About
we are small and independent jewelers, we would love to share our story with you, our valuable Customer.
Jejo & Son jewelry and repair store history can be dated back to 1989 when Jejo immigrated from Turkey to the USA, like many other immigrants looking to secure a better and more secure life for his family.
Jejo settled in Seattle, WA, where he opened his first Jewelry repair store. The store was an immediate success and has been trusted by the local community for its fair pricing and excellent craftsmanship. Looking back, those were the good old days as everything seemed easier than today.
Since Jejo had a son Burak who was still a teenager when he moved to the USA, he brought him to the USA back in 1994 on a school break to see how he would like the culture and life in the Pacific North West.
Burak came to the USA back in 1994 for a short visit during the summer; he truly enjoyed his eventful stay in the USA, so at the time, both he and his father agreed as soon as he finished school back in Turkey that, he would move to the United States to live with his dad and more essential to learn all the trade secrets of the family run business.
Burak moved to the USA permanently in 1999. It would be a lie to say it was easy; chasing an American dream never is. A kid in his 20is from the streets in Istanbul, which lies half in Europe and half in Asia, was suddenly being found in the USA. He came with little or no knowledge of the English language, which was an additional barrier in the beginning.
Beginnings were hard for many people moving from another part of the world. Very often, Burak held a few different jobs, from restaurants to the butcher shops, just so he would be able to learn English.
On days off, he would help his father in the jewelry store, which had already moved to the Portland Metro area at that time. He learned all the trade secrets, but he was determined to find his own path in the trade.
Burak was hired by Fred Meyer Jewelers as a sales associate back in 2006 as a part-timer, his English skills got better and better, and with a lot of hard work and dedication, he not only became one of the best salespersons in Fred Meyers but he soon took more responsible roles such as an assistant manager. For the past 10 years, he has been a shop manager in different locations.
Like many of us in life, we have hard decisions to make. As this is not a fairytale but a real life, Jejo got really ill in 2021. Burak was torn apart seeing his dad struggling and working in his store daily. He knew this was their family legacy, but on the other hand, he had a secured job with all the benefits.
For Burak, that was leaving his job and company where he worked for over 15th years and taking over the family business so his father could finally enjoy his well-deserved retirement in his late seventies.
And this is how Jejo & Son was born, serving you, our loyal Customer, out of our location in Tigard, Oregon.
We are independent
We are local
We are honest
We genuinely believe that putting our customers first is the only way to move forward and grow as a business and as human beings.
We are Jejo & Son, your local jewelry store that you can trust.
Sincerely yours,
Burak Akalin
