I will have time this winter to cut some more, so check back in the spring. Sorry I sold all of the gemstones I wanted to sell. He was born and raised in Modesto, California, and was a brilliant man with an amazing career who brought the world to beaders and jewelry makers.Custom Faceted Gemstones for Sale Faceted Gemstones PAGE 1 Stuart had a great laugh, ready smile, big heart, and funny sense of humor. | Photo: Fire Mountain Gems and Beads In Memoriam A lot of people benefited from that.” Stuart was a horseman who loved his Rhodesian Ridgeback dogs and writing about them. His company has provided work in Grants Pass when there wasn’t much to be had. He believed those jobs helped create unity and peace.īeadalon product manager Wyatt White says Stuart’s legacy goes beyond our industry, “There is no one who wouldn’t say Stuart built an empire. Stuart estimated that Fire Mountain Gems created work for 20,000 artisans in this country, plus, that many more worldwide. Stuart enjoyed traveling and discovering treasures. They expanded to over 500 employees, with a large call center and distribution center on site for its 100,000+ products from around the world. In the early 2000s, Fire Mountain moved to Grants Pass, Oregon. | Photo: Dev Nagi of Fire Mountain Gems and Beads Traveling the World Stuart believed in uniting the world one bead at a time. They were also early sponsors of the PBS series, Beads, Baubles & Jewels. Chris and Stuart were also some of the greatest supporters of magazines-believing in a “you teach them, we’ll sell to them” philosophy. Chris still supports jewelry-making education and has built an online library to help customers learn. Somewhere during this time, Chris’ daughter learned how to make jewelry and, together, they wrote an instructional book of sorts to help their customers know what to do with their products. They grew and grew their inventory, adding Quonset huts onto the property until they were out of room, along with growing staff until there was no more space left to do all the things. Moving to Cave Junction, Oregon, from Los Angeles in 1986, Stuart and Chris took over a local grocery store and eventually transitioned their direct-to-consumer business to mail order. Chris and Stuart Freedman in the early days of Fire Mountain Gems and Beads. The line that Stuart would often share “my job is to bring in the product and Chris’ is to sell it.” They made a formidable, generous pair. Being the businessman he was, he quickly realized the benefit of buying cabochons to resell rather than cutting and selling his own. He purchased his first advertising space in Lapidary Journal and hired people to help cut and fill orders. In the 1970s, Stuart began cutting turquoise cabochons in his garage to relax from his day job as an aerospace engineer. Photo: Dev Nagi of Fire Mountain Gems and Beads. Stuart’s legacy lives on in our industry.Ībove: Stuart Freedman sought beading and jewelry supplies around the world. As one of the largest beading supply retailers in the world, Fire Mountain Gems and Beads touches nearly everyone who beads or makes jewelry. Family say he passed peacefully in a hospital with his wife, Chris, and son, Matt, at his side. ✓ Let the Interweave Knits Winter 2024 issue transport you to a winter wonderland of cozy knits! This remarkable edition features 14 extraordinary projects to immerse yourself in the uniqueness of specially crafted yarns.įire Mountain Gems and Beads co-founder Stuart Freedman died on November 27, 2022.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |