by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
When the owners of Barnett Jewelers at Independent Square decided they wanted to do something really special for their customers during the holiday season, they decided to create a promotion that would go beyond their existing customer base and into the community.
What they came up with was their first-ever “Finders Keepers” gift giveaway. More than 100 gifts of fine jewelry were wrapped in the store’s signature golden paper and red bows then the packages were hidden in plain sight where unsuspecting recipients could find their surprise.
“We’ve had a wonderful response, better than we ever dreamed of. I think it reminded people of what the holiday season is really all about. One of the people who found one of our boxes came into the store and said we had put the meaning back into Christmas for him,” said Susan Barnett Ricke.
He wasn’t the only one who came in to share what finding a gift meant for the holidays. There was the woman who was staying at the Hyatt and found one of the boxes. Her husband died in November and the woman knew she’d no longer find a new piece of jewelry from him under the tree every Christmas morning. Then she found the box from Barnett’s and discovered a strand of freshwater pearls for Christmas.
Another finder works at the BB&T Building and said she didn’t think she was getting anything for Christmas this year. When she found her shiny package she told Ricke, “I felt very blessed, but security made me open it outside the building.”
Bill Barnett Sr. recounted the story of a “recipient” who found a box left behind that looked like one from the store, but instead of containing a gift of jewelry, it held a business card and an IOU from the store.
“When the man brought in the box, we explained to him it wasn’t part of our holiday promotion, but we gave him some jewelry anyway. A little while later he brought a pizza to the store, so he bought us lunch,” said Barnett.
He said giving away more than $6,000 worth of merchandise brought quite a few new customers into the store which has been in business Downtown since 1917. It also made everyone who works at the store feel like Santa’s helpers.
“We had a very good Christmas season this year,” added Barnett. “Not the biggest ever, but better than last year. I think ‘Finders Keepers’ taught us once again it’s better to give than receive.”