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Pat’s Jewelry Celebrates Family Legacy with Three Decades of Sparkle November 27, 2023 (0 comments)
Sioux Center, IA--Pat's Jewelry Centre, located in the heart of Sioux Center at Centre Mall, 251 N. Main Ave., is celebrating thirty years of family ownership and operation. Kendra Gort, the current owner who took over in January 2015, reflects on the journey that started with her grandmother, Pat Estes, the store's namesake.
[Image via Pat's Jewelry Centre/Facebook]
As per a report in Sioux Center News, Gort initially pursued nuclear medicine and found her true calling in the family business. “I’m so grateful that my grandma allowed us to be able to carry this on," Gort says in the report. "I know it’s a good opportunity, and I’m thankful for it.".
Gort’s decision to switch careers was influenced by her desire for a more flexible role suitable for raising a family and concerns about long-term exposure to nuclear materials.
The store's origins trace back to an arrangement between its founder, Harold Hoftyzer, and Dr. Bill Estes, Pat's husband. With her prior experience in a jewelry store in Iowa City, Pat Estes was the perfect candidate to manage the Sioux Center store. Her competent management led to the family acquiring the store from Hoftyzer in November 1993.
Gort’s brother, Koleby Van Beek, contributes his goldsmithing expertise to the business, enhancing its familial atmosphere. Employees like Diane Van De Berg, who have been with the store for years, also add to this family-like environment.
Pat's Jewelry Centre distinguishes itself through its commitment to quality. "We stick to the higher quality, doing the research, we handpick every single piece in our store from the diamonds to any piece of jewelry," Gort explains in the report. "We’re not a chain store where we’re mass shipped things. We’re very individualized."
Looking to the future, Gort is determined to uphold the high standards set by her grandmother. “We’ve got to keep as high quality as we can and continue to carry on the business and the name,” she says, per the report. “I love hearing about businesses that have been around for 100 years and carried a family name. If we can be a small part of that, that would be goal.”
Learn more in the entire report in Sioux Center News.