We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kaena Smith a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kaena, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

To be honest, I was never a jewelry person before I started Piece of You Permanent Jewelry. Mostly because I disliked the process of putting it on and taking it off every day. I have had arthritis since my 20’s and working clasps was always a struggle for me. When a friend of mine suggested going together to get a permanent bracelet, I had no idea what it was. After learning more about it, I quickly fell in love with the idea of permanent jewelry, what it offered, and the sentiment it can hold. At that time, we had to travel nearly two hours to purchase permanent jewelry, but It wasn’t long until I decided that adding it to my Esthetics salon would be a great idea to bring something so meaningful and fun to the area. I had only planned for this to be an add on service to my Esthetics work, but it quickly turned into a business all on its own! I never intended for it to be what it is a year later, but I couldn’t be happier! I went from doing small pop-ups and offering it as an add-on service to my facial clientele, to traveling for parties and large events, hosting my own events, and now building my own store front. Seeing the joy on someone’s face after I create them a piece that represents a loved one, a special moment in their life, or even just to have a fun experience with a friend, is what makes me love what I do!

Kaena, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Aside from being a permanent jewelry specialist and business owner, I am a wife, momma to three handsome boys, step-momma to one beautiful little girl, and a dog mom to two goldendoodles! My business name actually came from my 16-year-old son who just blurted it out one day when I was stuck on what to name my business. It was so random because we weren’t even having a conversation. He just said, “How about Piece of You? Because PJ is quite literally a piece of someone”. It was perfect and it stuck!

Because PJ is a piece of someone, I make everyone’s experience as personal and memorable as possible. I want to know their story and why they chose the piece they did. I want to know and feel the sentiment behind why they chose PJ as a way to represent the special moments in their lives. PJ is just as special for me as it is for every single person I link.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

I’m always finding ways to grow and evolve to be able to provide something for everyone. I started with only 10 chains to choose from to now having 50 chains in my lineup and 50 different styles of connector charms. In addition, I have added metal stamping and engraving, a trucker hat bar, charm bar for removable charm bracelets and necklaces, hair feather extensions, and custom designed hats for businesses, local sports teams, and hats that are just for fun!

In addition, I am very active on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok posting about where I will be doing pop-ups, photos of the pieces I have done, and running ads on those platforms.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

At the time I decided to start my permanent jewelry business, there was not another permanent jewelry artist in my area, but at the same exact time that I announced the start of Piece of You, two other businesses were starting within a few miles of me. I could have allowed this to hinder my growth, but instead I used it as fuel to grow. I hit the pavement running and didn’t look back. I worked at this every single day, even in the middle of the night. I had to make sure that I stood apart from those other businesses. “Hard work outweighs talent every time” is a mantra I said to myself a lot in the beginning because I was new to this and had a lot of learning to do. But once I new my purpose and what kind of service I wanted to offer that others did not, I became unstoppable. I stopped worrying about what those other businesses were doing and offering, and solely focused on Piece of You and the future of my business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://pieceofyoupj.square.site/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pieceofyoupermanentjewelryllc