By Bob Cox
The
family-run business of Sharif Jewelers began in a far away time and
place. While the United States had fallen into the grips of the Great
Depression, Naser Sharif opened his goldsmith business overseas in
Jerusalem. The year was 1932. As
the years went by and the small business prospered, Naser needed some
extra hands to help him around his shop, so he inlisted the help of
his two grandsons, Mahmud (a.k.a. Sharif) and Hazem. The operation
quickly evolved into a family business and the boys learned a great
deal from watching their Grandfather. More than anything, they
learned the value of treating everyone that walked into the shop like
the precious metals he worked with…like gold. Sharif
and Hazem migrated to California over 30 years ago, where they
attended school and earned engineering degrees from CSU, Sacramento.
Although the brothers shared a common interest in engineering, the
jewelry business had been a life-long passion for both. Ever since
they were children, the brother’s loved learning from their
Grandfather and dreamed of a day when they would run their own
stores. Shortly after they graduated, Sharif and Hazem decided to
return to the family business and open up their own stores here in
America.
The
first store they opened was on Howe Avenue back in 1980. The store
quickly prospered, so they added a second store in Folsom 10 years
later. When that store took off, they felt confident enough to open
their third store, which is located in downtown Sacramento on 10th
& Kst. The
number one thing that separates Sharif Jewelers from other jewelry stores is how each person is greeted and treated. Everyone that shops
at Sharif becomes a friend. No one is ever treated like a stranger,
even when it’s their first time at the store. The entire staff at
Sharif Jewelers really go out of their way to make each person feel
special, welcomed and appreciated. Customers are always greeted
warmly because hospitality is the single most important thing to the
Sharif family. Every time I've been in their store, I've always
been greeted with a genuine smile from several members of the staff
and offered Turkish coffee and baklava.
The
other thing that separates Sharif from the competition is the
extensive collection of exclusive jewelry lines they carry,
including Tacori, Verragio, Simon G, Demarco, Caro 74 and Parate.
Time pieces include Mont Blanc, Movado, Liminox, Raymond Weil, and
Swarovski. Pre-owned luxury timepieces include Rolex, Cartier and
Piaget. Sharif also sells fine china from Ylladro and Pandora.
With
all that going for them, it shouldn't come as a big surprise that
through the years, Sharif Jewelers has been voted Sacramento’s Best
Jeweler by KCRA A-list. And
there’s just one more thing you should know, "You don’t have to
be rich and famous to shop at Sharif"!
No comments:
Post a Comment