A LONG-standing jewelry store has shuttered abruptly, leaving customers furious after entrusting the store with their valuables.
Camelot Jewelers in Dunwoody, a northern suburb of Atlanta, Georgia, shared the news of its closure on a sign posted on the establishment’s door.
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The sign read: “We just want to say a big ‘Thank You’ to all of our customers for the last 46 years!
“We have appreciated your business and support!
“We regret to inform you that as of June 16, 2023 our store will be closed and there will be no new location.”
The jewelers thanked their customers for their loyalty and left the name and number of the so-called owner, Mike Pearce, to use if they had any questions.
While the sign recommended another local jeweler for its customers’ future needs, on June 17, Pearce said in a message on NextDoor, a social media app for neighborhoods, that the business was relocating, reports Rough Draft.
Several customers left notes on the now-abandoned storefront, trying to find out what happened to the jewelry that they left there while others have made social media posts, criticizing Pearce for his lack of transparency about the store’s closure.
“I left my chain there on June 9 and the guy told me that it would be a week to 10 days before it would be ready,” customer Tracy Notte posted on NextDoor, according to the outlet.
Note added: “I have to believe that they knew when I dropped off my jewelry that they had no intention of returning it.”
The disgruntled customer said that she called and texted Pearce after the news broke of the store closure and told him that if she did not get a message back from him that she would file a police report.
Notte later claimed that two boxes from Camelot Jewelers were dropped off at Jewelry Artisans, the local store that the final jeweler recommended.
“The lady at Artisan said the boxes were a huge mess, no tickets, just jumbled pieces of jewelry and watches, and that there is no way she can find my property for at least a week,” Notte said.
“They need time to shift through the unorganized boxes and therefore I’m not sure that my chain is actually there.”
JEWELRY STORE OWNER SPEAKS OUT
Jamie Kresl, the owner of Jewelry Artisans spoke out against several negative comments calling him a crook.
“I understand and sympathize with the myriad of emotions that are going on concerning Camelot’s abrupt closing,” Kresl, who confirmed that he has some, but not all of Camelot’s jewelry told the Rough Draft.
“For the record, I have been trying to help Camelot to save their business for the last six months and unfortunately my best efforts to help were of no avail,” he added.
Kresl said he did not know the jeweler was closing until after the fact and that he is working with Pearce to return Camelot customers’ valuables.
“It is very sad that this iconic Dunwoody family business has closed, and I ask you to pray for the family,” Kresl added.
The US Sun tried to contact Pearce with the number he provided on the closing sign, but the call was referred to Jewelry Artisans.