Virag Jewelers, Ltd.

Our story begins with our grandfather, Peter, who worked as a second-generation watchmaker in his father’s jewelry store in Austria-Hungary, which became part of Yugoslavia after WWI. (Although our surname is Hungarian, meaning “flower”, our ancestors were German-speaking.)In 1921, Peter and his family immigrated to Chicago where he spent 14 years working as a bench jeweler in the Jeweler's District at Madison and Wabash. By 1936, during the Great Depression when employment was scarce, Peter made the bold decision to open his own business, first located at 910 Chicago Avenue in Evanston.

Our father, Adam, joins the business  Within a couple years in the late 1930s, Peter’s son Adam joined the business after graduating high school, along with Peter’s son-in-law Frank. The name is changed to Peter Virag and Sons Jewelers. Adam is drafted into the Army in 1942. Utilizing his watchmaking skills, he repaired essential timepieces and rangefinding equipment. His duties also included testing soldiers' watches to make sure the timepieces were synchronized and ran properly, and he was stationed in England as the Allies prepared for the D-Day landing. He returned home in 1945.

Relocation + Third Generation  The store relocated to 703 Main Street in the early 1960s where it remains today. Two of Adam’s 4 sons, Tony and Pete, started working full-time in the 1970s and eventually became owners after their uncle retired. The name was changed to Virag Jewelers Ltd. Adam continued to work part-time through the 1990s and gradually retired after more than 60 years in the jewelry business.

Family Expansion & Changes  In the late 1980s Adam’s youngest son, Joe, began working full-time. Adam’s fifth child and oldest daughter, Terri, became jewelry buyer and office manager in the early 2000s and a few years later Tony departed to own and operate a jewelry store closer to his home in the south suburbs.  Today, current owner Peter, along with Joe, Terri and the friendly staff at Virag Jewelers continue the legacy of quality sales and service that their grandfather started over 80 years ago.