Emerson Fine Jewelry

Apr 3

In their own words

“We brought two big percussion presses and a wire pulling machine that was made in 1886, a plate machine, a plate rolling machine, all this old machinery makes our factory a museum. Something special about our factory is that we die-strike our jewelry; we put gold or platinum over the plate and then crush the metal into the mold. It’s crushed into shape as opposed to more modern techniques like casting, where the metal is melted into the mold. Because of this, our jewelry is more dense, lasts longer, and what we like to call ‘new vintage.’”

-Paul Emerson

Jason’s Interview with Paul

Jason

Today, we have Paul Emerson from Emerson Fine Jewelry. Paul, how did you get into the industry?

Paul

I'm not a second-generation jeweler like most people seem to think. My father is an entrepreneur, and he bought the building that we work in, and then he bought the business about twenty years ago. We love Redlands; we love the people here. He found jewelry to be a fun, challenging business and his wife is artistic. Together they started building Emerson.

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Jason
What is it about jewelry that you love so much?

Paul
I am a self-proclaimed OCD person when it comes to jewelry. There's something satisfying about working on a piece of custom that I can perfect or improve. I get a sense of fulfillment from that. Having people that rely on you to do high-quality work. There's so much more sentiment in jewelry. It's our responsibility to do our best for them.

Jason
What is it that people in and around Redlands can count on you for?

Paul
We have our own factory in Redlands, and we manufacture our own brand. My background is building rings from the ground up and computer-aided design.

Jason
What do you think that specialty is that your store has been able to provide?

Paul
Repairing jewelry. We could make the whole ring from scratch at a very high level. Our sales associates provide kindness to everyone who comes in and have all the answers for the good work that follows.

Jason
What does customer service mean to you?

Paul
Customer service means everything. We want every person to feel like they belong, that nothing is being pushed on them. It's a good environment to come in and find something for your wife, get some earrings for yourself, or just come in and say hello. We care about our community and want everyone to feel comfortable.

Jason
Tell us a little bit about the causes that you're a part of.

Paul
There was recently a charity event for the Loma Linda Hospital Gala. We gave away a pendant that can be auctioned off. We do that yearly. We give to the Roland Symphony, the Rose Bowl. We make a yearly pendant for the Acting President. I'm actually in the process of designing a pendant for the Kimberly Juniors, which is a nice organization that works with young women to guide them through their teens.

Jason
What's the most amazing proposal you've heard about?

Paul
The most fun was actually one we witnessed. We had someone propose in our store, and that is always very fun. The way I proposed to my wife, which maybe I would not recommend, I took her on a very long dusty hike near San Diego. I think she thought it was coming, so she was dressing nice for it. And she got really sweaty, dusty, and dirty. And then she got proposed to at the end of that long hike.

Jason
Tell us about the brand.

Paul
The brand is Van Craeynest. 1920, that's when it was started. We purchased the brand in 2011 from Northbank Craeynest. In 2012, we made the financial decision to move the company from San Francisco to Redlands. We brought these really big percussion presses and a wire pulling machine that was made in 1886, a plate rolling machine, all this really old machinery. When we give tours, we like to call our factory a working museum. Something really special about our factory is that we die-strike all of our jewelry, meaning there's a mold that we put a piece of plate and gold or platinum over the plate and then crush it into the mold. We get a ring that is more dense because it's being crushed into shape as opposed to more modern techniques.

Jason
Any shout-outs you want to give?

Paul
Any shout-outs? I'd love to give a shout-out to my pregnant wife. She's actually 26 weeks. Carolyn.

Jason
This is your chance to say whatever you like to Meet the Jewelers.

Paul
If you're in the area or passing through, we'd love to meet you. We actually just remodeled our store in downtown Redlands. We're actually moving into it in two weeks. Come through our Van Craeynest factory. I'd love to give you a tour.