How it all Started
In the summer of 1900, jeweler Arthur William Ballard moved his family from the plains of Omaha to the growing city of Los Angeles, where he opened a small retail fine jewelry shop. When Ballard’s son, Arthur V., joined his father in the business in 1917, the firm’s name was changed to Ballard and Ballard. Setting up in what would become the Jewelry District of downtown Los Angeles, Ballard and Ballard became Southern California trailblazers. Before the United States went off the gold standard in 1932, the Ballards’ purchased gold currency from banks for use in their jewelry manufacturing.
Shortly after the end of World War Two, the elder Ballard passed, and Arthur took over the operation. Arthur’s two sons, Arthur Jr. and Daryl, went to work with their father. In Los Angeles, Ballard and Ballard helped define the Jewelry District’s reputation for quality of product and the integrity of the fine jewelry industry. Always ahead of the curve, Ballard and Ballard was one of the first American companies to maintain an office in Antwerp, Belgium, the diamond capital of the world.
By the middle of the 20th century, the company was producing gold mountings sold to retail jewelers throughout the country as well as manufacturing gold and silver jewelry. When their father retired, Arthur Jr. and Daryl assumed control and added major new clients, selling to California law enforcement agencies, as well as to wholesale buying clubs. Surely, the Ballards’ were establishing themselves as fine jewelry authorities throughout the country.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Daryl’s sons, Glenn and Guy, joined the company. Both men became master bench jewelers and are still creating handcrafted jewelry. Guy and Glenn specialize In the latest in CAD/CAM computer-aided jewelry design technology, greatly expanding the capabilities of the fine jewelry services business. When Daryl retired and they took over the store in 1997, they realized the Jewelry District in downtown Los Angeles had gone downhill in relation to overall quality and reliable integrity. Wanting to do better for their customers in a safer environment, the Ballard brothers chose to make a historic move to consolidate the two showrooms into their Orange County location and provide fine jewelry services in Fountain Valley, CA.
Today, Ballard and Ballard’s fine jewelry showroom is located on Brookhurst Street in the City of Fountain Valley. It is here on Brookhurst Street that customers from Fountain Valley and the surrounding Orange County area come for fine jewelry services such as custom engagement rings and jewelry repair and maintenance.
In late 2020 Guy's wife Christy came on board full-time as back-of-the-house operations as Guy and Glenn worked towards Glenn retiring and slowing down a bit.
At the end of 2022, Glenn decided it was time to retire. While he still helps in the showroom during special events, he can mostly be found on the golf course!
The fifth-generation Landon, Guy, and Christy's oldest son, has been working behind the scenes doing social media, emails, and website management and can often be seen in the showroom on Saturdays.
Ballard and Ballard’s qualitative focus on craftsmanship and integrity, following with tradition, Ballard and Ballard specializes in diamonds, custom engagement ring design, state-of-the-art manufacturing, and jewelry repairs. The extensive facilities include a custom on-site jewelry factory, a working design studio, and a full-service repair shop.
Over their entire history in providing fine jewelry services in Fountain Valley, Orange County, and the greater Southern California area, the Ballard family has the combined experience in the jewelry industry that exceeds over 200 years and spans four generations.
