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Harrison Jewelers Closes In Illinois; Owner To Become Private Jeweler February 02, 2021 (0 comments)
Oak Park, IL—Harrison Jewelers closed its doors in December 2020 after 51 years in business and owner Jack Klein is transitioning to a new private-jeweler business. Image: Wednesday Journal of Oak Park and River Forest.
In an article in the Wednesday Journal of Oak Park and River Forest, Klein said the COVID-19 pandemic made his last year in business at the store very difficult. ““It was just kind of like, ‘OK, well things are bad right now; I don’t know that it’s going to get better and I’m getting older, so maybe it’s time to say goodbye,'” he told the Journal.
Klein, a good friend of the original owners’ son, Nick Caselli, joined the business in 1975, just a few years after its founding. He assumed ownership in 1995 with a business partner, Barry Kloft, who retired in 2014. Caselli, meanwhile, died earlier this year, a blow to Klein who described their relationship as being more like brothers than friends.
Highly skilled at repair, Klein often took on jobs that other jewelers didn’t want to touch. In the article, he urged people in need of repairs to seek out a mom-and-pop jewelers.
Klein is in the process of creating a smaller jewelry venture called Harrison J. LLC. He won’t be doing repairs but he will help customers as a private jeweler.