Southeast

Retail jeweler Lily & Co. of Sanibel, Fla., recently celebrated its three-year anniversary. Owners Dan Schuyler and Karen Bell hosted a party that featured a charitable component, raising some $1,550 for Friends in Service, a local nonprofit.

Old Northeast Jewelers, St. Petersburg, Fla., will open a new high-end watch and jewelry boutique in Tampa, Fla., this month. The location, in the International Mall in Tampa, will operate under the same name and serve communities in the greater Tampa Bay metropolitan area.

Midwest

Smith and Co. Jewelers, Canfield, Ohio, closed recently when owner Tim Smith became ill, local press reports say.

West

Goldesign Jewelers, Provo, Utah, will close after 12 years of operation under owner James Dixon. Dixon told JCK: "It’s a highly competitive diamond market. I don’t see [the economy] turning around fast enough for me to get my investment back, and I can’t keep feeding the retail losses. The margins are skinnier, and there are fewer customers through the door for our expertise."

A judge has ruled that a criminal case can proceed against Nebraska Diamond Sales Co., based in Lincoln, Neb. The company is accused of evading sales tax. Fine-jewelry and specialty gift retailer David Orgell will move its flagship location to Two Rodeo, in Beverly Hills, Calif., home to such luxury brands as Versace, Tiffany & Co., and Jimmy Choo. The expanded Beverly Hills store is set to open winter 2009.

Mid Atlantic

After four years of litigation, Mervis Diamond Importers, Rockville, Md., won a breach-of-lease case against a local developer, which was charged with breaching its obligations to Mervis under a 2004 contract. The Montgomery County Circuit Court in Maryland held the developer liable to Mervis for damages and interest of more than $3.4 million, and also awarded Mervis its legal fees, a Mervis statement said.

Northeast

The Fortunoff and Mayrock families, who owned and operated the Fortunoff chain for four generations, recently purchased all of the intellectual property of Fortunoff, including the brand name and related trademarks, customer lists, software, domain names, and copyrighted material. The chain liquidated this year, but the families promise a "thoughtful strategy" to "redeem the Fortunoff brand."

Peets Jewelers, Massena, N.Y., recently held a fund-raiser for two new computers and a software program for the local Humane Society’s animal shelter, reports say.

Chains

The names Friedman’s and Crescent Jewelers will be sold by CONSOR Intellectual Asset Management. The intellectual property portfolio for sale includes U.S. registered trademarks such as Friedman’s Jewelers and Say it with Diamonds, as well as domain names such as Friedmans.com and CrescentJewelers.com.