In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, Neal Bloom sits down with Madeline Fraser, the dynamic founder and CEO of Gemist, a B2B SaaS and AI company revolutionizing the jewelry industry.

Madeline shares how a frustrating search for a custom engagement ring sparked the idea for Gemist, which now powers customization, stone sourcing, and hyper-realistic rendering for jewelry brands and retailers. With deep product insight and two previous startups under her belt - including an appearance on Shark Tank and an exit into the gaming space - Madeline unpacks how her creative background and startup experience led her to build scalable tech that’s reshaping a centuries-old industry.

They talk about her time on The Pitch (where she met Neal and landed Gemist’s first investment round), her vision for modernizing the jewelry shopping experience, and why customization is no longer optional for today’s customers.

Key Topics Covered:

• How Madeline turned a personal pain point into Gemist’s founding story

• Her Shark Tank experience - and why the deal didn’t go through

• What it’s really like to bootstrap vs. fundraise

• Why user testing came before writing a single line of code

• The tech stack behind Gemist’s jewelry customization engine

• Scaling B2B SaaS in a traditional industry

• The future of Gemist: watches, new verticals, and profitability

• Startup lessons from interior design to jewelry tech

• Why every founder needs grit, agility, and a chip on their shoulder

Links & Resources:

• Gemist

Connect with Madeline & Neal

• Madeline on LinkedIn

• Neal Bloom on LinkedIn

• @NealBloom on Twitter