Love in the Workplace: The Newtons
Brian and Peggy Newton have been married for 22 years and work together in their family jewelry business, which has been operating for 105 years. They divide responsibilities based on their strengths—Brian handles repairs and purchasing, while Peggy manages merchandise, marketing, and social media. Their teamwork and shared commitment strengthen both their marriage and the family business, while balancing work, family life, and quality time together.
Love in the Workplace: The Newtons
At the end of the day, we have camaraderie. Brian Newton
By Kathleen Swift
Q: How long have you been married and working together?
Peggy: I started working here as an office girl before we were married, and we’ve been married for 22 years.
Brian: When Peggy started working here, we really didn’t like each other. I told my dad I thought we should let her go, but he said she was the best office girl we’d had for a while. Dad encouraged our relationship, and we became good friends before we fell in love.
Q: How do you delegate the tasks at work?
Brian: I’ve always thought two heads were better than one. The key as a couple is to figure out who does what best. I oversee repairs and the purchasing of gold and silver, and I work with estate jewelry. Peggy oversees new merchandise buying, displaying the merchandise, marketing and social media. She keeps me in line and crosses the T’s and dots the I’s.
Peggy: Our business is 105 years old, so it’s important to create fresh ideas and stay up-to-date.
Q: What’s the best part of working together?
Brian: At the end of the day, we have camaraderie.
Peggy: Yes. We work as a team with each other and with our staff. We’ve worked hard to earn respect. With a generational business, you have to be there for the long haul and earn that respect. It isn’t just handed to you. We know we’re a team, and we always use the term “we.”
We are in a happy business. What we do brings people joy, and we get to share in those moments when a person buys something as a gift to share with someone they love.
Q: Who gets to take lunch first?
Peggy: We never take a lunch hour. Brian doesn’t eat lunch, and all I can say is thank goodness Jimmy John’s delivers!
Q: What do you do for some “me” time?
Brian: When we get home, I generally go to my man cave. I like to work on my old cars with our son, James.
Peggy: I like to watch my girl movies, and I love to run. We don’t really get to take a lot of time off together, but we were able to close for three days over the 4th of July and take a family trip. It makes you appreciate the time you do have. I have to admit that I am the trip hog in the family, and I get away more than Brian does.
Q: How do you keep the romance alive?
Brian: We constantly have to work on making time for the two of us. We made a New Year’s resolution that is posted on our refrigerator to have a date night twice a month.
Q: How has working together strengthened your marriage?
Brian: We share responsibilities at work, and we share the household duties, projects and chores, too. We are a team at work and at home.
Peggy: I wouldn’t know any other way! We’ve always worked together. Even when James was an infant, I would go in at key times. I was always a part of the team. This is a family business in more than a name. Our 15-year-old son James likes to be around us and the business. I think our working together has helped him see what family closeness is like, and he’s a part of it, too.
