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Jamie Cane grew up in California and knows that state's history well enough to recite the tale of the hardware stores making a handsome profit selling picks and shovels during the Gold Rush of 1849. He and his wife, Angela, mimicked that business plan when they opened Zuma Beach Bead Co. in the Delmar Loop.
"What do you think most jewelry is made out of?" he said, holding up some of the beads in the store's tiny, 130-square-foot space.
The answer, of course, is beads, which Zuma Beach buys by the kilo (2.2 pounds) from suppliers in far-away places, including Tunisia, Bali and Cambodia. Glass beads, which sell in strings of 1,200, come from Italy, and the Canes also contract to have some specialty beads made.
Their customers are jewelry makers and other bead stores from around the country. They also travel to jewelry "trunk shows" around the country and more recently have tapped the Internet to boost sales.