FAMILY BUSINESS MOVES DOWNTOWN: All that glitters is gold, and diamonds and gems

Published 11:09 am Friday, November 20, 2015

To look at Frank Boules’ face, you would never know the ups and downs he’s faced, the loves and the losses.

In fact, Boules’ smile shows a far different story. But his climb to being a successful business owner hasn’t been easy.

Boules is the owner of Bainbridge Diamonds & Jewelry, which this week moves to 265 Winslow Way. His store was previously on High School Road, near the Best Western Inn. The move allows him to be in the midst of downtown.

“We just didn’t get enough foot traffic on High School Road,” Boules said.

“We have very loyal customers, but we were missing out on the tourists. I have a beautiful, stunning inventory and I want people to be able to look at it,” he said.

Boules was born in Cairo, Egypt, and remembers helping in his family’s jewelry business, beginning when he was about 11 years old.

At that age, his father would put money or jewelry in a brown paper bag and Boules would carry it under his arm.

“I’d take the bus to places where I would buy or trade jewelry for him,” he said. “I was sort of the middle man. Sometimes I would watch the store, or bring drinks to the customers.”

Throughout those years, he grew to love the jewelry business. He went to college and studied accounting. And then, in 1978, he came to the United States.

“I arrived in New York with $485 in my pocket,” he said. “I found a place to live, a small apartment. I paid $240 for one month’s rent, and went looking for a job.”

His place was a few blocks from the Empire State Building and he soon went to work in a restaurant. He worked in the kitchen, waited tables and then became a cook.

On a trip home to Egypt, he met Sonia, who became his wife in 1984 and moved to the U.S.

He continued to work in restaurants, but he missed the jewelry business. So he found a job in a jewelry store.

“It didn’t pay very much,” he said. “I had to go back to working in restaurants.”

Within a few years, with his brother’s help, he was able to open his own restaurant. His brother Michael, who was studying to be a medical doctor in Egypt, came to America to work after he graduated.

“On his days off, he would help me in the restaurant,” Boules said. “On this one Sunday, I wanted to take time off, so he worked. That day, someone came in the restaurant and shot my brother, took the money and ran off.”

Michael died from his injuries, which left Boules broken-hearted. He sold the restaurant and went looking for somewhere else to live.

“I had three young children at the time,” he said. “I didn’t think New York was safe anymore. I made a list of the states that I thought were beautiful, and Washington was on it. I visited here twice and on the third time, we moved.”

The family settled in Bellingham and then Renton. Boules worked in gas stations with mini-marts and eventually found himself in Poulsbo, as owner of a mini-mart on Viking Way. He also started a teriyaki restaurant in Kingston, which he still owns.

From time to time, he thought about becoming an accountant and using the skills he’d learned in college. He even studied to take the CPA exam.

His children were getting older and it was on a trip to Bainbridge Island with his oldest son, Mena, who was home from medical school, that they came across a small storefront for lease on High School Road.

“He said to me, ‘We must take this one. You decide if it will be an accounting office or a jewelry store.’”

Boules chose the family business.

“It’s just in my blood,” he said. “I looked at it the next day and signed the contract the following day.”

He went on a buying trip to Switzerland, Dubai and Bahrain and brought home only the best for his store.

“I attended some of the largest jewelry shows where people were there from more than 120 countries all over the world,” he said.

He opened his store during the Christmas season 10 years ago.

In his years in business on Bainbridge Island, he’s carried an inventory that he’s hand-picked, including diamonds, pearls and other gems. Popular are the chocolate diamonds, tri-colored diamonds and diamond studded earrings. He also shows tri-colored gold necklaces that are handmade in India with English Royalty designs.

He plans to carry many of the same items in the new location, “plus more.”

“We’ll have things for everyone; Bainbridge Island residents and the tourists, and in all budgets,” he said. “Because Bainbridge deserves the best.”

His store was recently named one of the top 10 jewelry stores in Kitsap County by the Prime Buyer’s Report.

It’s been his youngest son, Abanoub, who has helped with the move to the new location, formerly The Traveler. Abanoub is still at home and attends Olympic College.

“He seems to have more of an interest in the family business than my other children,” Boules said. “But getting an education comes first.”

His other son, Madgy, is a student at the University of Washington and his daughter, Chantal, works at Microsoft.

At the previous location, Boules ran the business himself. He hopes to hire some help at the new location.

For him, jewelry is a symbol of love.

“It’s the beauty of it, the clarity of the jewels, and how stunning they are,” he said.

And owning a business on Bainbridge Island is something he cherishes, as well.

“Bainbridge is safe and nice, and the people are warm and friendly,” he said. “I’ve come to really love it.”

Shine on

What: Grand re-opening of Bainbridge Diamonds & Jewelry.

Where: 265 Winslow Way East, downtown Bainbridge Island.

When: 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20.

There will be snacks, drinks and balloons for the kids. Regular store hours are 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday; noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.