One of the most inspirational stories in the jewelry business, is a story most people have never heard. It’s seems too unbelievable to be true…a young man in Lafayette Louisiana, selling jewelry out of the trunk of his car, grows the business to become the LARGEST jewelry supplier in the US!
From Trunk of his car to Largest Supplier in the Country! Sounds like a Hollywood movie…but this story is REAL!
His company is the powerhouse supplier and backbone to 50,000 jewelry businesses in the USA, yet he remains invisible and secret to consumers that buy $100’s of Millions in Jewelry a year.
MATT STULLER – AN INSPIRATIONAL STORY
From the trunk of his car, to a workshop in the 70’s, to the biggest jewelry supplier in the country? How did he do it? Who is this extraordinary person and what is his story?
When you search Behind the Bling, you discover that man is Matt Stuller.
Matt has an amazing story to tell…but has stayed a man behind the scenes of the jewelry business, giving his 50,000 exclusive retailers the limelight, and special access to over 200,000 products DIRECT from the source, with next day delivery!
Jewelry, diamonds, mountings, color stones, supplies and tools, like Amazon for Jewelers, everything and anything a jeweler needs, shipped immediately overnight, direct from the source, at competitive prices. The SECRET behind the SUCCESS!
Matt’s story in the jewelry business began in the 1960’s as a young 16 year old in love in Lafayette, Louisiana, searching for a sweetheart ring at a downtown jewelry store to buy his girlfriend.
Matt didn’t have the money to buy the gold ring, but stumbled on a jeweler with a good heart, who took him in as part time help, sweeping floors and taking out the garbage, to pay it off on account. Matt’s polite nature and friendly charm helped him develop relationships with all of the employees…especially the bench jeweler, who took care of all the jewelry cleaning and repairs. The jeweler was also talented in creating custom pieces in the shop, from scratch, and that amazed the young entrepreneur-to-be!
Matt soaked up all he could from the jeweler by watching him work, and learned the inner makings and workings of hand made jewelry. He also noticed the improvements that were desperately needed to give better customer service and faster turn around for orders.
By age 19, Matt had set up his own jewelry shop, casting and setting rings and bracelets at his Dad’s Orthodontist office! His father was less than thrilled but Matt was determined to fulfill his dreams, so after he handcrafted the jewelry, he loaded up the trunk of his car and set out to meet every jeweler in the state of Louisiana, door by door, to show and sell his Bling!
His positive spirit and personality opened the door wide open to just about every client he met and shook hands with. They loved his work ethic, and gave him the business! Soon Matt had built a great route for himself, manufacturing and selling to jewelers…and since they met face to face, he would always ask what they needed. He would find the need, and then work hard to fill it! This gave jewelers a tremendous comfort level knowing that Matt Stuller was going to, under-promise and over-deliver!
MATT STULLER DEVELOPED AN EXCELLENT REPUTATION
Matt’s relationship with his customers strengthened as his love for the business deepened. Since Matt would travel the road, a mutual trust and respect developed…customers let Matt leave the goods in the safe overnight, and often asked him over to their homes for dinner. He got to know the families personally, which solidified a long term commitment to each other that benefitted everyone. Matt Stuller developed a reputation for excellence with whatever he touched!
“I always had a strong belief that I had to WOW the customer!” says Stuller. “It’s been a fun and exciting ride. We just grew the business according to what our customers were asking us for, what they needed. There’s a constant process of improvement, listening to the customer, improving the quality, knowing what they like, and importantly, what they don’t like.”
He established Stuller’s corporate headquarters in his hometown of Lafayette, Louisiana in 1970.
“Stuller is an orchestra, there’s a lot of great musicians, and it has to come together to get music, our people are so committed to delivering what they promised, that it works beautifully!” he added.
Stuller has grown to be the largest jewelry supplier in the United States, with over 1,000 employees and D & B Reporting $ 410 Million in 2020 sales.
HERE ARE SOME OF STULLER’S AMAZING MILESTONES:
1970 Stuller is Founded.
1972 Introduces Toll Free Calling for Jewelers, a first in the industry.
1973 Began fabricating their own metals
1982 Debut overnight Fed-Ex delivery to Jewelers
1990 By demand from jewelers, Introduces a line of finished jewelry complete and ready for sale
1995 Introduces customization, create your own jewelry
1997 Launches Stuller.com with 200,000 skus in stock 24/7 for immediate delivery
1998 Enters tool and supply business
2005 Becomes a De Beers DTC Site holder, Diamonds direct from the mine
2009 Partners with Gemvision to bring latest technology to jewelers
2010 Celebrates 40 Years in Business
2011 CNBC Gold Documentary features Stuller
2016 Introduces CanadaMark Diamonds first in North America
2018 Forms Strategic agreement with GIA Gemological Institute of America
2019 Receives Responsible Jewellery Council Certification
2020 Celebrates 50 YEAR Anniversary!
MATT STULLER, BLING LIST OF THE 1,000 MOST INFLUENTIAL
Matt Stuller makes our Bling list of the 1,000 most influential people in the industry. He is a man of faith with a positive vision that has always guided his success. Like a magnet, Matt has attracted some of the finest talent in the industry, surrounding himself with hard working great people. Matt and his team have reached stratospheric levels, when compared to your average jewelry supplier, blasting through challenges with confidence and strength, and the ability to deliver a superior experience for the customer, 5 star, top rated, VIP service, where nothing is impossible….that’s the culture at Stuller!
Matt Stuller has left an impact on this industry that is impossible to duplicate, and will last forever…a behind-the-scenes CHAMPION, serving jewelers for over 5 decades, with respect, admiration and appreciation for a job well done, AND with a smile!
Staff Writer – Bling Beverly Hills