Alfredo Molina recently got back from Brazil.
He was there to buy a stake in a diamond mine.
Although an exotic purchase for some, it was all part of a day’s work for Molina, owner of Black Starr & Frost, which counts a number of exotic items in its stores.
The three-store chain has one location at South Coast Plaza and is looking to grow.
Black Starr & Frost sells diamond-studded items from jewelry to flatware, which is punctuated with tiny diamonds in the handles.
Molina, who bought the three Black Starr & Frost jewelry stores around this time last year, is on a mission to rejuvenate the chain’s cachet.
“I want to bring Black Starr & Frost back to its original position,” he said. “Everything sold at Black Starr & Frost will be our own design.”
The first Black Starr & Frost opened in New York in 1810, before Tiffany & Co., which opened in 1837, and once held the largest faceted Portuguese diamond, which it sold for $373,000 in 1928, and is now on display at the Smithsonian Institute.
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Black Starr & Frost diamonds: company owner trying to restore brand recognition |
When Marilyn Monroe sang “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” in the 1950s film “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,” she helped seal Black Starr & Frost’s place in popular culture. The song’s lyrics name Black Starr & Frost among other venerable jewelers Harry Winston, Cartier and Tiffany.
But Black Starr & Frost’s glitter faded. The jeweler has been shedding stores since the 1970s, when it had 27.
Tiffany, with about 170 stores worldwide, has surpassed Black Starr & Frost in customer favor.
Tiffany has significant expansion plans in the U.S.
Beginning next year, the company intends to add 10 to 12 smaller stores a year and five to seven regular Tiffany stores a year, according to Jeweler’s Circular Keystone, a trade magazine. Tiffany also has a store at South Coast Plaza.
With the strong demand for luxury goods, especially diamonds, now seems to be a time of resurgence for jewelers.
Harry Winston Inc., featured recently in Women’s Wear Daily, plans on doubling its store count to 18 by year’s end. It also has a stake in a diamond mine.
Molina intends to grow his company at a slower pace: 10 stores in three to five years, in prime locations.
The jewelry business is tough, Molina said, with tight margins.
“For every $1, I keep 4 cents,” he said.
For high-end jewelry, the net profit before tax is 2.9%, he said. The company gives away a good chunk of its profits, about $3.5 million a year to charity, he said.
Molina is a well-known philanthropist in Phoenix, home base for the Molina Group, his umbrella company, which includes Molina Fine Jewelers.
The Washington D.C.-based Caring Institute named him one of the most caring people in America in 2005.
Guest Designers
Boutiques at the Montage in Laguna Beach once again are hosting designers throughout the month. Kelly Rockwell, designer for Isabella Fiore Handbags, and designer Sherry Nikka will appear at Treasures Boutique. Joe Marks, president of Baudelaire Inc., a maker of fancy soaps, will also be present.
Gift for Auto Dealers
A glimmer of a cheery year’s end for auto dealers came by way of a 2.5% increase in registrations in October, compared to the same month a year ago.
That’s according to the Costa Mesa-based Orange County Auto Dealers Association’s monthly report that looks at car registrations, a barometer of sales.
Gift giving is traditional for the end of the year as many buy for loved ones and themselves, according to dealers.
Marc Spizzirri, co-owner of Family Nissan and Family Honda, both in Rancho Santa Margarita, as well as Family Classic Cars in San Juan Capistrano, said the end of the year is one of the best sales times at his dealerships.
Luxury auto dealers, such as Fletcher Jones Motorcars, also typically report an uptick at the end of the year.
Still, for the year through October, registrations are down 8.6% in the county.
Brands with the biggest percent increases, respectively: Saturn, Mazda, Mini Cooper, Jeep, Audi, Lexus, BMW and Hyundai. The rest declined.
Some of the biggest decliners: Pontiac, Mercury, Hummer, Saab and Jaguar.
In the local luxury auto race, BMW led the way in terms of percent increase for October. It was up 9.5% to 677 autos.
Other luxury brands didn’t fare as well.
BMW was followed by Mercedes-Benz, down 4.6% to 877 autos and Lexus, down 9.3% to 694 autos.
Mercedes still leads in the number of registered autos, followed by Lexus. BMW narrowed the gap between itself and Lexus in October by 17 autos.
