In New York, it’s estimated that 1/3rd of all small businesses will close permanently due to Covid. We’re doing our part to prevent that from happening. Every week, we’ll be profiling a different local to highlight so that we can all support their business. Know a small business we should feature? Email us at hello@ciaooomag.com.
Golden Stories is a jewelry subscription box company by New York native, Gwen Beloti. Her designs have been recognized by QVC & HSN, one of the top accessory platforms. Launched in 2019, with hand-selected and local, hand made golden jewelry – Golden Stories is our pick for the next up and coming subscription box.
If you’re a fan of jewelry and are looking for an affordable, golden luxury box – well, here you go! Check it out!
Where are you from and where did you grow up? If you are comfortable sharing your ethnic background – feel free to dive into that.
Brooklyn, NY. I am African American, my generation, and my parents for the most part are born and raised NY’ers (shoutout to Brooklyn #BKallday). My grandparents and theirs were from the South, mainly Alabama.
How did you start Golden Stories? (Feel free to dive into college, and the early days, any funny or tough anecdotes are fine )
So picture this, you’re 16 years old, in Jr. High and you and your girls play hooky to go to the mall for the latest jeans that this cool designer just came out with. Y’all get there, get to the jeans, look for your sizes, and head to the fitting room to try them on…. except you (me) are standing there twiddling your thumbs because they don’t have your size. Not fun right.. yea story of my life. With my weight fluctuating for most of the early part of my life, finding stylish clothes that fit well was a challenge. That’s when I fell in love with accessories.
I hung out in that section of the store because it didn’t size discriminate. My love and appreciation for accessories and jewelry prompted me to start Golden Stories. Golden Stories is a seasonal box of stylish minimalistic golden jewels designed to build out a perfect and complete collection for our members. It’s for the busy woman overwhelmed with all the choices out there. We take the guesswork out and ensure you have what you need for your daily style looks, and at an affordable price. This way you’re not standing anywhere twiddling your thumbs ;).
How has your business changed before and after COVID?
COVID has forced me to focus more on what was working well prior to COVID. We sent out members feedback surveys, we wanted our community to know that their voice matters. We looped them in on our growth plan and asked what their preferences were, what they wanted to see from Golden Stories.
We made it our mission to not just be a community in the literal sense but to really engage and connect.
For me, that meant that I would lean 100% into our jewelry line and Golden Stories. With the attention, I’ve been able to pay to it and the connection I’ve made with current members, we’ve been able to grow the membership over 300%.
You can find Gwen’s business here at Golden Stories .
You can follow her on Instagram here.
