Danwerke Jewelers

Apr 16

In their own words

“We always make sure the client knows the color and clarity of the diamond. We explain things about the metal. We don’t try to bore them with our knowledge, but we answer their questions in a knowledgeable way. That sounds easy, but it’s pretty hard to do.”

-Patrick Daniel

Jason’s Interview with Patrick

Jason

We're back on Meet the Jewelers and today we're talking to Patrick Daniel from Danwerke in Little Rock, Arkansas. How did you get into the industry?

Patrick

Actually, I was in a different industry, running another business for someone. Finally, he decided that didn't work well—and that was one of the best things that ever happened to me. From that point, I started looking for something to do. My wife's been with me now for thirty-nine years. We decided that we were going to start in the jewelry business. Had never had any experience in it at all. But I was kind of a creative and mechanical mind and knew how to run a business. So, we got started.

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Jason
Tell us about some of those milestones.

Patrick
We started the business in 1984. We first did home, kind of Tupperware set-ups. It worked out really well. The next thing you know, we’re out on the road working at retail conventions. We did all sorts of shows individually and opened our first store. We opened that first store in 1992.

Jason
What is your mission?

Patrick
Our mission is to not just educate the customer, but let them know that they're human beings when they walk through the door. They're not just a number. That's why we have people coming back to us so much now. If you can think it, we can make it. Because we do. We can. I feel very strongly about the quality that we provide.

Jason
What do you do that makes the person feel that they are part of your family?

Patrick
The first thing we do, when they walk in the door, whether it's an old customer or a new customer that we'd never seen is we immediately let the customer know that they're the most important person.

Jason
Tell us about when a client came in and you were the hero.

Patrick
Well, I can tell you one in particular that I don't feel like much of a hero—a man and his wife came in. They had a rather large diamond. We realized he thought he had a natural diamond. It was a really tough situation to be in because he bought the diamond, gave it to her, and I found out that it was a laboratory-created diamond. I don't know if I was a hero, but at least I was honest.

Jason
You and your wife have done so much for the community. Tell me some of the key foundations and charitable acts that you and the team are doing.

Patrick
Every jeweler knows if they're in the retail business that people are going to be looking for donations. A lot of those people are our clients, people who represent the Blind School, the Children's Hospital, their churches. It's an investment in the community. We participate in our churches as well. We give in those ways and we give in other ways. We try to do what we can.

Jason
Why do you think people trust you so much?

Patrick
They know that when they come into our store and ask us any question about the value of something, their piece of jewelry, their diamond, that we care. We're honest with them and we don't try to hide anything. We don't try to bore them with our knowledge, but we answer their questions in a knowledgeable way.

Jason
Here's your chance to say whatever you like to Meet the Jewelers.

Patrick
Always remember that you make a friend when you come see your jeweler. When you spend your money with people that you can trust, they're never gonna let you down. They're always going to be there when you need them.