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Anything but "name brand"
Reston Town Center has its first jewelry store with Midtown Jewelers, which opened last week.
While many of the new retail businesses going into the new developments surrounding the town center's core are chain stores, Midtown Jewelers is Bobby Singh's first store, although he grew up helping out in his father's jewelry store.
A.G. Singson Jewelers was in the Fair Oaks Mall from 1982 until 2001, during which time Singh said he came to understand the jewelry business. When it closed, Singh said he wasn't ready to take over the business.
“When you grow up in a business you want to see what else is in the world,” he said.
After graduating from Virginia Tech's Pamplin School of Business in 2000, Singh spent time in the construction industry, most recently as a comptroller at Comstock home builders in Reston.
During his three years at Comstock he got to know Reston and its shopping centers and realized it would be the ideal place to open a jewelry store.
Singh is getting advice from his father and support from his wife, Julie. In particular, Singh's father is bringing experience in watch repair, which Midtown Jewelers will offer as well.
Reston Town Center, in particular, “is one of the nicest town centers in the area but it didn't have a jewelry store,” he said.
His store is in the newer Midtown development and, according to Singh, ideally situated on the corner of Explorer and Market Streets.
“There's a lot of great sunlight that comes in; in a jewelry store that's nice to have,” he said.
Singh's vision for the store is rooted in his father's commitment to customer service, he said, and includes a selection of pieces customers may not find in the “name-brand” stores.
“We're not trying to be the store for everybody,” he said. “Some chain stores you can be in White Flint Mall in Maryland and someone else is looking at the exact same piece in Dulles Town Center.”
The brands Singh has chosen to carry are being held to those same standards, and include brands typically sold on the West Coast, such as Hikari.
“I look at whether vendors have kept their roots, if it's family-owned,” he said.
For a truly unique piece, Singh's store will offer custom designs by in-house jewelry designer Susan Geller, who has eight years of experience.
“Her work is very cool, to say the least,” Singh said.
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