The Style That Binds Us podcast

Alison Bruhn, our highly in-demand national wardrobe stylist & consultant gives us some words of wisdom that she has learned along the way! Here are some examples: don't let someone talk you into buying something that you don't absolutely love or wouldn't wear with your lifestyle. Don't buy something on sale that you'll never wear just because it is by a brand you love. Trust your gut & instinct! Listen for all the tips!

https://thestylethatbindsus.com/services

Today, we are interviewing Shirin von Wulffen, Co-Founder of Bastide. She is extremely accomplished, having worked at Tom Ford, Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent in PR & Communications. She is now the Co-Founder of a beauty, skincare & lifestyle brand based in Aix-en-Provence with her husband, Frederic Fekkai. We hope you enjoy learning about her career path and brand!

https://thestylethatbindsus.com/bastide/

What is The Style That Binds Us? Alison Bruhn & Delia Folk are the mother daughter duo behind TSTBU. In this episode, they explain how they started their business, what the business is and more! 

https://thestylethatbindsus.com/

• You’ve done a lot of interesting things in your career and lived in different places. What are the top three things from those experiences that influenced where you are today? 
• 1. Growing up in family jewelry business - would go straight to the shop, learn about diamonds, rubies, gemstones, learn about how clients shop, role you play & value you have in celebrating special moments that people buy jewelry for. Wanted to do something different. 
• 2.Time at HBS - a professor challenged them what would you do if you had all the money in the world? He realized he wanted to design jewelry
• 3. Time at De Beers Louis Vuitton (joint venture) - learned how LVMH thinks of design & brand building, masterminds of luxury. He got to go to the diamond mines in Botswana, Africa. He felt like a lot of men were proposing with very similar rings. It was a great experience working at De Beers to understand the business side of fine jewelry
• What steps did you take to start your company? Left his job before his student loans weren't paid. He moved to NY and stayed on his friends couch. A classmate from business school asked him to design an engagement ring for him to propose with. Zameer reached out to his family to understand how to best proceed. Zameer wanted to tell their love story in the ring they designed. He wanted to care for her & protect his wife for the rest of her life, and she is a bit clumsy. She is Columbian, & there is a history of people in her family wearing Columbian emeralds. The friend asked Zameer to create a design where the Columbian emerald is surrounded by Canadian diamonds (like me) that will forever protect her. It was about his love for her and the time he took with Zameer to share the story. The finance was so excited that her fiancé spent so much time with Zameer although he is so busy. Zameer took a lot of consulting roles, because he didn't have a visa to work in the US. 1. Called friends and asked them to be advisors 2. Everything he has to offer has to be communicated person to person (a lot of word of mouth). Create content to share what the finance did for his finance. (1 hour) 3. Be systematic about the process - have a 3 step process. Step 1: Zameer trains the person on what he thinks is worth it vs. not worth it for stones. 2. Learn the love or family story (1 hour) 3. Share notes, sketches and diamonds, take a deposit and start making the ring. It can happen in less than 3 hours in about 3 weeks instead of someone spending a ton of time walking up & down 5th avenue to try to find a ring
• How is Zameer Kassam Fine Jewelry different from other jewelry brands? Do you want something that screams the brand name? Do you want something very sparkly that may not be great quality? What is the objective in the piece of jewelry. Zameer's pieces are more special and personal, and each piece is unique. There is a world of people who are classic and timeless, but they want something different. Find a world where it is classic, but in a personal way. You won't get bored of the piece, and it won't look like it was made in the year it was made, but hard to tell because it is timeless. 
• How many people does it take to make one of your rings? 3 people unless something very unique they need expertise for. Usually takes about 3 weeks, but they can rush it. Don't be afraid to look outside your industry for people who can transform your industry. Can be helpful to get anoth

• In reading your biography on the My Story Jewelry website, you’ve had a very interesting life. You’ve travelled a lot and have been influenced by India in particular. Did I read you joined the Israeli army? What inspired you to do that and what did you learn from it? After leaving Wall Street, she felt burnt out and angry. Wall Street can be a toxic environment for women. She did a volunteer program where she lived for 3 weeks. She got to meet Israeli soldiers who live every day as if it is their last instead of so focused on work like in America. There is a sense of fearlessness there. 
• What was it like working with your family in the jewelry business? She wasn't sure about it at first. She fell in love with the business: putting together the stones, coming up with designs, building a business, etc. She made the line more feminine. 
• What challenges did you face starting your own company & breaking off from your family business? She and her brother ran the business together for 8 years: bridal, engagement rings, classic look. Jackie isn't married, so she didn't find it that inspiring. Most people get married once and get one ring, they may upgrade, get a halo, or reset it. Jackie did well with the band category because it was something she could wear and enjoy. Once My Story was growing, there was tension between Jackie & her brother for the first time. She was focusing less on the family business, and more on My Story. Therefore, she started working with My Story full time, which relieved the tension between herself & her brother.  
• What skills from working on Wall Street have you applied to your business? You learn about hustle. It is a man's world. She was always in a room with 20 men, but never felt intimated or took no for an answer or thought she couldn't do something because she was a woman or because of her education, it doesn't matter where you went to school, etc. She was in sales trading, which requires a lot of networking. 
• How does it work if someone wants a custom piece? Coming from a bridal background, every bride wants something custom, and every stone is custom. There was a lot of CAD (computer aided design) work, so she was familiar with this. My Story is about telling your story, because everyone is unique, and wants something unique and special to them. She gives the specs (the specifics of the piece) to the CAD designer - measurements, fonts, colors, stones, etc. She gets a drawing in CAD, she sends it to her client making sure it is what they want. Once it is approved, then you get a wax which is sent to casting. It can take 3-4 weeks, but can also be rushed.  
• What was the first piece of jewelry you created for My Story? The one piece she wears everyday. It is called the Julia ring. To commemorate Julia's birth, she wanted to make something understated that isn't screaming mommy jewelry. She put Julia's birthstone in it. When she would be selling her family's jewelry, people would complement her on the piece. They liked it so much that after hearing the story of Jackie becoming a mom, wanted to place an order before she had a brand. She was selling without having an idea of putting something into production, and her brand was born! Easier to sell 12 bands than 12 engagement rings. 
• Let’s talk about IVF, and the different options women have in

• Let’s talk about your family background and how you took all of that into consideration when creating Prounis. She always wanted to have an homage to her grandparents and she always loved jewelry. It felt like a great connection between the two. Her family is Greek and she has always loved ancient Greek jewelry. Her grandfather had an archive of books she frequently refers to. Her inspiration can come from pottery, architecture or jewelry.   
• Talk to us about all the different elements from The Versailles that show up in your collection and brand. The sage green tablecloths that were used at The Versailles. The sage green is used in all of her branding. She recreated the matchbooks. They make stationary which is inspired by The Versailles menus since they were hand painted. 
• What are some of your favorite stories your grandfather told you about Versailles? She remembers how proud he was of The Versailles. He left her a letter that wrote all the different performers with their names, dates they performed and lots of newspaper clippings. 
• What does a typical day or week look like for you? Could get an order for a one-of-a-kind, sourcing stones, spend 2-3 hours at the bench making the pieces, finishes the pieces, lots of emails. Sometimes take time to volunteer. Cultural things, go to a museum, etc.  
• What led to the decision of using 22k gold? It is the most historical alloy of gold. This is what you see at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. They won't oxidize or tarnish. They can get buried and in 2,000 years, it'll be intact. It is soft and the look is soft and buttery. She alloys all the gold in her studio in the jewelry district in NYC because particular about the gold coloring. She also uses recycled gold from a refiner and she alloys it again. Your skins oils polish the gold and it becomes a second skin.   
• Where do you find the stones you use? Travel to Tucson. Lots of vendors in Manhattan. 
• After you decided to start your jewelry brand, what steps did you take to make it happen? When graduated from college, she freelanced for a couple different designers. She was designing for family and friends. She liked creating one-of-a-kind pieces and accumulated pieces she wanted to create. 
• How did you learn to make jewelry? Classes at FIT. Loved collecting vintage jewelry. She took a sculpture class in college and then took jewelry classes. 
• Where do you get inspiration for your collections? Everywhere. Love going to The Met if in a pinch for inspiration. Look at her grandparents books. She loves going upstate New York, loves antiquing.  
• How do you choose the price for your pieces? Price of gold & stones. The labor, packaging, time etc. 
• Tell us about how you make a piece of your jewelry. There are a lot of one-of-a-kinds. Each link is handwoven & can take 2 months to make. They start by creating a long piece of wire, cut it open and there are links so consistent size, fuse each link and weave them together. Each end cap is made by hand. 
• Did you grow up wanting to start a jewelry brand? Both of her parents were entrepreneurs. Her first company was called Java Chip Cafe in 4th grade. Her parents friends would come over and she would make them coffee. She went to FIT during middle school and took some classes. She started a t-shirt company with her friend. She loved the branding and creating stories. 
• What advice do you have for someone interested in starting their own line? Think about how to brand yourself. Have a strong vision and stay true to it. People will tell you otherwise. Go with your gut feeling. Can't do it all yourself.