Three generations and counting, Clater Jewelers in Louisville celebrates 75 years of love

Posted by author February 10, 2025 Shopping

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Sallie Clater Baer attended her first jewelry shows in a stroller.

Now, she’s co-owner and a driving force behind her family’s 75-year-old Clater Jewelers.

Sallie’s father, William Clater Sr., often took her to jewelry shows before she could even walk. He launched the business as a watch repair operation in 1949 inside the old Otto Drugs in Louisville’s south end. The World War II veteran had a knack for tinkering with tiny parts, and eventually, he expanded his skillset to selling jewelry.

Today, William’s daughter Sallie, and her business partner, Megan Campbell Martin, still greet many customers at their fourth and current location at 1201 Herr Lane that her father had served decades before.

In honor of the businesses’ 75th birthday, and with Valentine’s Day in mind, I popped in to see what keeps Clater’s ticking more than 20 years after the beloved watch repairman’s death.

Not surprising, customer service and family are at the heart of it all. Over the years, Sallie and Megan have served several generations of Louisvillians. Longtime customers often return to the shop wearing pieces their parents, or grandparents, purchased decades before.

“It’s really fun,” Sallie told me. “They always have a story behind the piece, and usually that story includes my dad. So that’s super special. It’s interesting to see how styles have changed.”

Sallie and Megan were both in high school when they began working at Clater’s in the early 1970s. In their earliest days on staff, they’d wait on customers, engrave pieces, and clean jewelry. After high school, Megan enrolled in the Chicago School of Watchmaking and then began attending conferences. Then went on to earn diamond certificates from the Gemological Institute of America.

While Megan’s daughter, Christy Effinger, isn’t related to the Clater family by blood, she’s like Sallie in the sense that she can’t recall a time when jewelry wasn’t a part of her life. She remembers running around the store floor and taking naps in the backroom, while her mother worked in the shop. Just like Megan, she took a job at Clater’s in high school, and they kept her on staff intermittently throughout college. Eventually, she became a graduate gemologist after studying at the Gemological Institute of America, and is certified in diamonds and colored gem stones. Christy has also completed appraisal certification classes through The American Society of Appraisers.

Over the decades, the trio has watched styles fade in and out of fashion. Some pieces, like diamond stud earrings or pearls, are timeless. Other selection, like the surplus of heart shaped jewelry William always stocked, fall in and out of vogue.

One thing that hasn’t changed over the years is the timeline that customers shop for Valentine’s Day, Sallie explained. The post-Christmas fatigue tends to keep spouses away from the jewelry counter, until panic sets in around Feb. 12. Galentine’s Day, too, has gained popularity over the years, too, Christy added, noting that they’ve seen a surge in women celebrating their female friends this time of year, too.

As the three jewelers continue to celebrate this milestone year, they remain hopeful the business will be around for another generation. Megan and Sallie laughed as they told me how nervous William had been when he sold the business to them in 1997. Claters just wouldn’t feel the same without him, so they hired him back on the next day.

For a few years, he continued to repair watches at his own pace while keeping a curious eye on the shop that had become a second home to him.

“We bought different things,” Sallie remembered, recalling how her father would question more contemporary pieces she wanted to sell at the store. He’d always erred on the safe side of style and taste.

“We made different inventory choices, and we stepped outside the box,” Megan told me.

Steadily, he became OK with that, too.

And while its not a change that’s in the immediate future, just as Sallie’s father passed the baton to them, Megan’s daughter intends to carry on the Clater’s tradition.

“That would be my dream,” Christy said, beaming.

Christy was instrumental in adding lab grown diamonds to Clater’s inventory, Megan explained. She pushed for those, and they’ve become increasingly popular with younger generations.

“I’m sure I scare you guys a little bit,” Christy told them, smiling. “But I pushed for that.”

“And she was right,” her mother agreed.

“They scared him, and I’m scaring them,” Christy said, laughing at the irony of it all.

That’s part of the beauty of having two generations on staff. After 75 years in business, it’s not just one generation shopping with them. They need to appeal to the customers who have supported them, and the age of shoppers, too.

Just like Clater’s itself, the pieces their customers purchase have the potential to pass from generation to generation.

“I think that jewelry will live on for hundreds of years,” Christy said. “Jewelry lives on a long, long time, so what we are making now will continue on past our lifetimes.”

Features columnist Maggie Menderski writes about what makes Louisville, Southern Indiana and Kentucky unique, wonderful, and occasionally, a little weird. If you’ve got something in your family, your town or even your closet that fits that description — she wants to hear from you. Say hello at mmenderski@courier-journal.com. Follow along on Instagram @MaggieMenderski.