Gene Starnes, longtime owner of Starnes Jewelers in Albemarle, N.C., died on Jan. 29. He was 82.
“Gene spent nearly his entire life here at the store,” said a Facebook post by Chris and Pat Bramlett, Starnes’ brother-in-law and sister. “He spent countless hours here as a youth while his father ran the business.”
After considering a career in marine biology, Starnes began working in the family store, which dates back to 1898. In 1976 he became the store’s sole owner. He worked at the jeweler for the next 45 years, until he retired in 2022.
“I grew up in the store,” he told a local newspaper in 2021. “As long as I was big enough to unpack something or pick up a broom or wipe a case.”
In that article, Starnes recalled selling an engagement ring to a customer whose family had bought from the store for five generations. “There’s not many stores that can say that,” he said.
In 2016, the North Carolina Retail Merchants Association named Starnes Jewelers its retailer of the year. Starnes was also director of the Independent Jewelers Organization and served as president of the North Carolina Jewelers Association.
At press time, there was no word on survivors.
(Photo via Facebook)
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