It has been 91 years since Woodland Jewellers Ltd. set up shop in Williams Lake and the store is celebrating with a big sale Oct. 14 through 19.
"We are having a customer appreciation event with our sale," said Geoff Bourdon who along with his wife Kendal are the owner-operators of the business.
Some items are 10 to 60 per cent in all departments of the store, including some high-end items and one pendant hand-made by Geoff that is 30 per cent off.
"Everything is a first-come-first-served for what's available," he added.
The business has been busy with a different pace and a different approach during the last four years since Geoff and Kendal took over ownership.
Geoff said they have also noticed new people in town over the last year-and-a-half.
Chuckling he added news customers have said they did not know the store was in Williams Lake and have asked how long they've been in business, to which they answer, "oh, a long time."
People visiting the store during the week will have a chance to view the pendant Geoff has hand-crafted for the annual Woodland Jewellers Ltd. raffle where all proceeds go to the Cariboo Memorial Hospital Foundation.
"I really pushed myself to learn a new technique," he said of the pendant's style. "I've never done that patterning that's around the jewel before. I picked it up when I watched a video from an old-school Italian jewellery making house. The thing with hand-making is, there are not a lot of people who do it anymore for fine jewellery. So anywhere I can find inspiration or technique, I'm always searching for it."
Geoff is the fourth-generation owner of the store.
His great-grandfather E.G. (Tony) Woodland arrived in Williams Lake in 1933 and set up a watch repair bench.
The business was later expanded by his son, Ralph Woodland.
Then for many years Ralph's daughters Cindy Watt and Brenda Bourdon ran the business.
Geoff studied at the Gemological Institute of America to learn how to do jewellery repairs and to hand fabricate beautiful custom jewellery pieces and Kendal is "all-things" administrative.
Hoping to perhaps instill a fifth-generation takeover by their children, Geoff has taught both Jack, nine, and Molly, seven, to make a ring for themselves when they were six-years-old.
When he was "very young" Geoff met his great grandfather and has some brief memories of him being a 'very serious' man.
His grandfather worked in the store up until about 10 years before Geoff started working there.
As they celebrate 91 years of the business, Geoff said "it is incredible to be a part of history. "
