FRACKVILLE - The last day for shopping at Littman Jewelers at the Schuylkill Mall will be Monday, when the store will cease operations.
Letters were recently sent to customers informing them of the store closing, recommending that, in the future, they go to Littman Jewelers at the Fairlane Village mall near Pottsville.
Mall General Manager Elaine Maneval was surprised the store is closing.
"I got a (customer) letter, too," Maneval said on Thursday.
She was informed by the store manager, but she did not have details about the reason for the closing other than the date of the last day.
"I was told by the store manager that they would be closing on the 20th and that's all I know," Maneval said. "I wasn't given any reasons. I'm usually not privy to that kind of information."
Calls and emails to the corporate office in Portland, Ore., were not returned.
According to the company website, Littman and Barclay Jewelers are subsidiaries of Fred Meyer Jewelers Inc., the third largest jewelry chain in the United States. Littman and Barclay Jewelers were acquired in 1998 by Fred Meyer Jewelers.
Maneval said she is sad that such a long-time retailer in the mall is leaving after being there for 21 years. The store opened in November 1992.
"Obviously, we hate to see them leave," Maneval said. "They provide a high quality jewelry product that our customers are used to coming here and purchasing. It's going to be a huge void."
With Littman leaving, Maneval said there will not be a jewelry store, but the three anchor stores do sell fine jewelry.
Maneval was aware of the announcement that J.C. Penney at the Laurel Mall would close by the end of May, and she said that the loss of any mall store is tough.
"You don't like to lose anybody in a mall, no matter how small or big they are," Maneval said. "We want everybody to stay and do well. If the local community doesn't support the local stores, unfortunately, it's going to continue to happen with closings."