We recently connected with Alysha Whitfield and have shared our conversation below.

Alysha, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

Our custom design experience is the heart and soul of Alysha Whitfield Jewelry. We outshine the rest of the industry by pairing custom jewelry design with a unique Try At Home Service. Our clients get to view a model (replica) of the custom jewelry, in-person, before the final piece is created. This eliminates the fear of an undesirable outcome. Our clients are confident that their jewelry will be absolutely perfect because they were able to hold it, try it on and make any necessary changes to the design.

Alysha, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I love to celebrate my client’s life story with meaningful high-end jewelry. I spent the last decade specializing in designing and creating engagement rings, wedding bands and heirloom family rings.

My work is split into two avenues: beautifully designed made-to-order collections for those who “know it when they see it” and custom jewelry design for those who desire a one-of-a-kind piece based on their unique vision or story.

I spent the last few years focusing intensely on my custom design work and created an entire experience around it. Our Custom Jewelry Experience is unique in the fact that every step, from our initial meeting to delivery, is handled virtually. I have worked with clients all over the world to bring their jewelry dreams and visions to life.

The most appealing part of creating custom jewelry with me is my signature Try At Home Service. My clients absolutely rave about this offering; and I do too. I created this service because I understand the need to see something in person before making a commitment. Some designs look different in a picture vs in person. I wanted to give my clients the peace of mind that their forever ring will be exactly what they had envisioned. Since launching the Try At Home Service, I’ve expanded the opportunity to view a 3D model for every single piece of jewelry we make at AWJ.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

I started making jewelry over a decade ago in my small apartment. My work looked very different back then! I would sit at my desk (who am I kidding, my desk was my couch – ha!) for hours and wrap intricate wire braids around beautiful gemstones and crystals. This was my introduction to jewelry.

Over the years I’ve taken various classes to enhance my jewelry practice. It wasn’t quite what I learned in those classes that made the most impact, though, it was the people I’ve met along the way: The metalsmith who introduced me to a real jewelers bench (and got me off my couch), the business coaches who taught me how to connect my work and serve even more people and the colleague who supported me in my dreams of creating jewelry through computer aided design. Each of these meetings turned into key milestones in my career and I am so thankful to all of them.

It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

My career started as a bench jeweler. I would hand fabricate every single piece of jewelry from sheet metal, wire and gemstones on my bench every day. As my jewelry business grew, so did my need to hire on a team to help me. When I became a new mom, I knew for certain that I couldn’t manage this business alone.

The last few years have been a whirlwind of hiring, letting go and pivoting. Bringing people into your company teaches you a lot about where you’re falling short, even when you thought you had it figured out. Sometimes you need to completely un-do an entire project to build it up again and other times you need to scrap it completely. When processes transform so does your business.

Over the years I’ve learned that, if it’s not in flow, it’s probably time for a change. My first hire was outsourcing some work to a casting house and, unfortunately, quality just wasn’t up to par. If you know me and my work, I am a perfectionist. I watched as the jewelry industry accepted this sub-par work and sent it out into the world without a problem. I really didn’t want to be apart of it. Colleagues who have worked with manufacturers would tell me that this is just the nature of doing business with a manufacturer. I believed it, for a while. I would have weekly calls about quality control that took up way too much of my valuable time. I had a classic case of insanity: when you do the same thing over and over but expect different results. It just wasn’t happening and I should have pivoted sooner. Now, when I come up against something that isn’t in flow with my values it’s my cue to pivot; and I’ll keep pivoting until I find the right fit. It’s out there!

Contact Info:

• Website: alyshawhitfield.com
• Instagram: @alyshawhitfieldjewelry instagram.com/alyshawhitfieldjewelry
• Facebook: facebook.com/alyshawhitfieldjewelry