New Palm Beach jewelry store invokes spiritual symbolism - Palm Beach Daily News
Bee Goddess isn’t a typical jewelry store for Worth Avenue.
Its jewelry is manufactured in Istanbul, and its focus isn’t on selling a ring with the biggest diamond or a bracelet with the most gold — it’s about making ancient symbols into nice pieces that people can afford, said store owner Orhan Citanak.
Istanbul resident Ece Sirin started the brand about a dozen years ago, and Citanak helped in the early years as a consultant. Sirin has created pieces with 62 symbols over the years — including the “eye light” to represent a new beginning, the “rosa mundi” representing love, and the “sirius star” for health and beauty.
Though the brand has been a hot seller at Harrods in London and at locations in Asia, it hasn’t made much of a dent in the U.S. market.
But Citanak saw an opening to set up a freestanding store in Palm Beach because he believes the jewelry market is evolving.
“There is an opportunity for the newcomers who have a brand — who have different and more effective ways of interacting with the target customers,” he said.
His strategy will revolve heavily around Instagram and web marketing, plus pop-up shows from Boca Raton to Miami and elsewhere. Though he is happy with his 325 Worth Ave. location nestled in Via Demario, he thinks he will do most of his sales elsewhere.
Bee Goddess already has a U.S. presence with several stores in Los Angeles and one in New York, but this is the first branded store that solely sells Sirin’s jewelry.
Citanak, 48, and his family also areo happy with the move. He has felt since high school that the United States was the country for him, and he is pleased that he was finally able to move with his wife, Belgin, and 11-year-old daughter, Tara.
On the symbolism, Orhan Citanak wants people to find their own meanings and make things fit with their own belief systems, but Belgin Citanak said the products resonate with her on a spiritual level and that she thinks the jewelry can help people.
“I believe in it,” she said. “That’s why we are here.”
Nearby Peruvian Avenue neighbor Anna Dahlin, who has a studio inside the Rick Harrington Salon, also believes in the Citanaks’ mission and quickly became friends with them. Dahlin, who is originally from Sweden, thinks they can be successful on the Avenue.
“I feel in love with the product and said ‘I have to help those people,’” she said.
Bee Goddess jewelry runs from about $1,000 to $15,000, and custom items may also be ordered. Some limited-edition pieces in the line have sold for as much as $40,000.
