Zales Jewelers

Zales Jewelers is a national specialty jewelry retailer focused on accessible diamond and fashion jewelry for customers across the United States and Puerto Rico. The chain offers engagement rings, wedding bands, fine jewelry, and watches, and sells through a mix of regional malls, high‑traffic lifestyle centers, outlet centers, and its e‑commerce site at Zales.com. Stores are small‑format and geared toward everyday traffic as well as bridal and gifting occasions, with a range of price points that work in middle‑income trade areas.

The company was founded in 1924, when Morris Zale, William Zale, and Ben Lipshy opened the first Zales store in Wichita Falls, Texas. From the start, the founders used in‑house credit to make fine jewelry more attainable, which helped the concept scale beyond a traditional main‑street jeweler. Over the following decades Zales grew throughout Texas and then nationally, becoming one of the dominant mall jewelers in the United States. A major milestone came in 2014, when Signet Jewelers Limited acquired Zale Corporation in a transaction valued at roughly $1.4 billion. That deal placed Zales alongside Kay Jewelers and Jared under a single public company and helped form the largest specialty jewelry retailer in the U.S. and U.K.

Today, Zales operates as a core banner within Signet’s North America segment and remains one of the company’s primary brands. As of December 2024, Zales has approximately 730 stores across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The chain’s footprint is weighted toward strong regional malls in major metro areas, high‑traffic lifestyle centers, and select outlet centers in tourism and regional hubs. Its online channel is closely integrated with the stores through services such as buy online, pick up in store and ship to store, which help keep traffic flowing to physical locations.

Over roughly the last five years, Zales has shifted from rapid unit growth to a more disciplined approach to its fleet. Under Signet’s broader real estate and brand strategy, the banner has focused on remodeling existing locations, relocating into better positions within centers, and closing underperforming stores while still pursuing targeted new deals in priority trade areas. Instead of pushing aggressive net new store counts, Zales has concentrated on refreshing its core brand, improving store environments, and strengthening its omnichannel capabilities so the brick‑and‑mortar network works in tandem with digital sales.

For landlords, brokers, and developers, Zales represents a long‑tenured, nationally recognized jewelry tenant backed by an investment‑grade public parent. The chain typically occupies small inline or corner boxes that fit easily into both enclosed malls and open‑air projects and can backfill existing jewelry spaces with a known nameplate. As Signet continues to optimize its portfolio, Zales is most likely to pursue opportunistic new leases or relocations in strong malls, high‑profile lifestyle centers, and select outlets, supporting projects that benefit from established jewelry, bridal, and gift traffic under a banner that has been in the market for more than a century.