Jewelry makers have always done well on the Shark Tank and entrepreneurs Ashley Jung and Paige Dellavalle hope the Sharks will bite on their line of geometric jewelry called Stella Valle. The two sisters from New Jersey are former West Point cadets (Ashley graduated in 2004 and Paige graduated in 2009) and army officers; they also happen to be very pretty and fashionable and created the Stella Valle geometric jewelry line in December of 2010. The vision for their business was to create geometric jewelry that “perfectly marries masculine and feminine characteristics with masculine design elements that are balanced by feminine details.”
Is Geometric Jewelry a good business?
Jewelry is a HUGE international business. Over $50 BILLION worth of jewelry is sold every year. As long as there are people who can afford luxury goods, jewelry will continue to sell well. The key to selling jewelry is to make quality designs and get the word out.
The Stella Valle sisters’ designs are appealing and they have done their part to market their brand. Ashley and Paige have been a whirlwind so far this year on the Bloomingdale’s Trunk Show circuit. They also partnered with On The Rack, a private online shopping club for men and women. The Stella Valle geometric jewelry even got invited to the Oscars!
Will Sharks wear Jewelry?
Jewelry designers have done well in the Shark Tank. Aldo Orta, Litter, RockBands, and M3 Girl Designs all got on air deals (Aldo Orta and Litter completed their deals) based on the quality of their designs, their business plans, and the entrepreneurs’ passion. Can Stella Valle be the next successful Shark Tank funded jewelry line?
The sisters will make a big splash on show night. They enter the Shark Tank in their army fatigues to demonstrate their military past, then strip them off to reveal stylish skirts made more for a night on the town than a night on duty. While the visual impact of that stunt will make for good TV, will it help their pitch?
The Sharks, particularly Lori, will need to like the aesthetics of the line first and foremost. Beyond that, the numbers will rule. I don’t think Lori would bite on Stella Valle since their pricing structure goes a bit above Lori’s mass appeal comfort zone. Robert and Kevin aren’t likely suitors either. In season three, Mark and Daymond teamed up to fund Litter Jewelry (also run by two sisters), so they’d be the obvious targets.
The Stella Valle Twitter feed reveals a fair amount of Tweeting back and forth between the sisters and Daymond in the past few months, so maybe there is something afoot with him. I’m not much of a jewelry guy myself, but my girls inform me that Stella Valle’s line is “kinda cool.” I think the combo of quality products and a good story will net a Shark for Ashley and Paige. I am “IN!”
Entrepreneur, auteur, raconteur. Rob Merlino is a blogger and writer who enjoys the Shark Tank TV show and Hot Dogs. A father of five who freelances in a variety of publications, Rob has a stable of websites including Shark Tank Blog, Hot Dog Stories, Rob Merlino.com and more.
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