New Faces, New Places: West African village inspires Matombré Jewellers in Midtown Plaza
The store’s slogan is “Tell your story” because Hussain Bah knows every custom piece of jewelry has a story behind it.
New businesses and non-profit organizations regularly open and move in Saskatoon. Today, the StarPhoenix talks to Hussain Bah, who opened Matombré Jewellers in Midtown Plaza in March.
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Bah first started to learn the jewelry trade from his father, in his early years growing up in Sierra Leone, until war forced the family to flee to Nigeria. Later they managed to come to Canada, ending up in Saskatoon. After taking some jewelry school classes and working in different jewelry stores, Bah knew the time was right to open his own store. Now 30 years old, Bah prides himself on his custom jewelry work, something he says is unique in the Saskatoon market.
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Q: What inspired the name of your jewelry store?
A: My family is from a small village in Sierra Leone called Matombré that cannot be found on the map. That’s the name of my store. You can literally mine gold in that village. A love for jewelry has always been in me.
Q: What products and services do you offer?
A: I sell gold and diamond jewelry, including necklaces, pendants, rings, bracelets and earrings. I’m going to start selling silver too right away, and I also do watch repair and resizing. All my products are Canadian. But my main job is custom work if you want to do custom changes. If you check my Instagram you will really understand my kind of work.
Photo by Matt Smith / Saskatoon StarPhoenix
Q: What sets your jewelry store apart from others?
A: Matombré Jewellers is a premium custom jewelry business. When people want to buy custom jewelry, they go to Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, places like that to get that type of jewelry. But people in Saskatoon should have the opportunity to get a (locally made) custom piece. That’s what I provide.
Ben Moss Jewellers acquired by Charm Diamond Centres, 16 stores to reopen
HALIFAX – Charm Diamond Centres has acquired the rights to the Ben Moss Jewellers banner and will reopen 16 stores that were closed when Ben Moss filed for creditor protection last year.
Charm says it will also retain more than 100 Ben Moss Jewellers employees and hire additional staff for a total of 175 jobs.
The stores, some of which will reopen as early as today, are in Ontario, B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Winnipeg.
Charm says it plans to announce details of a grand re-opening event, which will take place in time for Valentine’s Day.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
Ben Moss, which suffered financial difficulties in recent years, was acquired by a wholesaler in 2013. The company filed for creditor protection in May 2016 and closed all of its stores.
Controversy erupted when the company said it couldn’t fulfil jewelry guarantees.
Charm Diamond Centres president Troy Calder says he’s “delighted” to be able to give the Ben Moss brand a fresh start.
“We have great respect for the Ben Moss Jewellers legacy and its long history,” Calder said in a statement.
“Like Charm, the company has a similar story – it is a family-owned Canadian fine jewelry brand that customers have trusted for their most treasured memories.”
Jewelry store to reopen
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