Jewelry Pioneers Nate And Pattie Light Open Pandora Concept Store In Wellington Story by Jessica Gregoire Photos by Susan Lerner
Famous for its custom-designed charm bracelets, Pandora Jewelry is now open in the Mall at Wellington Green. The local store is owned by Nate and Pattie Light, pioneers in the jewelry industry. Married in 1976, the Lights met while working at Shifrin-Willens, a jewelry store in Detroit. Nate was vice president, while Pattie was in sales, and they have been growing their careers and marriage ever since. In 1977, the Lights moved from Detroit to Akron, Ohio, where Nate joined the team at Sterling Jewelers as a vice president. He grew Sterling from 32 stores to more than 1,000, and because of his contributions to the company, he eventually became CEO. At Sterling, Pattie became special projects promotion director, and enjoyed her career in jewelry alongside her husband. In 1993, Nate developed the concept of Jared the Galleria of Jewelry, which became a subsidiary of Sterling. “He put a whole team of people together to develop the concept,” Pattie recalled. “They designed the logo, the building and the packaging. Everything you see when you go into a Jared store now is pretty much the same as it was then; it really hasn’t changed.” The first Jared store opened in Akron. “It was right in our back yard, and we used to go and watch the store under construction every night,” Pattie said. “It really was like giving birth to something.” With 187 stores now, Jared has grown rapidly since its start in Akron. “It was seen as the future of the company,” Pattie said. “It was the only free-standing jewelry
concept store in the country, and it was something new and fresh.” The Lights contributed many years and dedication to Sterling, but decided in 1995 to expand their knowledge in other areas. Pattie left Sterling and became director of corporate communications for Summa Health System in Akron. She continued working with her husband on other projects such as assisting him in the creation of Only Diamonds, as vice president of marketing. Nate has also worked as executive director of Jewelers for Children. After leaving Sterling, Nate went on to become chairman and CEO of NEW, a company that offers extended warranties and service plans to companies for consumer products. Meanwhile, the Lights have always been looking for new opportunities to share their love of jewelry with the world. The opportunity arose after they moved to Florida to open up a Pandora franchise in Wellington. “It’s a very difficult franchise to acquire, and everybody wants to open up a Pandora store,” Pattie said. “But Pandora is very careful about who they select, and based on our past experiences, we were selected.” Pandora carries an assortment of charms, charm bracelets, custom-made jewelry and specialty designed pieces. “Everything carried in Pandora is made by Pandora,” Pattie said. “We have jewelry and charms that represent a lot of different interests.” Pandora charms range from horse charms for people into equestrian pursuits to golf |wellingtonthe themagazine| magazine|November November2011 2011 |wellington
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