Remember that jewelry company I recently wrote about? The company's name is LJ International Inc. (NASDAQ/JADE). This company is an excellent case study as a successful small-cap investment. This company is definitely worth looking into.

LJ considers itself one of the fastest growing jewelry companies in the world. Based in Hong Kong and the U.S., LJ distributes to fine jewelers, department stores, national jewelry chains and specialty retailers throughout North America and Western Europe.

What the stock market is so enthused about is the company's growing retail presence in China through its "ENZO" branded stores. The company's ENZO retail division was founded just over 18 months ago, and the company thinks it is now one of the largest foreign-branded retail jewelry chains in China.

The company now has 30 stores in operation in China, and plans to have at least 40 stores operating by the end of 2006. The chain is established in all the major regions and metropolitan areas of Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau.

The company recently reported that of the 30 stores operating in China today, 13 have already achieved profitability on the individual store level. This is a very impressive accomplishment for a retail business.

With the goal of becoming one of the dominant jewelry brands in China, it's no wonder that investors are rallying around the stock.

LJ just raised its financial guidance for the upcoming second quarter reporting period, with top-line revenue growth expected to be approximately 37% higher than last year's second quarter revenues.

Clearly, LJ is a company that's executing an effective business plan. This is why the stock is so worthy of investigation. Print off the company's 5-year chart and review its major press releases during this period. Doing so really helps to illustrate for you what an excellent small-cap investment looks like.

The good news about LJ is that the story isn't over. The next two years should prove to be very exciting for the company.