The Sholdt history dates back to 1935. Seattle was different then. The Pike Place Market still allowed livestock, and Boeing’s newest aircraft was the prop-driven 247. Bill Gates and Howard Schultz wouldn’t even be born for another twenty years. A young man named Milton Sholdt purchased a fledgling jewelry repair business and set up shop in the Fourth and Pike Building. Milton spent those early years doing trade-work for the local jewelry retailers. He was an outgoing, friendly man that loved to travel, and a shrewd businessman. He was also an enthusiastic drinker and lady’s man

“I remember coming down here with Dad and Grandpa when I was just a kid” says Brian, “and watching Granddad taking sips off a pint of Old Rocking Chair Whiskey. I doubt he ever envisioned the business going this far.”

Milton's original safe, with the words “Milton H. Sholdt” hand-painted across it, still stands in the shop today. Within it is smaller combination lock-box that hasn’t been opened in 50 years.

“We have no idea what’s in there,” says Dusty. “Somewhere along the way the combination got lost. We can’t get in without ruining it, so we just let it be. Why spoil the mystery? It’s just part of the family history.”

In 1963 Milton’s oldest son, Milton, Jr., gave up his first career as a carpenter for the more lucrative family business. Together Milton Jr. and his wife Patricia nursed the business along for two decades, often handing out the weekly payroll in cash. Though perhaps not the best bookkeeper, Milton became known for outstanding customer service and a dogged determination to hire only the most talented jewel-smiths. By the time he sold the company to his sons Brian and Dusty in 1983, Sholdt had become known throughout the trade as the preeminent repair shop in Seattle.