Why Gold Still Matters in 2026 (And Why We've Known It for Over 30 Years)
- 5 min reading time
By Classique Jewelry Inc. | Bronx, NY | Est. 1992
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Gold hit $4,128 per troy ounce this week.
If you had told someone that in 1992, the year we opened our doors on White Plains Road in the Bronx, they would have laughed at you. Back then gold was sitting around $330 an ounce. Today it has grown more than 12 times in value, and some of the most respected voices in finance believe it is still just getting started.
We are a jewelry store, not a financial advisor. But after 30-plus years of working with gold every single day, we have watched the metal do exactly what gold has always done: hold its value when everything else is being inflated away.
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What the Gold Bugs Have Been Saying
Peter Schiff, one of the most outspoken advocates for gold in the financial world, has been making the same argument for decades. The short version goes like this:
The U.S. government is spending far more than it takes in. The national debt has surpassed $37 trillion and grows by roughly a trillion dollars every 100 days. Interest payments on that debt now consume nearly 40 cents of every dollar the federal government collects in taxes. At some point, the only way out of that hole is to print more money. And when you print more money, each dollar you already have buys less.
Gold cannot be printed. There is only so much of it in the world. That is why, over centuries, it has served as a store of value when paper currencies have come and gone.
In 2026, Schiff made headlines again calling for gold to reach $10,000 per ounce, driven by a national debt approaching $40 trillion, deficits nearing $3 trillion a year, and a Federal Reserve he believes is trapped between letting inflation run or triggering a financial crisis. Whether or not you agree with his timeline, the structural forces he points to are real and well-documented.
Central banks around the world are paying attention. They bought a record 1,200 tonnes of gold in 2025 alone, led by nations actively looking to reduce their dependence on the U.S. dollar. That is not a fringe idea anymore. That is institutional.
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Gold the Investment vs. Gold You Can Wear
Here is where our perspective differs from the gold bugs on Wall Street.
When Schiff talks about buying gold, he means coins, bars, and bullion. Those are financial instruments. They sit in a vault. They have no aesthetic value. They serve one purpose.
Gold jewelry does all of that and more.
A 14K gold necklace holds real intrinsic value tied directly to the gold price. When gold rises, the metal in your jewelry rises with it. But unlike a coin in a drawer, a piece of fine jewelry is also something you wear to your daughter's wedding, pass down to your granddaughter, and carry with you as a memory of the person who gave it to you.
Our father started this business in 1992 with that belief at the core. Gold is not just a commodity. It is a material with meaning.
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What $4,128 Gold Actually Means for Jewelry
At today's gold price, the value of the actual gold in a quality 14K piece is significant and real. A 14K gold chain is not just a fashion accessory. It is 58.3% pure gold, carrying a measurable portion of one of the world's most sought-after assets woven into every link.
When you buy fine gold jewelry from a family jeweler like us, you are getting something that a big-box retailer cannot offer: honest pricing, genuine craftsmanship, and a relationship with people who actually know what they are selling.
We have been working with gold since before most of the current anxieties about the dollar even existed. We were here in 1992. We were here in 2008. We were here when gold crossed $1,000, then $2,000, and now $4,000. And the lesson has been the same every single time.
Gold holds.
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A Few Things Worth Knowing
If you are thinking about adding gold to your life, here are some things we tell every customer who walks through our door:
14K vs. 18K gold -- 14K is 58.3% pure gold mixed with other metals for durability. It is the most popular choice in the United States because it balances value with wearability. 18K is 75% pure and has a richer color, but it is softer. Both hold real gold value.
Gold does not tarnish -- Unlike silver or plated metals, solid gold jewelry does not tarnish or corrode. It is the same piece decades from now as the day you bought it.
Resale value is real -- Quality gold jewelry from a trusted jeweler retains meaningful resale value tied to the spot price of gold.
The best time to start is always now -- Nobody knows exactly where gold goes from here. But the argument for owning some, in a form you can actually enjoy every day, has never been stronger.
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We have been in the Bronx for over 30 years. Stop in and see us at 4248 White Plains Rd, or browse our gold necklace collection online. Gold prices update live on our site every 15 minutes.
Classique Jewelry Inc. is a family-owned jeweler based in the Bronx, NY, founded in 1992. This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.