Founded 1983 by Mike I'Anson. Today the shop is run by his daughter Elaine Richards and son-in-law Ian Richards, who trained at the bench under Mike. Bespoke pieces designed and cast on the premises, inherited rings remounted by hand, repairs on a bench that does not leave Beulah Street. 43 years on the same corner of Harrogate.
Pieces made on the bench in Harrogate. Engagement rings, eternity bands, anniversary remounts. The conversation starts at the counter with a sketch, moves to a wax model you can hold, and the finished piece is cast and set in the workshop upstairs. The person who quotes you is the person who makes it.
Indicative 4 to 8 weeks bench to boxMum's engagement ring, Grandma's eternity band, a family pendant from the 60s. We recover the stones, design something the wearer will actually wear, and remount on the bench. Original metal can be melted and re-used where the customer wants the same gold to carry forward.
Indicative 3 to 6 weeks once design is signed offRing sizing, chain soldering, claw retipping, clasp replacements, polishing and rhodium re-plate. All on the premises, all by the bench team. Simple work is often same-day. Stone-set repairs and Victorian restoration sit on the bench for one to two weeks. No third-party trade workshop, no Hatton Garden round-trip.
Same-day for simple jobs, 1 to 2 weeks for stone resetsRotary and Casio at the window, alongside a steady walk-in line for battery changes, strap fitting, glass replacements and minor servicing. Not the headline but a forty-three year steady line that keeps the counter busy between bespoke commissions.
Battery same-day, strap fit same-day
On-site workshop from day one. Bespoke designed and cast on the premises, remounts of inherited rings done by hand, repairs by the bench team rather than packed up and sent to a trade workshop in Birmingham. The same standards that distinguished a working jeweller from a retailer in 1983, kept in place every day since.
Today the shop is run by Mike's daughter Elaine Richards and his son-in-law Ian Richards, who trained at the bench under Mike. Same bench, same Beulah Street address, same insistence on doing the work in the building rather than shipping it elsewhere. Forty-three years and counting.
“Both members of staff I dealt with were very professional and friendly. The cost of the work was very reasonable.” Lizzie O, customer review
Most independent jewellers on the British high street are retailers. They sell from cases, and repairs and bespoke commissions go to a trade workshop in Birmingham, Sheffield or Hatton Garden. The customer never meets the person making their piece. The chain branches on Cambridge Street operate the same way.
We keep the bench in the building. Bespoke rings are sketched at the counter, modelled in wax for you to hold and approve, then cast and set in the workshop upstairs. Remounts of inherited stones are done on the bench, by hand, by the team you have already met. Simple repairs are often same-day because the bench is twenty feet from the counter.
Ian Richards is the bench, the counter and the quote. No third-party trade workshop. Your remount is on his bench, not on a courier van to Birmingham.
Phone ahead, drop by, look at the wax model on the bench. The standing offer is for the customer who wants to be in the room as the work is done.
Plain-band sizing, battery changes, strap fits. Phone first, the answer depends on what is on the bench, but the geometry of the building makes same-day possible in a way a courier-out chain cannot.
A short form for an indicative quote by email. Final quote at the counter when we see the piece. Bring the piece in to 40 Beulah Street and Ian or the bench team will talk through design, materials and turnaround against the piece itself.
40 Beulah Street
Harrogate, North Yorkshire
HG1 1QH
Phone · 01423 565782
Email · iansonjewellers@googlemail.com
Find us · Beulah Street runs off Cambridge Street, the pedestrian retail spine. Short walk from Harrogate Convention Centre and Bettys on Parliament Street.
09:15 opening. The bench team need a quarter hour at the bench before the counter opens. By twenty past, the counter is ready and the kettle is on.
On site. The bench is in the building, the bench team are I'Anson staff, and the work never leaves the premises. Simple jobs (ring sizing up or down a few sizes, battery changes, strap fits) are often same-day. Stone-set repairs, claw retipping and rhodium re-plate sit on the bench for one to two weeks. We will tell you the turnaround at the counter when you bring the piece in.
Yes, this is one of our core lines. Bring the original piece in, the bench team will assess the stones, talk through what they will tolerate (older cuts and Victorian settings need careful handling), and we will design a new piece around them. Original gold can be melted and re-used in the new mount where the customer wants the metal to carry forward. Three to six weeks from sign-off to finished piece.
Both. The counter case has a working selection across price points (the case photo on this page is from a real Saturday). The bespoke route is for couples who want something the chain stores cannot do, or who want to remount inherited stones. The counter route is for couples who know what they want and have a Saturday afternoon free.
For a straightforward sizing of a plain band, often yes, depending on what is on the bench that day. Phone ahead on 01423 565782 and we will tell you honestly whether it is a same-morning job. Stone-set rings need more care and usually sit on the bench overnight at minimum, which is the safe answer regardless of how quiet the bench is.
A chain takes your repair or your bespoke commission, packages it up, and sends it to a third-party trade workshop in Birmingham or Hatton Garden. The person who quoted you is not the person who makes the piece. We keep the bench in the building. Ian Richards trained under Mike at that same bench. The person who quotes you is the person who does the work, and you can call in on a Wednesday to see your piece in progress.