Attire Accessories - Nov/Dec 2018 (Issue 73)

PROFILE 29 Wordsmith Jo Stroud, founder of Mantra Jewellery, explains how words make her business model so special and that brands with a purpose will win over consumers, who are increasingly expecting more from their products Tell me a bit about how the label was started. What was the inspiration behind it? I established Fabulous, my retail jewellery business, in 2005, seeking out and curating collections of inspirational jewellery from designers from all over the world. After 10 years of being a retailer, I decided it was time to launch my own brand of jewellery rather than simply seeking out other collections. I had seen how women’s relationship with jewellery was changing – it had become more about how jewellery makes you feel rather than just how it looks. I have always been a firm believer in the power of words – seeing the impact words have on your mindset, your outlook and even your behaviour. So when I created my own brand of jewellery, I wanted to bring together my love of words and understanding of their power with the unique properties of jewellery. Hence Mantra Jewellery was born. How were the initial products developed and what was the response? We tested Mantra for the first year just in our Fabulous stores to try out the concept. In that first year, we used customer feedback to tweak the pricing, identify which categories worked best and finalise our positioning. Customers loved it, and we found there were three clear audiences: women buying for themselves, wanting a personal and motivational message; mums buying a supportive and meaningful gift for their teenage daughter, giving life advice; and best friends of any age, buying for each other. We found that many customers who loved it were interested in yoga, meditation and wellbeing or entrepreneurship, personal development and growth. In April 2016, we launched Mantra on the national stage, with its own dedicated website, and we were thrilled to win Brand to Watch at the UK Jewellery Awards in June 2017.