Jeweller - August 2021

INSIDE
Now & Then
Offe Jewellers
Celebrating 96 Years • MURRAY BRIDGE, MOUNT BARKER AND BERRI, SA • A moment with Jennifer Burch, director
MILESTONES
L to R: Desmond and Deborah Stapleton outside the renamed Offe’s Hourglass Jewellers; a devastating fire
destroyed the historic Murray Bridge store in 2002.
After World War I, William “Bill” Offe
returned to South Australia from France,
only to discover his family farm could no
longer support him or his siblings.
So, Bill entered a watchmaking
apprenticeship with Keightly Jewellers
in Angaston, in the Barossa Valley.
Following his apprenticeship, Bill opened a
business in the town of Renmark and then
later expanded to Berri; however, times
became tough as one of the region’s biggest
employers, the Hume Pipe Company, closed.
Undeterred, Bill and his wife Lilian decided
to move ‘down river’ to the growing town of
Murray Bridge, where they opened a small
store, Offe Jewellers, in the newly complete
Ruges Arcade.
Over time, Bill expanded the store into
china and giftware – but there were more
challenges on the horizon.
The years of World War II were difficult
for many jewellery and watchmaking
businesses throughout Australia.
Importing goods became almost impossible,
alarm clocks and watches were sold on
a priority basis to essential services, and
gold and jewellery were strictly rationed
as luxuries.
Still, Offe Jewellers survived, and a
glassware section was added; Bill’s son
Ian – a qualified gemmologist – then joined
the business.
After Bill passed away in the 1960s, Ian took
over and worked alongside his mother to
keep Offe Jewellers thriving. They celebrated
the store’s 50th anniversary in 1975 with
extensive renovations to the jewellery
section, as well as modernised entrances
coinciding with wider alterations to the
Ruges Arcade building.
In the early 1990s, the Offes sold the
business to jewellery industry veteran
Desmond “Des” Stapleton and his wife
Deborah, who rebranded the store as Offe’s
Hourglass Jewellers.
Des had started in the industry in 1962
as a messenger boy for a jewellery supplier
and went on to establish his own business
importing jewellery from Europe. The
decision to move into retail was motivated by
his desire to reduce his travel commitments
and spend more time with his family.
A new era of expansion took place when
Des decided to open a second location; he
approached Mt Barker Jewellers owner and
manufacturing jeweller Michael Vivian about
a partnership, and together they opened
a new, larger store named Hourglass
Jewellers Mt Barker.
Having worked to re-establish the wholesale
part of the family business while studying at
university, I joined Offe Jewellers full-time in
the early 2000s after completing my degree.
While my focus was on wholesale and
buying, my brother Damien came in to
support our father as retail manager of
the Murray Bridge store. My other brother
Michael also joined the business supporting
me within the wholesale arm.
One of the toughest times came in 2002,
when a devastating fire destroyed the Murray
Bridge store – forcing the historic building to
be demolished. It took two years to rebuild,
throughout which Offe Hourglass Jewellers
operated from a temporary location.
1925
William “Bill” Offe and wife
Lilian move to Murray
Bridge and open Offe
Jewellers, later adding
china, giftware, and
glassware sections
1953
Bill and Lilian’s son Ian,
a gemmologist, joins
the business
1975
Offe Jewellers celebrates
its 50th anniversary with
extensive renovations
1992
Desmond “Des” Stapleton
and wife Deborah purchase
the business from the
Offes and rename it Offe’s
Hourglass Jewellers
1993
Michael Vivian, jeweller
and owner of Mt Barker
Jewellers, partners with
Des to open a large new
Hourglass Jewellers store
in Mount Barker
1995
The Murray Bridge store
marks its 70th year with
another renovation , adding
a full-time manufacturing
jeweller and state-of-theart
workshop
2000
Des and Deborah’s
daughter Jennifer joins
the business, followed
by brothers Damien
and Michael
2002
The Murray Bridge store
is destroyed in a
devastating fire;
rebuilding takes two years
2007
Michael’s daughter Ellie
begins working at the
Mount Barker location
2008
Des is approached by
Riverland Central Plaza
shopping centre to open
a store in Berri; Damien
oversees the new location
2018
Des and Deborah pass on
the business to Damien,
Jennifer and Michael, and
all three stores revert to
the original business name
Offe Jewellers
Above: The original Offe Jewellers in Murray Bridge
moved to its present location in 2018.
Thankfully, we were able to return to our
corner site once the rebuild was complete,
and a stunning, modern new store rose
from the ashes.
In the following years, Michael Vivian’s
daughter Ellie joined him at the Mount
Barker store, bringing another generation
into the business. We also joined the
Leading Edge Group Jewellers buying
group, which led to our being approached
to open a third store in Berri.
This was particularly poignant, as Bill
Offe’s first business had a store in Berri.
Damien re-located there to oversee the
new store.
After taking over the business from our
parents, we rebranded back to our original
name – Offe Jewellers – in 2018 and the
original Murray Bridge store moved to
24 Bridge Street with a new workshop.
The Mount Barker and Berri stores
have also recently undergone
refurbishments to create beautiful,
contemporary retail spaces.
The future of Offe Jewellers will focus on
manufacturing and repairs, as well as
offering a broad range of fine and branded
jewellery and watches. We have also
placed great emphasis on e-commerce,
allowing our customers to browse both
online and in-store.
With our experienced family team, we look
to continue the Offe Jewellers legacy for
many years to come.
Read the full length interview
on Jewellermagazine.com
38 | August 2021