Sterling Jewelers was founded in 1947 by William Seletsky.  The original jewelry store was located in the former Garde Hotel on lower Asylum Street in downtown Hartford, Connecticut. As business grew during the 1950's and 1960's Sterling Jewelers expanded and moved three times. First to 49 Asylum St. then to 80 Asylum St. and later to 70 Pratt St. all in the heart of downtown Hartford, Connecticut.

As business flourished so did the need for additional staff. In 1971 Donald Unwin (the current owner) joined the Sterling Jewelers family. Don apprenticed under Mr. Seletsky and furthered his education in Diamond Grading and Evaluation with the Gemological Institute of America.

In 1974 Sterling Jewelers was incorporated with Seletsky and Unwin as partners. In 1977 the aging Seletsky chose to retire leaving Don and his wife Carla sole owners of the company.

In 1978 Pratt Street was slated to be redeveloped which required many shopkeepers to seek new locations. Sterling Jewelers moved across the street to a new and larger store at 97 Pratt St. Hartford.

In 1983 Sterling Jewelers was enjoying considerable growth. Substantial increases in our customer base occured from the suburban areas of Wethersfield and Rocky Hill. To continue expanding and serving that clientele Carla and Don opened a second jewelry store at 965 Silas Deane Highway in Wethersfield, Connecticut.

1985, under revised plans redevelopment was underway on Pratt St. in Hartford. As a result Carla and Don were forced to relocate again. The Hartford Civic Center was the center piece of downtown Hartford and drawing large crowds to sporting events, tradeshows, conventions and shopping at the mall. The Unwin's opened a new jewelry store in the Civic Center Mall to take advantage of that traffic. Business was robust.

1995 was a year of many changes. Downtown Hartford was still suffering hard times due to the late 80's and early 90's downsizing by all of Hartfords insurance companies and banks. Conditions and the economy in our beloved city of Hartford were deteriorating. A decision was made not to renew the lease at the Civic Center and leave Hartford after 48 years. By contrast business was booming in the Wethersfield store. In the fall of 1995 we completly remodeled our 1700 square foot Wethersfield store.

In August of 2003 we aquired the space next door and doubled the size of our show room. We now operate with approximately 2800 square feet. After a total renovation and expansion we are now able to showcase all the exciting lines we carry. Our beautiful new showroom features an expanded diamond, bridal, jewelry and watch departments. This positions us to better serve our cleints with a broader collections. We've made major improvements in our shop and repair department by adding additional state of the art equipment. We now serve our cleints from the most up to date and modern jewelry service department in the area. Our goal is total customer satisfaction and a jewelry shopping experience that you'll completely enjoy.

Today Sterling Jewelers enjoys a reputation as one of Central Connecticuts leading trusted jewelers. After a half century of serving our customers with the highest level of integrity and personal customer service, we're as committed as ever to continue the standard of excellence our friends and customers have come to expect. Carla and Don Unwin, along with the fine professional staff at Sterling Jewelers, appreciate your continued support.