This month, Jimmy DeGroot welcomes a guest he knows quite well. In fact, they know each other so well that they can complete each other’s …
“… sandwiches?” suggests Jason Druxman, co-owner of Avenue Jewelers in Appleton, WI.
Druxman has been in the jewelry business for over 30 years — “which is impossible,” he jokes, “because I’m only 36.” Before taking over Avenue Jewelers (where he worked with DeGroot), the fourth-generation jeweler spent much of his early career in corporate settings — working for Sterling Jewelers’ sub-brands.
In the podcast (11:50), he discusses pros and cons of working in a corporate jewelry environment versus an independent one.  Druxman describes the corporate business as “very cutthroat, very push-push” but admits he enjoyed it, especially as a young man with an instinct for competitiveness. “It was awesome for me,” says the jeweler, “because I could measure myself against these other thousand stores.”
How does independent life compare? As his current business title on his LinkedIn profile and business card (“The Diamond Stud”) indicates, Druxman’s working life is definitely not as stiff and regimented as it use to be.
Hear more pros and cons in the latest JimmyCast.