C.D. Peacock has transferred leadership of the three-store jeweler and plans to transform its suburban Chicago flagship into one of the largest jewelry stores in the United States.
Qi and Steven Holtzman (pictured) will assume leadership of the company, effective this month, from Steven’s parents, Seymour and Evelyn Holtzman. Steven will serve as vice chairman and wife Qi will serve as chief experience officer.
Peacock is also moving and expanding its 6,000-square-foot flagship in Oakbrook Center in Oakbrook, Ill., which already draws 20 million visitors annually. The new two-story “mansion” will be tripled in size, to 20,500 square feet, and will include an indoor and outdoor space, as well as a lounge, restaurant, VIP rooms, and a Rolex boutique with a separate entrance. Its neighbors will include Tiffany & Co., Louis Vuitton, and Gucci.
Holtzman believes it will be one of the largest jewelry and watch stores in the United States.
“It is massive,” he says. “It will be extremely visible. We really wanted to take it to the next level.”
It is due to open in October, though he admits, “I’ve had people say that’s being optimistic.”
He is also excited to take over the business and has moved from Switzerland after three decades in the watch business, most recently as founder of the brand Maitres du Temps.
“As a supplier to C.D. Peacock, I have always felt that the store was a great store, a great brand, but one of the things that was always missing was having the presence of the owner,” he says. “For my wife and I to step in that position, being in the store, opening and closing it at night, working with all the store associates, that was one of the things that was always missing with Peacock. It will propel us to another level.”
He notes that the Oakbrook Center is now one of the best-performing shopping malls in Brookfield Properties’ portfolio, and he sees it as part of a post-pandemic move to the suburbs.
“Like most of the metro markets, Chicago has had a shift,” he says. “Consumers that used to go into the city to shop are now shopping in the suburbs.”
Founded in 1837, the store will celebrate its 185th anniversary this year. Seymour Holtzman purchased the business in 1993.
(All photos courtesy of C.D. Peacock)
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