March 7, 2005

Dreams come true at The Jewel Box

By Julie Davis Berry
Executive Editor

Tod Ulery says helping people is his calling. He started out helping people as a medic for AMR ambulances. But, he ended up serendipitously falling into a career as a jeweler and he couldn’t be happier.

“I’m happier helping people pick out their engagement rings,” he says, “than coming on a scene of an accident and helping people who are in crisis.”

Ulery recently opened his newest jewelry store on December 22 at a prime location, the intersection of Hamilton and Bascom Avenues, and is already very busy just from word of mouth advertising.

Tod and Tracey Ulery are the owners of the new Jewel Box store. Inset: The Jewel Box owner Tod Ulery inspects a diamond ring for a prospective groom.

“Tod’s a great guy,” said frequent customer Campbell Mayor Jane Kennedy. “I met him at the Chamber and he’s very business oriented and a really bright guy.” She trusts him so much that when she is leaving town for any length of time she entrusts her jewelry to Ulery to keep in his safe.

At 22 Ulery was working for AMR and struggling to get shifts when a friend, Rick Denton, offered him a part-time job in his jewelry store. Tod liked it so much that he accepted a partnership with Denton. He eventually opened his own store on Campbell Avenue near the Bradley Video Store. “We started in the smallest space and eventually moved to a bigger space in the complex.” That store, which Tod recently sold to a friend, is now called JB Estates and deals specifically with estate jewelry, some of which is sold on consignment.

He opened up his new location right before Christmas but it hasn’t been without some bumps in the road. His brother and his girlfriend, who works for Tod, were in a serious car accident and he closed the shop briefly to help them through their recovery. And, in early March he was blindsided by the flu and couldn’t come to work for several days.

“I’m never sick!” says the handsome 34-year-old. “I hate to miss work but I just couldn’t come in.” He loves his work but does admit that the responsibility of becoming an owner “is a lot more work than I expected.”

One of the things that sets The Jewel Box apart from other jewelry stores is Tod and his employee’s friendly service and attention to detail. Customer Charles Mudd purchased what he laughingly refers to as an “Oh My God!” wedding set from Tod and speaks highly of his experience. “Tod is professional and very knowledgeable,’ says Mudd. “I went to several of his competitors and was not that impressed. But working with Tod was a very good experience. We’re still friends to this day.”

Ulery says he finds strength in his faith. Having been raised a Catholic, religion was always a big part of Ulery’s life. “In fact, my aunt is a Poor Clare nun,” he says. “When I visit her in the monastery up in the Los Altos Hills it is the most peaceful experience you can imagine.”

He and his family, wife Tracey and sons Nicholas and Joshua, attend Bethel Christian Church on Winchester Blvd. Wanting to give back to those in need, Ulery is helping to create a unique fundraiser for the Christian group Teen Challenge called “Gems for Jesus”. “It’s an online jewelry network and all of the proceeds will go to teens in need,” says Ulery.

Ulery also caters to other high profile clients such as Psychic Sylvia Browne and Montel Williams. He recently designed a line for Browne called the Signature Line, which was mentioned by Browne while she was a guest on “Larry King Live”.

The jewelry (which can be viewed online at www.tudesigns.com ) is based on a symbol of three interlaced circles representing Gratitude, Loyalty and Commit-ment.

The Jewel Box is also the foundation jeweler for local football teams, the San Francisco 49er’s and the Oakland Raiders. In this capacity Ulery provides the teams with jewelry for fundraisers and has also attracted the attention of the players, many of whom are The Jewel Box customers. Ironically, Tod’s wife Tracy is a former 49er cheerleader.

When customers come to Ulery with a unique design he uses a MATRIX and digital Goldsmith system to allow customers to view an image on the computer in seconds. “It’s quick and it allows people to simulate on screen changes to existing jewelry or design a custom piece of jewelry,” he explains.

Sometimes customers are leery of leaving their jewelry at a jewelry store for cleaning but Ulery counteracts that by using a microscope system that basically takes an image of the inside of each diamond or jewel to catch the intricacies of each piece. That way a customer knows they are getting their original jewelry back and it is that attention to customer service that has earned him the respect of his clients.

The Jewel Box prices are comparable to prices a customer will receive at the San Francisco Jewelry Mart. “We use the Rapaport sheet for diamond pricing so we are actually about one third of the price of large jewelry stores.”

The Jewel Box is at 1640 Hamilton Avenue, Suite F (on the corner of Hamilton and Bascom Avenues), San Jose. The phone number is 871-9898. The Web sites are www.jewelboxjewelers.com and www.tudesigns.com.