Lafyes Jewelry
Luis Flores moved to Queens from Peru 18 years ago. He moved to Maspeth from Corona and opened up Lafye’s jewelry store at 65-43 Grand Avenue in 2005.
“I always felt that I have the ability to create things, to do things with my hands,” Flores said of why he enjoys working with jewelry.
“I like every single aspect of my job,” he said, including setting diamonds and creating new pieces.
“Jewelry is important to people because, in some ways, it identifies everyone,” he said. “Everyone has their own style, everyone has their unique way of wearing jewelry.”
As a small business owner, Flores was affected by Small Business Saturday, a national initiative launched in 2010 encouraging people to shop locally on the day after Black Friday.
Flores said he heard of Small Business Saturday for the first time this year.
“I think it’s a good incentive for our neighbors to come out and shop locally,” he said.
Flores said a few people mentioned it while shopping in his store, but that sales were pretty much equal between Black Friday and Small Business Saturday.
He usually gets more business the weekend after Thanksgiving then the rest of the year. “It’s particularly higher than most weeks,” he said.
As for the future, Flores said he’d like to move his store to a higher foot-traffic area.
But, “I like the neighborhood, I like the people,” he said of Maspeth. “I’d like to stay in the area if I ever relocate.”
(Heather Senison)
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Posted Thursday, December 1st, 2011
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