Louis L. Booth, Inc
Encyclopedia
Louis L. Booth, Inc is a jewelry manufacturing, founded in 1983 by Louis Booth on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...

, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

. Today Louis L. Booth, Inc. is one of the last remaining companies to design and manufacture costume jewelry domestically.

Origin

Louis Booth was born in 1948 in Springfield Massachusetts. His Parents, Leo and Ana Booth, were Greek immigrants. Leo was a skilled chef and frequently moved the family opening restaurants and closing then when they ceased to be profitable. Finally they settled in Hempstead, New York
Hempstead (village), New York
Hempstead is a village located in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 53,891 at the 2010 census.Hofstra University is located on the border between Hempstead and Uniondale.-Foundation:...

. At 19, Louis was drafted and served as an electronics supply technician. After his tour of duty, he was trained to be a photographer at the New York Institute of Photography
New York Institute of Photography
The New York Institute of Photography is a for-profit distance education school based out of New York City, offering different courses in photography to students all over the world...

. When photographing Jones Beach
Jones Beach
Jones Beach may refer to:* A barrier island off the coast of Long Island, New York:**Jones Beach State Park in Nassau County, New York in the United States**Jones Beach Island**Nikon at Jones Beach Theater...

 Louis collected pebbles, and painted pictures on them. He would set the painted rock, and hang it as a necklace. He painted many different pictures but he was well known for his trees and flowers. His painted rocks were carried at Fortunoff, and The Metropolitan Museum Store, as well as many local bars, and boutiques. Louis Continued to create "wearable art" as he called it, in many different mediums. Louis taught himself to forge silver, and began a Sterling and Brass line.

Recognition

His designs appeared on many fashion runways, department stores, including Macy's, Saks Fifth Ave, and Bloomingdales, and several fullpage ads in the New York Times. In 1985 Louis and his wife, Barbara, gave birth to their oldest son Alexander, who was born with a tracheoesophageal fistula
Tracheoesophageal fistula
A tracheoesophageal fistula is an abnormal connection between the esophagus and the trachea...

, and their focus drifted from the business to their son's health. With many of the department stores demanding overseas manufacturing, Louis L. Booth, Inc. lost market share with many of their big accounts. Booth focused his sales and marketing on smaller outlets, such as boutiques, women's dress stores, jewelry counters, and sales representatives. There were over 3,000 wholesale accounts held with Louis L. Booth, Inc. from various retailers.

Conversion to Retail

In 1994, Louis had his first of a series of heart attacks. He decided to take the company in a different direction, by closing down his New York City showroom, and Long Island Factory. Focusing on retail, in the Tri State area (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) the company has eased up on production work, and rather focuses on "artistic" and one of a kind pieces.
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