purchased the Bluffton store, they changed the name to reflect Dan’s first name.
Today, Jane and Dan work in the store, along with employees Nancy Leitz, Karon Miller, and Kay Crow. Leitz has completed a course in diamond and diamond grading components.
According to Dan Geimer, the mainstay of his store’s business centers on diamond and gold items.
To accommodate the number of customers hit by recent economic changes the Geimers have expanded their inventory and services. “We’re offering alternative jewelry that is lower in price point,” explains Dan Geimer. “One line of stainless steel jewelry sells for $10-$90.”
He also repairs and refurbishes jewelry and offers ring sizing and prong retipping. “Gold wears down in time because it is a softer metal,” he says.
He resets and remounts gems. “I could take three gems from a mother’s wedding ring and create three separate new rings,” he says. With wax designing he can design a new mounting for a gem.
Daniel’s Jewelry also sells clocks, watches, necklaces and rings. Although the business has a website, Dan Geimer says he and Jane do not use it for e-commerce. “The website serves more as a means of communicating information about our jewelry lines to customers,” he says.
During the 15 years Daniel’s Jewelers has been in operation, the Geimers have seen an increasing number of empty storefronts around them. “We are concerned with changes in Bluffton’s downtown over the last few years,” says Dan Geimer. “But we still think our location is good. People know we’re here. Traditionally, the only retail business on this corner has been a jewelry store.”
While the outlook for economic recovery, local and national, is still uncertain, Dan Geimer believes he and other Bluffton downtown business owners need to remain patient. “We have to give our downtown time to regroup and rebuild,” he says. “I hope we’re thriving in downtown Bluffton in five years, along with many other businesses.”