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Local jeweler flees country
By adamg on Wed, 12/19/2007 - 2:28pm
No, not Jared, unfortunately. Bostonista reports that Raman Handa, owner of Alpha Omega jewelers, has uprooted his family and fled the U.S. for India, leaving behind:
Four stores, what must be millions of dollars worth of inventory, confused employees, and even the family dog. ...
And, apparently, some tangled finances.
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Comments
Oh No!
Where am I going to buy my Vertu from now?
I'll take the dog... Lord
I'll take the dog...
Lord knows that 3 in my house isn't enough. What a weird situation and story.
Cha-ching!
Where are these stores with the millions of dollars worth of inventory?
That's a good question.
Something sounds more than just a liiiiiitle bit screwy here!!
Wow, someone hates Jared as much as I do!
I don't know why but I find their stores and advertising to be inscrutably irritating.
Red Sox Promotion?
The article doesn't mention it, but I know that Alpha Omega was the *other* store (other than Jordan's Furniture) that ran a promotion where people got free stuff if the Red Sox won the World Series. Think they might be connected?
I was just going to ask
I was just going to ask about the Red Sox angle after hearing about the fleeing this morning. (I just posted something on the Boston Magazine comments). Did the people who did the AO promotion get their money back? I know friends that got their Jordan's refund promptly. Curious.
Red Sox probably didn't cause Alpha Omega bankruptcy
From a Globe article back in August 2007:
"The Alpha Omega promotion was slightly different [from Jordan's Furniture]. It promised discounts or full refunds to consumers who bought an engagement ring on a day when one of three things happened at a Red Sox game. The customer would receive $500 back if a Red Sox player hit a home run, $1,000 if a player hit a grand slam, and a full refund if the Red Sox pitcher threw a no-hitter."
There was only one Red Sox no-hitter last season, Clay Buckholz on September 1. This page says there were five Red Sox grand slams during the regular season. There were of course lots of home runs, but I doubt that a bunch of $500 rebates were the difference between solvency and bankruptcy.
Life is good without Amit.
My rectal pain is no more with with amit no longer stuck to my backside.
check their customer database
review purchases made for legitamcy.
check transfers out.
review all shipments made.
something doesn't smell right.
Jewelry Business is Hard but thats just suspicious
Having just started in the jewelry business I find it hard to believe that he would flee leaving his merchandise behind. (and worse his dog)
Still it made for a great liquidation blow out sale last week in Harvard Sq.
Overpriced is overpriced
I went in to look at the discount on the Citizen EcoDrives and basically they were giving the original prices at list and above, so the discounts were barely getting down into the range most discount stores already sell these items for (and you don't get any store warranties or service from a liquidator as you would from even the basic discounter).
I didn't look at any other jewelry in the store but I'm guessing that everything else went similarly: overprice by 30-40% as the original price, then discount by 15-30% to still turn a 10-15% profit above cost.
Meh. I'd rather buy from someone already honestly selling the item for a 5% margin above cost to begin with and do away with any "liquidation" nonsense.