Scherer’s Jeweler’s Inc. is marking 104 Years and four generations of dedication to quality craftsmanship, and excellence in the jewelry industry in Western New York.
Our business is a family enterprise: Jerome J. Scherer, Jr., the operations manager, and Richard M. Scherer, jewelry craftsman and diamond setter, worked along with their father until his retirement. Jerome, Jr. is a graduate of the Gemological Institute of America’s Diamond Course, while Richard earned a degree in jewelry design and repairing from Bowman Technical Institute in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the oldest technical school of its kind in this country, as well as a graduate of the Gemological Institute of America’s colored stone course.
The history behind this family business is interwoven with the development of the country and of Western New York over the past century. Founder, Jerome A. Scherer, great-grandfather of the present owners, was born August 13, 1861 in Deerfield, Pennsylvania to Swiss born August and Elizabeth Scherer. His parents had moved from Buffalo to Deerfield seeking better employment as coopers in the recently discovered oil fields of Pennsylvania. Homesickness and difficulty settling in among the Pennsylvania Dutch community prompted a return to their home town of Buffalo, New York three years later.
Jerome A. Scherer was attracted even as a child to any display of jewelry. He was fascinated by the sight of a jeweler scrutinizing a gemstone with the aid of a magnifying glass. In time, young Jerome was employed by Mr. Lutz, who operated a jewelry store on Seneca Street in Buffalo, New York.
Spurred by his desire to create jewelry, Scherer applied for employment with Heinz Brothers, a manufacturer of rings located in Buffalo New York. With experience, he became their chief diamond setter.
Family historian Hildegard Louise Scherer, sister of Jerome A., wrote that Jerome A. Scherer worked “with deft hands, a sheet of gold, and his tools to create a special ring. He had keen knowledge and artistic skill for the designing of jewelry.”
Jerome A. fulfilled his life’s ambition when he opened his own jewelry store on September 8, 1903, located at 312 Masten Street near East Utica Street. In February of 1905, Scherer’s Jewelers moved into a newly constructed store and residence at 1382 Fillmore Avenue near Utica Street.
The father-to-son tradition was initiated when Jerome A. Scherer’s son, H. Jerome, a qualified watchmaker and jewelry designer, became a partner. Hildegard Louise Scherer also assisted in the store’s operation along with H. Jerome’s wife, Ann. H. Jerome’s skills with precision mechanisms became so recognized that he was often called upon to repair some of the tower clocks that dotted the Buffalo skyline.
The father-to-son tradition was followed once again when H. Jerome’s son, Jerome J. Scherer, Sr., brought his talents for business and distinctive jewelry design into the family establishment. Scherer’s Jewelers relocated their business to Main Street in Amherst in the Fall of 1967, almost directly across from their present location.
The family tradition blossomed again when Jerome J. Scherer, Jr. joined the business in 1973, and Richard M. Scherer in 1978, both bringing their individual expertise into the family business. Throughout nearly 100 years in Buffalo, Scherer’s Jewelers has maintained a reputation for quality and honesty in service. The combination of family tradition, years of experience, and formal training has made Scherer’s famous for quality in jewelry design and repair along with the servicing of a full range of timepieces, from the restoration of valuable antiques to modern quartz watches. Their association with many quality gem cutters and importers has afforded their clients the finest selection of finished gems from the smallest ruby to the finest diamonds.
Scherer’s facility now has one of the largest jewelry showrooms in Western New York. This has enabled them to offer a wide range and variety of merchandise, both gifts and jewelry to carry you from your first friendship ring to your 60th Diamond Jubilee. Scherer’s also does jewelry appraisals, and is an authorized Official Sales and Servicing Agency for the renowned names of Rolex, Breitling, Ebel, Cyma, Oris Tudor, and Citizen.
Scherer’s Jewelers, Inc. is one of the oldest continuously family-owned institutions in New York State. The family observes their heritage through a coat of arms that has been traced to the year 1700. It includes a hand held cross at the top which represents devotion, piety, and a firm belief in God; five flowers over the cross which signal hope and trust in God in time of need; a shield with five flowers and a cross on it which indicates a truthful life, honorable character, and a good heart; finally, a crown representing relentless struggle to attain a goal.
With four generations involved in Scherer’s Jewelers, the fifth generation is up and coming. There are presently twenty-nine grandchildren to Jerome Sr.