Chamilia is getting a new look. The personalized jewelry company that had veered away from its wearing-your-bio-on-your-wrist roots in recent years is relaunching this year with a focus on sentiment for its charms division, a new stand-alone line of affordable fine jewelry and updating its overall look.
Catherine Ottaviano, vice president of global merchandising and marketing, was given the task of revamping the brand, which Jeff Julkowski and Killian Rieder founded in Minnesota in 2002. She was brought over from Swarovski’s Touchstone Crystal direct sales division when the Swiss giant fully acquired the brand in 2013. Heading up Chamilia’s new look is independent creative director Ernie Schenck, while Troy Hines is charged with building out new product.
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Built on what they dub the five pillars of sentiment for the female consumer — relationships, milestones, passions, inspirations and love — the new standalone jewelry will debut in stores in May. The sterling silver and crystal line consists of predominantly earrings and necklaces with bracelets and a ring, with retail prices ranging from $50 to $150. The collection explores popular jewelry themes such as hearts, celestial motifs and sea themes, such as starfish and an anchor, which relate back to the “five pillars,” even figuratively.
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The charm program revamp began “quite aggressively” in 2014, according to Ottaviano, with themes such as love, mother/child, garden and new 14K gold and sterling silver charms, all within the $35 to $40 range. In a nod to passions, the newest collection is called “Sweet Music” and includes charms such as a crystal pavé-covered microphone, a guitar pick and a tambourine that emits a small chime.
At the core of the new look are six videos featuring women whose inspirational stories speak to the values of the pillars. Starting this month through June on Chamilia.com and the company’s social media platforms, Londoner Jasmine Smith, a dancer whose dreams were dashed when it was discovered that she had a brain tumor, recounts the story of being inspired to become a nurse by the nurses who saved her life. Stills from the video created Chamilia’s first-ever ad campaign, which launches in several February books, such as Real Simple, Martha Stewart Living and O the Oprah Magazine. Additionally, the brand updated its look by adding blues and greens to the monochromatic lime-green color scheme, as well as a hummingbird icon that implies delight and a new tagline, “Live with all your heart.” The packaging has also been elevated as part of the upgrade with new white boxes with silver trim.
Reaching distribution in large department store retailers is a goal for the brand, where it would be vying for a space that direct and fast-growing competitors Pandora and Alex & Ani already exist in. Currently, Chamilia’s distribution primarily consists of specialty and independent jewelry stores and a slew of gift shops throughout the U.S., Canada and U.K., with about 2,000 doors globally. There have been internal conversations to open stand-alone stores in the future.
According to Ottaviano, they want to give current charm customers “a reason to take another look at Chamilia. We are not looking to copy [Pandora and Alex & Ani]. We want to be a brand, appealing in our own right.” Ottaviano is clear that the product is distinct for several reasons, including precious metals at a good price; techniques such as plique-à-jour, millegrain and floating stone settings; engraving details as well as developing proprietary closures. These details, usually reserved for high jewelry-making, produce a higher-quality look than the price implies.
“If we’re honest with ourselves and the consumer and retailers about what the soul of the brand is and what we’re passionate about, the consumer will see that authenticity and that’s what engages people,” Ottaviano said. “We’re trying to be a brand that can connect with women on an emotional level.”