LAKELAND, Fla. — If you’re looking for Bill Marshall, he is not hard to find. He’s in the back of Marshall Jewelers, repairing and remodeling jewelry and working on watches.
The 80-year-old and his wife Carol, 78, are the second generation to run the jewelry and gift shop.
The jewelry store first opened in Lakeland in 1921. It transitioned to the ownership of Frank and Helen Marshall in 1956. Bill and Carol took over the business from his parents in 1988.
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"We’ve dealt with children who become adults, who become parents, who become grandparents,” said Carol.
The couple has run the jewelry store for 37 years, even surviving through the COVID pandemic.
“We have survived construction downtown. We’ve survived all kinds of economic conditions, some pleasant some unpleasant but we survived,” Bill said.
Now, after 104 years, the family-owned jeweler is closing its doors. The couple is ready to retire and said now is the right time.
“We’re getting emails from vendors everyday about the tariffs and whether they are going to have high tariffs, low tariffs. They don't know what they’re doing and that also factored into the decision to close,” Carol said.
The store will close in mid-June. The Marshalls said through the years a lot of customers have become family.
“No question about it, I'm going to miss the people. I’ve had folks come by this morning and we’ve been visiting. That’s what I'm going to miss,” said Bill.
"We don't come home until they do."
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