The yr is 1885. James Murray graduated from watchmaking college and moved his household to Muncie from Ohio. 

As soon as in Muncie, James deliberate to start out a watch restore enterprise and partnered with a horse harness maker and repairman. 

Now, 137 years later, the enterprise James began continues to be going robust — along with his great-great-grandsons on the helm as two of the shop’s co-owners.

“Thankfully, each era of my household has had at the least one one that was within the enterprise and conserving it profitable,” mentioned Ryan Murray, co-owner of Murray Jewelers. 

The household continued to restore watches till the necessity for watchmakers was not mandatory as a result of reputation of electrical watches. Within the ‘70s, the enterprise reworked into strictly a jewellery retailer.

“My dad determined that they wanted to do one thing with a purpose to preserve the enterprise going and began doing customized jewellery,” Ryan mentioned. “As a substitute of shopping for completed jewellery from the producers and reselling like most jewellery shops, we really began making the jewellery from scratch in-house.”

The brand new focus was “enormously profitable,” Ryan mentioned, and Murray Jewelers turned identified for his or her customized design and in-house restore work.

Rising up, Ryan didn’t assume he needed to be a part of his household’s enterprise, and he didn’t think about working there till the tip of his time in enterprise college at Indiana College. 

Whereas he could not have deliberate to work along with his household, Ryan mentioned it’s “actually particular” to be a part of this enterprise.

“It’s actually fantastic as a result of on a regular basis we’ve prospects coming in and telling us about how their grandparents have been prospects,” he mentioned. “It’s actually, very nice to be a part of one thing that’s been in the neighborhood for a very long time.”

Ryan’s brother, James Murray, mentioned when he graduated highschool, he didn’t know what he needed to do however was not against working along with his household.

“I don’t assume I knew that I had an curiosity, however I had an curiosity in sciences,” mentioned James, co-owner of Murray Jewelers. “After which, as the trail of least resistance, I feel I agreed to exit and check out the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).”

Throughout his time on the GIA in Carlsbad, California, James mentioned it turned clear that he fell in love along with his courses, and it was shut sufficient to what his household did that he figured he might use his data on the retailer as nicely.

“You simply get to learn about loopy quantities of stones that nobody’s ever heard of, and also you won’t run into in a retail environment …” he mentioned. “However you might want to have the skillset to have the ability to establish virtually something on the market because it runs throughout your radar.”

James thinks it’s “incredible” to be a part of a family-owned enterprise that’s been round for 5 generations.

“I imply there’s loads of household companies which are simply two or three generations previous, however , the luck runs out,” he mentioned. “What number of many years are you going to discover a child within the household that’s similar to, ‘Yeah, I’ll go try this’?”

Whereas the Murray household could personal the shop, not all staff are members of the family, similar to Judy Lee, who has labored for the Murrays for eight years. She mentioned she’d identified the household her complete life and advised James she was on the lookout for a job.

“And he mentioned, ‘How do you’re feeling about working for my household?’” Lee mentioned. “I mentioned, ‘Effectively James, I do know nothing about jewellery. I in all probability know lower than the typical Joe, so is that one thing you guys are snug with?’”

Lee spoke with the remainder of the household, and so they determined to show her the whole lot from the bottom up when she began in Summer time 2014.

“It got here naturally to me,” she mentioned. “It’s a very fascinating business. I respect the artistic facet.”

Lee mentioned she’d labored with loads of household companies previously, however none of them had been round for 5 generations like Murray Jewelers. Though it was a “little uncomfortable” to start out working for a tight-knit household, she mentioned it’s “a stupendous factor.”

“They deal with me like household,” Lee mentioned. “They’ve at all times welcomed me into that fold.”

Whereas the enterprise has been capable of depend on a gentle clientele, Murray Jewelers has not been with out its challenges, such because the Nice Melancholy within the Nineteen Thirties. Ryan mentioned his father discovered previous payroll data to see how that point impacted the shop.

“He was capable of see the variety of staff, and it was one thing like 4 or 5 folks,” he mentioned. “That was a fairly fascinating factor to see. Clearly none of us right here keep in mind or noticed that point.”

Ryan additionally mentioned the Nice Recession within the early 2000s and the COVID-19 pandemic have been tough for the enterprise.

“The pandemic was fairly scary,” he mentioned. “Once we needed to shut down for an unknown period of time, that was fairly scary once we have been in that scenario.”

Though the enterprise has seen onerous instances, Ryan mentioned the household is “actually completely satisfied” to nonetheless be based mostly in Muncie, particularly as they’ve watched the town change and develop all through the years. He mentioned the enterprise has moved across the metropolis since its starting, however it’s been enjoyable to observe different companies develop and watch the town change.

“Our household has been right here for nicely over a century,” he mentioned. “It is extremely, very a lot dwelling, and we love being a part of Muncie and downtown.”

Contact Maya Wilkins with feedback at [email protected] or on Twitter @mayawilkinss.