Landlords of jewelers take brunt of recession

Even though the stock market is rising, national and local landlords are bearing the brunt of the recession, especially when the tenants are jewelry retailers.

A National Jeweler article noted that the top 50 North American jewelry chains have closed 891 retail locations in 2009.

Last week, the fine jewelry retailer, Finlay Enterprises and its subsidiary Finlay Fine Jewelry, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company had 182 department store-based jewelry departments and stand-alone jewelry stores at the end of the second quarter ending August 1, including 67 Bailey Banks & Biddle, 34 Carlyle and four Congress specialty jewelry stores and 77 licensed counters with Bon Ton department stores.