Reusch Jewelers, founded in 1885, is a retail jeweler with a rich and lengthy history inextricably tied to the birth and expansion of America’s railroad system. The Petoskey, Michigan-based flagship store staff (along with those at their second location in Cheboygan, MI) celebrated their 140th anniversary last year.
Jacob Frederick Reusch learned watchmaking in Germany. In the 1800s, he immigrated to the United States with his Old World skill set. Similar to many European immigrants in Jacob’s day, watchmaking was a lucrative profession offering steady work, allowing him to sustain a living wage for himself and his family for decades to come.
A skilled watchmaker, Jacob was hired to maintain and regulate all of the watches and clocks for the various railroads that came to Petoskey, according to fifth-generation jeweler Magena Reusch. “He was charged with all of the watches and clocks for the railroads in all of Northern Michigan,” says Magena. “A very important job in those days.”
Jacob worked his way up the food chain of watchmaking and repairs and ended up in Petoskey, where he worked for Will Searle at the Little Will Jewelry Store, making $18 per week, considered to be a “fabulous wage” back then, according to Magena.
When the owner retired, Jacob purchased the store. And in 1926, Jacob’s son, Fred, joined the family business after graduating from high school. Fred learned the traditional way during that time – observing how the older generation did things and on-the-job training.
Fred’s wife, Lola, also joined the family business. Together, the dynamic duo transformed the store from a primarily watch shop into a jewelry store in Petoskey. The most notable move in that direction was the closure of the old location on the corner of Lake and Howard and the relocation to its current location on Mitchell Street.
Back in the early part of the 20th Century, Mitchell Street was considered a “Main Street” in Petoskey, according to Magena, with many notable storefronts and the bulk of the town’s traffic. Lake Street was more for tourists back then.
When Fred saw an opportunity to purchase the storefront on Mitchell Street, he jumped at it. “At the time, it was actually four storefronts in a location which once housed a dairy on Main Street,” says Magena. “The location contained a Western Union office, a barber, a florist, and Fred and Lola used the fourth storefront for their jewelry store, eventually expanding into all four storefronts.”
Fred also knew the value of community outreach and networking with local leaders. “Fred was an outstanding member of the community, serving on nearly every service organization, especially the Red Cross, and was very involved in the business community,” says Magena. “He was one of the charter members of the Chamber of Commerce.”
Fred and Lola had two children, John and Mary. Mary pursued a medical career as a nurse, and John stepped into the family business in 1966, after marrying, serving in the Air Force, and having his first son, Vance.
For John’s generation, learning the family business encompassed much more than looking over a father’s shoulder. John was one of the first retail jewelers to earn a Graduate Gemologists certification in the state. The importance of gem sciences and in-depth product knowledge was one of John’s many defining qualities as the third-generation jeweler.
“He became one of the very first Graduate Gemologists in the entire state, allowing him to identify and evaluate all diamonds and gemstones accurately,” says Magena. “This was a huge accomplishment back in the 1970s. John also fostered education in all of his employees, many of whom went on to become Graduate Gemologists themselves. With John’s love of gemstones and diamonds, he traveled the world seeking out and learning about all different types of gems, bringing many beautiful and unique pieces back to sell in the store.”
John’s son Vance continued his father’s legacy of education and product knowledge. He augmented those important business qualities with emerging technological advances in jewelry design, particularly CAD/CAM.
Vance’s other main contribution as the fourth-generation jeweler in the 1990s was reigning in the rapid expansion of the 1970s and 80s. At one point, the Reusch family owned eight jewelry stores in Northern Michigan. The Reusch name was ubiquitous throughout the area.
But gold and diamond prices in the 1980s forced the family to rethink the merits of owning so many stores. Vance was the generation that promoted the wisdom of doing more with less, eventually going down to the Cheboygan location and the flagship Petoskey store.
As the fifth-generation jeweler, Magena looks back at those years with a sense of pride. Core family values become foundational family business values – a consistency wherever the Reusch name was displayed. But nimble business practices also allowed each store to be unique in its own way.
“Our approach has always been to have core values and principles, such as honesty, integrity, and value, that we adhere to equally in each location,” says Magena. “Beyond that, each city has its own personality, with differing views, values, and attitudes, so we manage each location according to the personality of the city. That applies today as much as it did when we owned eight stores.”
Although 140 is a significant number and definitely a milestone anniversary that ends in a five or a zero, Magena admits the 140th was celebrated modestly. That said, with her father looking to retire in the coming years and Magena taking over the helm soon, she fully intends to make up for that in 2035.
“We don’t have anything planned yet, but we have 10 years to plan something outstanding!” says Magena.
