It’s been an eventful week for the Halfacre family with Traditional Jewelers celebrating their thirtieth anniversary that just happened to coincide with the store’s annual Watch Faire. During the in-store celebration last Friday, store owner Lula Halfacre made a surprise announcement that her son Erik would be taking over operations as president of the family business. Lula Halfacre will continue to stay on as the firm’s CEO/CFO.

Erik began working in the family store in his late teens. After graduating from the University of Southern California and earning a Graduate Gemologist certificate from the GIA he was eventually named president of the family business.

Last year Erik managed the build-out of the family’s new Malibu store, an 800-square-foot space that presented its own unique set of challenges. Malibu is an affluent beach-front community that lacked a high-end jeweler with a strong selection of watch brands. The Halfacres wanted to combine luxury watches with high-end jewelry in the Malibu Country Mart, an upscale shopping area with an eclectic mix of 65 stores and restaurants.

"We wanted the Malibu store to have that Traditional Jewelers feel but to it but also have its own South California identity," says Erik. "The challenge was to combine elements to give the new store an edgy, luxurious look."

With the Malibu store just over a year old and a large flagship store to manage, Erik’s immediate plan in his new leadership role is stay on the family business’ current path of growth as a luxury jeweler in the Newport Beach and Malibu markets.

Erik’s wife Bonnie, also a Graduate Gemologist, will continue to be an integral part of the family business. Both are active members of Gen-Next Jewelers. Erik is on the executive board of the relatively new industry group that allows younger generations of gemstone and jewelry industry members to network and access resources in an effort to bridge generation gaps with a focus on out-of-the-box and out-of-industry thinking.

JCK