A High-Tech Brand Lets You Customize The Jewelry Loved By Meghan Markle And Kylie Minogue - Forbes
When you think of businesses leading the charge when it comes to technological advances, you probably think of Silicon Valley staples: Google-parent-company Alphabet, Oculus and Netflix are a few of many. But Missoma, a London-based company that makes “demi-fine” jewelry, wants to earn a spot on that list with their jewelry customization technology.
They've recently introduced a line of jewelry designed not by high-end artists, but by individual buyers. The vehicle for doing that is a custom-built, interactive drawing tool that allows jewelry aficionados to sketch their design on a tablet or smartphone (or with a mouse on a computer screen, though that’s slightly less elegant) and have that design engraved onto a piece of his or her choosing. The technology launched in May 2018 and already makes up roughly 8% of the Notting Hill-based company’s revenue. They hope to see that number grow as they offer the technology on more of their products; 26 are currently available.
Missoma's technology allows buyers to "draw" the design engraved on his or her jewelry.Credit: Missoma Ltd.
“It’s about improving the user journey and being first-in-class in the fast-paced world of technology,” says Marisa Hordern, 39, Missoma’s founder and creative director. She founded the company in 2010 after leaving her career in corporate media to pursue what was then a hobby: jewelry making. The company grew quickly, catching the eye of celebrities like Meghan Markle and Margot Robbie and expanding from 15 to 40 employees in the last year alone. Horden found customers primarily through Instagram outreach in the early years of the business and estimates that nearly 70% of current buyers still see the brand on Instagram at some point before making a purchase.
Hordern thinks that jewelry should be an extension of the wearer’s personal style and feels that engravable jewelry is a natural extension of that. So in partnership with her web designer, she set out to create the technology to make that happen. The designer focused on coding and technical specs while Hordern concentrated on the UX, or user experience. It took about five months to create the technology, which has no limitations on what can be drawn, so long as it stays within the bounding box of whatever piece is selected.
A custom-designed pendant being engravedCredit: Missoma Ltd.
Once they built the digital side of the venture, they had to test various designs on their engraving machine, as well as various size jigs (which actually etch the jewelry) to ensure that fine lines and detailing could be recreated. “[You can] even engrave a drawing your child created – versatility is key with this tool,” Hordern says. That’s why they spent weeks toying with the process to give the pieces maximum versatility. They eventually settled on a process in which a custom vector file is created from the user’s drawing. That file is then fed into their engraving machine, along with whatever item the buyer chooses, and the piece is created. Missoma staff oversee the creation of each piece to ensure designs are centered and straight on each piece. They used to charge a small fee for the process, but now offer it at no additional charge. The engravable pieces range in price from £39 for a gold vermeil pendant to £169 for a pendant with multiple hanging pieces. Rings, earrings and necklaces can be customized with sketches and shapes, while slimmer bracelets are limited to letters and symbols.
A Missoma signet ring etched with a custom-drawn scarabCredit: Missoma Ltd.
Hordern says that Missoma will continue to improve the user experience, even if that requires significant technological shifts. “It’s a whole lot of back-end work for something that sounds quite simple,” she says. As an example, she points to the fonts available for engraving. Each shape had to be uploaded separately, letter by letter, into the management system that hosts the drawing app.
Hordern believes that Missoma's engraving technology sets them apart from other jewelry companies operating at a similar price point and wants to apply the technology to accessorize beyond just jewelry. While Hordern isn’t quite ready to share what’s next for the privately owned brand, it’s clear that her most popular customers should continue to help sales; some brands have reported clothing and accessory items selling out for months after being photographed on Meghan Markle. That said, Missoma’s Interstellar Ring worn by Markle is still in stock – at least for now.
