Bobby Singh remembers his mom driving him to work in his dad’s jewelry store—A.G. Singson Jewelers—in Fair Oaks Mall, because he was too young to drive. And he worked there most summers and winter breaks while he was majoring in accounting and finance at Virginia Tech.
“The business of jewelry was in the Singh DNA long before I was born,” Singh explains. After graduating, he tried to put his college major to work, and he was good at it, ending up in a very few years as comptroller of Comstock Homes’ multifamily division. Comstock is the developer of the trendy high-tech 21-story high rise condo named BLVD at Reston Station.
“With members of our Comstock team, I used to drive over to Town Center for lunch,” Singh says. “When the Midtown condo high rise was nearing completion, I walked onto the dirt floor of the ground floor retail space under construction. That’s when the dream of opening my own jewelry store began to form.”
By 2007, he had met, fallen in love and married another accountant named Julie from Leesburg. Julie liked the idea of having their very own business and she also loved the sophisticated Town Center location. Soon thereafter, Midtown Jewelers became a reality.
Julie Singh recalls that the first 3 years were a struggle because of the worst recession since the Great Depression. Luxury items were just that – a luxury: business at Midtown was slow. Julie was forced to stay at her job as a corporate accountant in order to meet the needs of her growing family.
“We started our business as high-end fashion jewelers,” Julie recalls. “You know, products like diamond bracelets, earrings, necklaces and rings.” At the end of the three years, Bobby and Julie saw the nation profoundly change. The business of weddings transformed dramatically. The centuries-old custom of the husband surprising his wife with an engagement ring, morphed into couples altering this tradition into a joyful, shared experience.
It didn’t take long for the Singhs to hitch their wagon to this bright new bridal star called the wedding experience– today an enormous $70 billion industry: yes, with a “b.” Bobby and Julie boldly went searching for the best and brightest bridal design and manufacturing talents in the nation.
“We had intentionally chosen Reston Town Center because of its upscale new urbanism, and, because of the sophistication of the clientele we met walking through our front door,” Bobby said.
Having worked beside his father for so many years in a suburban shopping mall environment, Bobby Singh instinctively knew shopping center jewelry was not going to be the fare of his sparkling, new Midtown Jewelers. “Casinos. That’s what I call the typical shopping mall,” Bobby says. “They are filled with folks who don’t have a lot to do, or are escaping the rain or freezing temperatures outside: kind of an escape. There are few serious motives for luxury shopping.”
The Singhs had a vision of a singular bridal shopping experience: one filled with personalized service and a wide diversity of best-in-class wedding products that would set Midtown apart from their competitors. Market Street, Reston Town Center, with its world class reputation as a destination shopping street was the perfect place for their dream to come true.
The Singhs’ vision paid big dividends!!
Wedding planners and new couples flocked to their store from Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Baltimore, North Carolina, as well as from all over the Washington region. They soon branded their new venture, “Where Washington, D.C. Gets Engaged.” Their own brand of personalized service brought a torrent of glowing testimonials.
As this article is being written in July 2016, WeddingWire, the nation’s leading online wedding marketplace, just announced that Midtown Jewelers had reached the prestigious WeddingWire Rated Black Level by earning more than 100 wedding reviews for Wedding Jewelry in Reston, Virginia.
The July 26 press release headline proclaimed in 24-point type MIDTOWN JEWELERS RECEIVES THE ELITE WEDDINGWIRE RATED TM BLACK BADGE FOR COMMITMENT TO PROVIDING QUALITY SERVICE.
The same press release started by saying…
The esteemed WeddingWire Rated™ program recognizes wedding professionals who have received positive newlywed reviews about their business on WeddingWire. Since receiving over 100 wedding reviews, Midtown Jewelers is now placed at the elite Rated Black Level. The program recognizes businesses across more than 20 service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers, and requires a minimum of three wedding reviews and an average score of 3.5 stars or higher.
It goes on to say…
“To have exceeded 100 client reviews is a tremendous accomplishment that only a select group of wedding professionals have reached,” said Sonny Ganguly, CMO, WeddingWire. “We are honored to recognize Midtown Jewelers for their impressive work within the wedding industry as indicated by their past clients. This great achievement showcases their strong track record of success and a steadfast commitment to earning positive reviews, each and every year.”
Accepting this award, Bobby Singh said, “Midtown Jewelers is thrilled to receive the Rated™ Black badge for Wedding Jewelry in Reston, VA. Providing positive experiences for our clients is our number one priority, and we would like to thank them for taking the time to review our business on WeddingWire.”
Adding to this celebrity, Washingtonian magazine voted Midtown Jewelers the Best 2015 Jewelry Store, declaring that it has become a premier jewelry destination.
Then, there are additional Midtown kudos from The Knot.com, the nation’s #1 wedding website, network and marketplace. The Knot.com has recognized Midtown Jewelers for the past two years as winner of the Best of Weddings. Only 21 of the 250,000 local wedding professionals listed in The Knot.com have received this distinguished accolade.
A product of the XO Group, Inc. [NYSE: XOXO], The Knot.com is part of a sophisticated media network that reaches an audience of over 7 million, connecting wedding planners and vendors with couples planning their nuptials. The Knot.com estimates the overall wedding industry including receptions at $70B annually: the jewelry portion at $13.5B. This means 2.5 million weddings a year at a median expense at $30,000.00.
How the media views The Knot: Newsweek “Other ‘wed’ sites aspire to be The Knot.” Vogue “The chicest wed site in cyberspace.” Businessweek “Don’t get hitched without The Knot.” Bloomberg TV, Market Makers “[The Knot is] an extraordinary wedding resource… I do not think you will find a bride or groom that will disagree.” The Wall Street Journal “It’s nearly impossible to get engaged without quickly growing addicted to The Knot.com” reaching 300 million viewers and readers through national television, print and online media.
Singh says their success is due to their personal sense of service, location in Reston Town Center, diversity of products and high-end designers whose products one can’t find in the big box stores or local independent jewelers.
But don’t take his word for it. Go to the Midtown Jewelers website and there you will find hundreds of reviews like this one…
“If you are looking for phenomenal service, quality inventory, and creative designers for your jewelry needs, look no further than Midtown Jewelers! I’m very impressed by how informed Bobby Singh and his staff are about product lines, and the jewelry industry in general…and what’s even better is that Midtown Jewelers is passionate about taking care of their clients!”
Singh is very proud of the fact that in only nine years, his mom and pop shop has earned a total of 106 Black Badge reviews from WeddingWire.
Julie and Bobby Singh urge all VivaReston readers to circle Friday and Saturday, October 21 & 22 for their big Fall Bridal Showcase. And Julie wants to make clear to all the male readers of this article the importance that the woman in their life places on THE RING. “When a gal breaks THE NEWS to her circle of friends,” Julie says, the very first response always is LET US SEE YOUR RING!
