WWD
WOMANS WEAR DAILY
ATLANTA, MAY 1985
The eclectic world of Evander Preston

St. Petersburg Beach, Fla.- At a glance, 6 foot, 2 inch Evander Preston appears to fall somewhere between Eric the Red and Daniel Boone.

Preston is bent on scaling the heights. In a little more than 25 years this mercurial mix of designer-goldsmith, master chef and art collector has taken his business from a backroom workshop in the family music store in downtown St.Petersburg,FL to a very successful operation in Pass-a-Grille,FL.

In the sleepy little Keys-type community at the southern end of St. Pete Beach, Preston designs and creates unique contemporary jewelry, not the kind of designs one would expect to find here. His pieces, which he sells and showcases in his 3,600 square-foot-store next to the workshop, range in price from $50 to $50,000. His current selection includes a $32,000 sapphire and diamond cluster ring, and a similar one with a detachable gold bee, heavy gold -link necklaces with ancient Greek coin pendants, an antique cameo for $9,000, or one with diamonds and a polished, wild boar's tusk for $48,000. Of the more unusual items, is a delicate gold spider-web necklace, designed to be worn on a bare back. Crawling toward a diamond set in the middle of the web is a gold spider and a tiny gold man.The spider appears to be winning the race. It is priced at $9,500.

Preston said that he used to sell his jewelry in small specialty stores in Florida, but now sells only from his showroom. Hammered jewelry is really in demand now," Preston said, noting that he picked up much of his expertise in hammered metal when he spent a lengthy stay working in a silver shop in Taxco, Mexico. He has studied in Italy under a Japanese-American instructor, as well as under the tutelage of a local Florida artisan. Preston's designing has gone through several stages of development. "At one point I became very enamored of the Bulgari look," he said. "It made a hell of a lot better craftsman of me. Most people want regular jewelry, but they also like exciting innovative things. First, how-ever, you have to attract them."

Preston's means of attracting customers is highly unique. With the help of Tim Conlin, clients are often chauffeured to the store in his personal Lincoln Continental Presidential stretch limousine. In the massive kitchen at the rear of the building, which is equipped with everything from a gas wok to a duck press, Conlin prepares meals for special clients and for receptions for jewelry showings. Clad in a spotless white uniform, Conlin might serve guests Rangoon egg rolls and plum sauce, drunken prawns, beef filet with oyster sauce or African stew with couscous. Preston says these touches are simply tools of the trade. "But you can't buy people. That's just part of the business."

Despite his remote location, Preston's reputation for eye-catching original work draws buyers from throughout the World. His clients range from bankers, attorneys and financial executives, to mullet fisherman, who occasionally drop in. Some of his more prominent customers include dancer Gwen Verdon, former White House chef Ann Marie Hueste, and musician Jimmy Buffet.

While he runs three or four newspaper advertisements during a year and puts out an annual catalog, Preston contends word-of-mouth has been effective, as well as his personal touches. He gifts guests with jars of his personally made plum sauce, deluxe cigars and bottles of his special Sangria with the personalized Preston label.

Preston has created an enviable lifestyle. He wears blue jeans and a tee-shirt (his "business suit") and is accompanied by his three great danes, Tika, Tori, Suki. He has gradually put some $900,000 into restoring and refurbising his 100 year old historical building, where his staff handles customers.

Lighted jewelry cases are housed in the two front rooms, which are connected by a wide archway. The walls are covered with carved African masks and zebra hides. A water buffalo hide is drapped over a chair, and African carvings top an upright piano, where Preston often plays favorite jazz pieces, a carryover from his music store days.

"Everyone is a composite of their experiences," he said. "You learn Bach and Beethoven, but you don't want to play them all the time." The principle applies to his jewelry designing. "Sometimes I've considered limiting my work to just directing the operation," he said, "but it doesn't wash. I'm always tuned up to try a new piece of jewelry. That's the fun of it, not when we sell it"

Preston has been known to dabble in other design projects. Working in a cluttered workshop across the patio, he has fashioned detailed gold miniature objects; a whisk, a wine opener, kitchen Knives and food processors, some of which have attracted corporate clients like Cuisinart and Heinkel Knives.

Starring in its own case in the showroom is a tiny 14-karat gold electrically powered train. The engine, equipped with a one-half carat diamond headlight, tows an assortment of freight cars including an open gondola loaded with precious gems. Preston says the movie "Arthur" inspired him to make the train. "It took four months to complete and I had to fight everybody to do it. I get my fun from the outrageous," he commented. The train is not for sale, but if someone HAD to have it, "I wouldn't sell it for less than $150,000."

Jean Miller
WWD