Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Deborah DeShazo. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Deborah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job

The most important lesson I learned personally before coming to own this company, was that customer service is everything. It’s more important than the item they’re purchasing, and more important than the items they’re having repaired. It’s of utmost importance to make the guest feel welcome and show them that they matter, because without them, there is no company. A very old lady came in once with her great-granddaughter. She was originally from England and her family had lost their home in a air raid during world war II. The only thing of value that was found in the rubble was a simple, but beautiful, silver filigree link bracelet with small diamonds and sapphires. The old lady’s name was Katie. When Katie’s great-granddaughter brought her in, it was to see if we could restore the bracelet after it had sat, in the condition it was found, in her jewelry box over many, many years. Before working on the heavily damaged bracelet, we sat with Katie to hear her family’s story of bravery and perseverance. We wanted to hear about the importance and the history of the family treasure she was holding. We took the bracelet in and told her it would take a week. After it was repaired, Katie and her great-granddaughter came in to collect it. When we took it out of the envelope, Katie’s blue eyes lit up and filled with tears – she was so happy and amazed that the bracelet was brought back to being “as beautiful as she remembered when her mother used to wear it”. She told us her biggest joy was, not only that she could now pass it down in the family, but that she received better personal attention for this “silly little trinket” than she ever expected or could have imagined. She was so grateful to us for listening to her, and for caring. That was one of my best moments in my career, and I never forgot what it meant to her, and to me, to have listened to her story and to become a part of the bracelet’s journey.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

When I was 19, I worked at a clothing store in the mall. Across the hall was a beautiful, luxury jewelry store that had sparkle in every window. I went over one day to apply for a job and they told me I’d have to be 20 years old in order to apply. I loved rocks, shells and gems for as long as I can remember, and this seemed like a natural passion for me, so I waiting until I was 20, and I applied for the job. I got the job and changed my “budding fashion career” from millinery to luxury gem and jewelry sales! I’ve been in the business for 39 years now, and I’ve learned that it never gets dull! I’ve learned to string pearls from an expert pearl stringer. I’ve learned how to grade diamonds and how to test, weigh and price out gold. I owned a jewelry store in a small town in Alabama when my kids were little, and now I own a large jewelry store here in Spring, TX with my husband. I’ve had to change and refine myself over the years as I’ve grown with an every-changing industry. My husband has also been in the industry to over 30 years, mostly as a Goldsmith. Here at Shannon’s we make sure to give our customers the best of our expertise, the best attention, the best product, and the most for their money as possible. We want them to enjoy coming in here and to love what they pick out, have made or repaired here. We always tell our employees to remember that we can get or make most anything a customer wants, so there’s no need to turn someone away. This presents challenges at times, but who doesn’t love a challenge! To help make the process easier, we’re currently installing a new design center. This will make it so that a customer can design with us, or we can design for them, any piece of jewelry that they’d like. They can see a computer image before it goes to production, which makes it easier for them to “see” the end result before making a commitment. We also have a large picture window at the front of the shop so that people can see their jewelry being repaired and/or cleaned.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

When I started in the jewelry industry, there were no computers in the store, no cell phones, no texting, no social media, no Google, no reviews, and very little power in the customer’s hands. Over the years that all changed. Now the power is mostly in the customer’s hands. So it’s up to us to find the best product for the best price and show proof of this to the customer. Again, I love a challenge so I make it my goal to always do our best for our customers. We strive to bring the best products for the best price at all times. We also try our best to keep up with social media so that we’re always relevant to our customers with our products.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

Shannon Jewelers has been in business since 1979 and has grown over the years as location and trends have changed. We value our customers are our top priority and understand the importance of fostering brand loyalty through their customer service experience. Our goal is to become the trusted jeweler for couples from their initial engagement ring purchase through push present to 50 year anniversary gift creating memories all along the way of their love story journey!

Contact Info:

• Website: shannonjewelers.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shannonjewelers/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShannonJewelersLLC