Tammy Haggerty, owner of Jacob Matthew Jewelers, is celebrating 40 years in the jewelry business this year.

To celebrate four decades in business, Haggerty has been doing some segments at the store, talking about what designs have stayed in style for the past 40 years.

“I want to show people what has stayed in style so that they can buy with confidence and spend money on a piece that will always be in style,” she said.

Haggerty said that she’s seen many changes and trends come and go throughout her years in the industry, but the most recent has been the rise of lab-grown diamonds.

Lab-grown diamonds are chemically and physically identical to natural diamonds. They have the same crystal structure and hardness of natural diamonds but cost a fraction of the price.

“It made it more affordable for people to actually have a diamond, but there’s still those people that want mined or natural diamonds,” Haggerty said.

Jacob Matthew Jewelers has something for everyone, with its vast selection of engagement rings, wedding bands, bracelets, earrings, necklaces, pendants, timepieces and more.

Her store, located at 6673 North Canton Center Road, features a showroom of over 3,000 square feet, nearly double the size of most jewelry stores in Metro Detroit.

The store is home to one of the area’s largest jewelry collections, in addition to offering custom wedding band and jewelry design, repairs and appraisals and much more.

For Haggerty, being a business owner is about more than just selling jewelry. It’s about serving the community and giving her employees the opportunities she never had when she was in their shoes.

“When I first opened my store, I wanted a business that would treat employees better than I was ever treated in the industry,” she said.

Haggerty was passionate about ensuring her employees would be taken care of, with benefits and paychecks, even if it meant not taking a paycheck for herself or selling her own jewelry to make payroll when she was first starting out.

Haggerty pays 100 percent of her employees’ benefits and said they will never need financial assistance.

“I don’t want my staff to have to worry when they’re not here,” Haggerty said, “If I can’t provide for them then I’m not successful.”

Her passion lies in giving back, and through her business she partners with many local charities and organizations such as Canton Cares, Folds of Honor, Partnership for the Arts and Humanities, Relay for Life and more, donating over $380,000 to date.

She is the vice committee chair of the board for Canton Cares, a foundation that helps residents in the community where taxpayer dollars can’t be used.

Haggerty comes from a family of veterans and is also committee president for the Wounded Warrior Project. She has helped the organization raise over $925,000, and in their 12th year, they are now on their “journey to a million,” hoping to hit a million dollars this year.

To learn more, visit www.jacobmatthewjewelers.com or call (734) 207-1906.