President and fourth-generation owner of Levy Jewelers shares his ideal itinerary for a successful Savannah day
Photography by MICHAEL SCHALK
6:30 a.m.: My typical day begins by taking out and feeding our dogs, Leo and Ella Fitzgerald. I’ll usually heat water for coffee or mint tea, which I love to sweeten with Savannah Bee Company honey, while the dogs romp in the backyard.
8 a.m.: I’ll walk up Bull Street toward our flagship location on Broughton and often stop in for a second cup at Gallery Espresso. They always have an interesting selection of art on their wall! The short walk allows me to finish organizing my thoughts and planning my day. I’ll often get the chance to make my first calls while I walk to the office. If I’m lucky, I’ll get a chance to catch up with Mark Dana, president of the 200 Club of the Coastal Empire, or Jimmy Hungerpiller who serves as our chairman for the Bethesda Foundation Board.
10 a.m.: Our downtown Levy Jewelers location opens for the day and we start doing what we do best: taking care of our customers! I’ll check in with the managers of our three locations and the leadership team, who are always hard at work. The tenure of our sales staff and leadership averages nearly 20 years each, and, fortunately, we have built relationships with our customers that often span two or three generations. We serve them best with our gift reminder service and managing their wish lists for upcoming life celebrations and occasions.
12 p.m.: Thinking about lunch usually brings to mind one of Ele Tran’s many Downtown restaurants. I always have trouble deciding between the Flying Monk Noodle Bar, Coco & Moss, Chive Sea Bar and Lounge or Flock to the Wok.
2 p.m.: I make certain that my call sheet and emails from the morning are attended to. I don’t like when my calls aren’t returned within 24 hours, so I try very hard to practice what I preach! That being said — wow, do I get a ton of emails!
3 p.m.: I always try to block a couple of hours in the afternoon to be available to meet with customers. If I have no appointments, I use this time to process newly purchased estate merchandise from our myriad of relationships with attorneys and families who seek us out because of our long-term reputation of being fair and reasonable when trying to help people with their items for sale and inheritances.
5 p.m.: I try to leave the office to head home to my family. I am fortunate to have my three children currently in Savannah, so I am lucky that most nights I get to have family dinner with my wife and children to catch up on their day’s activities at both work and school.
7 p.m.: During summertime, I love to go with my family to watch our Savannah Bananas play their home games at Historic Grayson Stadium. We have had the same stadium seats over the years since Tommy Aaron coached the Savannah Braves. But, nothing beats Jesse Cole’s Bananas show!
8:30 p.m.: Finally some quiet time, when I try my best to finish reading the newspaper or catch up on the news of the day. I try to make sure that I get 10,000 steps every day. However, I must admit, there are times when I will drift off while sitting in my chair. But, I know I’ve had a busy and successful day living, loving, serving and working in our city.
