Eastern Iowa Jewelry Store To Close After 93 Years in Business

One of Iowa's oldest family-owned jewelry stores has announced they are closing after 93 years in business.

Steve Ginsberg, the current owner of Ginsberg Jewelers in Cedar Rapids, announced on social media on November 6th, that the business would be closing, according to the Corridor Business Journal. Ginsberg stated that the decision to close was "a result of slow sales and my unwillingness to go into debt."

The CBJ reports that a liquidation sale is currently underway. Ginsberg said that no exact timetable for the sale has been set. He told the CBJ, "If there is jewelry in the showcase, we’ll be open to sell it. Post-sale, the future is unclear.” According to the Ginsberg Jewelers website, the store was founded in Cedar Rapids in 1930 by Isadore Ginsberg, who emigrated to the U.S. from Russia. The store relocated several times during the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, and eventually became a five-store chain with 2 locations in Cedar Rapids, the Sycamore Mall in Iowa City, and 2 stores in Des Moines. Following the 2008 flood, Ginsberg Jewelers decided not to return to downtown Cedar Rapids and instead, built its current Cedar Rapids location near 1st Ave. and Collins Road.

In the store closing announcement, Steven Ginsberg stated that his family is "grateful for the memories, the stories, and the connections we’ve made." Store hours during the going-out-of-business sale remain Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Ginsberg said that the store became a multi-generational family business "by default, not by design."