Golden Butterfly is celebrating its golden anniversary!
Originally founded in 1972, The Golden Butterfly Jewelers (118 N. Patrick St.) is inviting the public to celebrate its 50th anniversary in an open house on Friday, Nov. 18 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. with refreshments, coupons and a chance to see its great stock of quality jewelry and estate items.
“It won’t just be a one day event,” said owner Pam Crabtree. “We’ll be celebrating our anniversary all the way through Christmas with all sorts of specials and things go on.”
Crabtree admits that she didn’t know she’s be operating the store for half a century.
“You can’t plan that far in advance,” she said. “It just kind of happens.”
The secret to her business surviving this long? “Just not giving up,” she said with an exasperated laugh.
Pam was living in Dallas in the late 1960s and teaching in the area when she met her husband Charles who was attending dental school. When he wasn’t studying though, he was learning to make jewelry, a process which naturally fascinated Pam, who was teaching art at an elementary school.
The practice of jewelry making interested her and satisfied creative impulses so it was an easy choice to open Golden Butterfly when they moved to Dublin.
For those wondering where the name of the business came from, Pam has always loved butterflies from a very young age so one of the first (and most treasured) gifts she received from Charles was a golden butterfly pin that he made for her.
Pam says that as the owner of the business, she has to wear “every hat imaginable” from taking in repairs and fulfilling special orders to working on advertising and banking. The variety of work is part of why she loves the job so much.
She initially honed her craft by watching her husband and a master jeweler work and taking a course in San Antonio. Pam still admits to learning new tricks all the time though, partly from ideas she picks up at regular jeweler trade shows.
The best advice that Pam ever received is relevant to anyone that ever worked behind a counter. She was told to realize that if a customer yelled at her that they were likely already upset when they came in. Realizing this, she tries to remain calm and work to resolve the problem and then use all of her energy in a positive way, rather than passing the negativity to the next person she sees who wasn’t involved.
Crabtree admits that the advancement of the internet and online shopping have changed her industry as it has many others. She and Richard Cook, who offers custom jewelry and professional repair in the back of the shop, observed this when he came to work at Golden Butterfly several years ago. “A lot of our major suppliers went out of business,” she said.
Crabtree is able to offer a personal touch that a thirdparty seller on the internet can’t match.
“That’s what keeps your customers—your honesty and trying to do everything their way,” she said.
This level of respect and dedication helps explain why Golden Butterfly has been a cornerstone of the Dublin for 50 years.