Avery in the News

Favorite Jeweler: Reader’s Polls Put James Avery at Top in Houston, S.A.

By Staff reporter, Kerrville Daily Times
December 3, 2005

With one in every ten holiday shoppers buying jewelry as gifts this holiday season, many Texans will head to James Avery Craftsman, a family-owned jeweler based in the Texas Hill Country, to purchase the perfect gift according to three Texas-based newspapers. James Avery was recently named the top jeweler of 2005 in Austin, Houston and San Antonio by readers of The Daily Texan, Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News.

James Avery differs from many other fine jewelers in that the company designs, creates, markets and sells its own jewelry line from its headquarters in Kerrville and five jewelry workshops located throughout Texas. With annual sales at approximately $85 million, the company employs more than 1,300 people nationally, 1,179 people in the state of Texas – and these numbers increase significantly during the busy holiday season. The company was also ranked as one of the nation’s top 50 jewelers in 2004 by National Jeweler Magazine.

“We’d like to thank every one of our Texas customers for their wonderful support and patronage,” said Chris Avery, president and chief operating officer. “Since we first opened our doors in the Texas Hill Country more than half a century ago, our philosophy has always been to help each customer feel at home with warm hospitality and attentive personal service.”

Paul Avery, company vice president, said receiving the recognition in the three markets this year is a great compliment to James Avery. It is the first time that Houston has recognized the company as a top jewelry store.

In the past few years, James Avery has continued to diversify its retail operation, adding new stores and Internet sales to its traditional outlets and catalog business.

“Our Internet sales have continued to grow in the last year,” Paul Avery said. “Once people know our product, they’ll shop on the Internet. It’s good to have a mix. People like to have a choice of how to shop.”

Sales in San Antonio and Houston have been very strong, contributing to a good November, he said. James Avery does about 25 percent of its annual business in the holiday season.

James Avery operates three retail locations in Austin, nine in Houston and six in San Antonio. Nationally, James Avery operates 39 stores in Texas, Georgia, Oklahoma and Colorado. Store locations can be found at www.jamesavery.com/store-locations.

James Avery jewelry includes hand-crafted designs in silver, 14- and 18-karat gold and gemstones. Stores are currently showcasing new holiday jewelry in classic and contemporary designs, including Athena and Fountain Chandelier Ear Posts, an Aegean Weave Link Bracelet, Pearl and Onyx Necklace and Ear Posts and a Vintage Onyx Ring.

The company maintains 1,100 designs and 14,000 separate combinations of jewelry designs, materials, and sizes in the active product line. Each piece is originated by skilled men and women who hand-craft jewelry in the James Avery design studio on the Kerrville campus. Each is then crafted at one of five Hill Country workshops.