Sunday, April 3, 2011

Where Have The Jewelry Assembly Chicks Been Lately? A NEW Necklace Town!


Two and a half months! It's been that long? Here's what happened in Necklace Town since you've last stopped by. The Jewelry Assembly Chicks did finish that huge order we were slammed with in November. 11,871 necklaces were made here in nearly 12 weeks, all here in the USA in my kitchen! All through Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and Valentine's Day. And we juggled other orders while scheduling tree trimming, turkey basting, present wrapping, college applications and snowboarding. If I could have grabbed Santa Claus when he dropped by Christmas Eve, I'd have had him loading up a shipment to drop off at the fulfillment depart via his sled to save me a trip!

So much has happened since the end of February! The Jewelry Assembly Chicks have found a new home! Melindesign has finally left the kitchen table and not a moment too soon. March 1 was the move in date and giant, heavy boxes came in from a couple of new clients very soon after we put the last chair together. What a difference to:

A) have the UPS man COME in and put the boxes any where I want him to
B) to leave pieces half assembled on the work tables and leave it til the next day and
C) to NOT have to vacuum my house every day's end when all the Chicks have left leaving a wake of cut chain and wire pieces all over.

What a difference to have 500 square feet to have a dozen people assembling jewelry and keeping supplies at the ready all in one place. It took a lot of work to clean, prep and 10 gallons of white paint to get it ready, a big thanks to Camie and Ben!

The new Studio is in the Doherty Building right in the center of Somers, my home town, five minutes drive from my house. Everything is right here. The post office, Fedex drop box, UPS store, CVS, sushi, pizza, diner, bakery, delis, Asian eats, Chase, Citi, my CPA, and gelato. I even went and got a pedicure after work one Friday afternoon, just walked right over and while my feet were getting whirlpooled, I could see the Melindesign sign on route 202. Wow! I'm so lucky to have found this space, to have found this wonderful, kind landlord, Bob. He's so generous and wants the best for me. He told me he hopes I'm here for many years. So do I, Bob, so do I!

In my town, in my community, I'm fortunate to be able to able to assemble jewelry for American designers here in Somers, New York. Necklace Town has laid down roots in America, employing Americans, and spending American dollars at the local pizzeria and nail salon. The Jewelry Assembly Chicks have expanded to include a few more chicks and a rooster in our coop. It's been a little scary to make the jump to a new place but so far after one month, I couldn't be happier. It's far exceeded my expectations and I'm just loving the chance to help grow the local economy and to keep this going in the USA!

3 comments:

Sarah @ Made in USA Challenge said...

Wow... I am so impressed by the business model you have up and running! You are a great model for the buy local movement. Congrats on all your success!

Jewelry Assembly Chicks said...

Thank you so much Sarah! I can't believe we've been here almost a year. It seems there is a great call for this work and everyone who calls to inquire about our services want their product #MadeinAmerica. IT's good to hear!

Lisa W. said...

You provide a wonderful service, and I'm so glad to know about it! This makes me realize that if I need help in the future, I can contact you guys, and not necessarily have to hire my own people. I will keep you in mind, and best of luck!