Lauren Harwell Godfrey: Founder of Harwell Godfrey

24:32I was trying hard to carve out a new space. I was thinking about things in a way that I thought was compelling, but there was just so much. So I felt like, am I just part of the noise? And that didn't feel good to me either. So when you're having a soul searching moment like this, and you're starting to think about starting over again, how do you hone in on what that next step should be? Like, how did you really start to think about, okay, maybe jewelry is the direction I should go in? I think part of that journey for me was really coming to terms with feeling a little embarrassed, almost, that I had spent time and effort and money towards a culinary education for something that I didn't even last in for very long and that I was going to make another pivot pretty quickly.

25:21I had a hard time wrapping my head around that and I felt like a bit of a failure for it. And so jewelry, honestly, it came about in a really strange way. I was like, I just don't want to make food today, but I have to make something. Again, I like to make things. I'm a hardworking person. So I was like, what can I make that isn't food? And I literally went, well, I need a belt. Maybe I can go to a leather store and buy some leather and make myself a belt today. And I drove myself to a leather store and picked out some stuff and started working with it. And I was like, well, this is kind of fun.

25:54And I was going to a festival not too long from that. I was like, I wonder if I can make some leather jewelry to go with my leather belt. And then I just started like going through this weird sculptural leather and crystal phase where I was making these gigantic oversized necklaces and wearing them around to festivals. And people would see them be like, hey, where'd you get that? I started this kind of hobby business, making things for my friends because they liked the crazy stuff that I was wearing. That's sort of the evolution. It was truly, I remember being in my kitchen one day and going like, I'm just not going to make food today.

26:26What am I going to make instead? And it just sort of snowballed from there. So can you tell me about the first time you made a piece for someone else? Yeah. You know, it was a friend who commissioned. So it was literally like a, I like that. Will you make me one? I was very excited. I was making something that was pretty out there in my opinion. It was a very interesting look and I love these pieces and I still have some that I'm sort of holding onto them because I still have people who are like, can I get one of those? I'm like, we don't make those anymore. It was gratifying to see that somebody else got the vision, saw it and wanted it.

26:56So that was a big deal. And it made me feel like, okay, maybe there's something to this. So unlike, I think a lot of folks who might start in the jewelry business and not really understand the understanding that you had from the food industry and also the thing like margins that you understood from being a creative director, you had a lot of practical, working, financial understanding under your belt on top of the creative as well. No pun intended with belt. How did you start to like think about producing jewelry and understanding the margins and what you could sell something for? How did you figure all of that out?

27:32You know, honestly, it was such a different industry that I really didn't understand that. And I really had to learn that. And I had to learn by asking and like looking and seeing what was happening, but I was making something that there was no parody product for. So I kind of had to like get creative and I worked off of, you know, I'm spending time making these. My time is valuable. The materials cost X amount, but just sort of like, what would I feel comfortable selling this for? Because when you make something that truly there's no way to compare it to something else, you have to also get creative with pricing.

28:05And that's very different from what I'm doing now, because now what I'm making, there are actual comps, but at that time there were no comps. So it was kind kind of a free for all. So talk to me then about how you pivoted from working with leather and working with crystals into working with fine jewelry. Well, I fell in love with this sculptural aspect of making wearable things. I just thought that was so beautiful. And then I also fell in love with stones and how they have different meanings and healing powers attributed to them. I just thought it was all very cool and interesting and I love the materiality of it, but I was making everything by hand myself.

28:45And I felt like I was coming to a point where that did not feel scalable to me. So I was like, okay, I love the idea of making jewelry. How can I actually make a real business that I can scale? Because again, I think my thoughts are valuable and I want to do something that's a real business. So I have a girlfriend who I met in New York when I was working in advertising. She was dating a guy that I worked with and she had always been in fine jewelry and she just started a fine jewelry showroom. So I went to her and I said, I'm making these things. And she knew the leather business too. She actually tried to help me get some placement in stores, but a lot of stores didn't understand it.

29:20And that was another reason why I wanted to walk away from it. Cause I'm like, if stores aren't getting it and I can't scale it, I don't think this is going to grow. So I went back to her and I said, I'd love to start working in fine jewelry. And she was like, don't do it. It's very expensive. I know your husband. He's not going to love this for you. It's a crowded space. It's an uphill battle, all these things. And I was like, I'm not listening to any of this. I'm doing it anyway. So she took me on as a client and she really helped me to understand how to price, how to manufacture, how to do all those things.

29:52Because I decided I wanted to be the designer and not the actual jeweler. So there are people in my industry who amazingly, they're bench jewelers and they sit on their benches and they make every piece by hand themselves. I didn't want that constraint I didn't want to go back to school for something again. I get it. You know, I know how to design and I knew how to communicate visually. That's something I took away from advertising. I can communicate a visual thought really well. So I thought, let's focus on design and have somebody else execute so I'm not constrained by what I know how to do in this technical way.

30:24And that's actually been really interesting. And as I go in this industry, I'm learning a lot about technicality, a lot of it. But I was able to sort of jump in as a designer and find really amazing people to help me make the jewelry. Okay. So I read that you spent about a year developing your first collection. Talk to me about developing your design point of view about, to your point, it can be a crowded market. How did you want to differentiate yourself? Well, it's funny because actually I'm a deck maker coming from the advertising space. So I actually made a deck with ideas and none of those pieces have ever been executed.

31:00But I came to my friend who has the showroom and I said, here's my deck of this jewelry that I want to make. And she's like, cool, cool. Let's start working through this. And where I came out on the other side was somewhere completely different. But what I did know and what I took from advertising is what is the brand language? Like having a brand language is a really special and important thing because people like to see things that indicate a brand. And I'm not a Cartier or a Chanel or Gucci where there's these logos that you can play off of. that's not this. So it's like, how do you create a brand language that's not logo driven that people can understand?

31:35And I was really inspired by, and still am inspired by textiles and specifically African textiles. And there's a lot of geometry that goes into those textiles and pattern work. And so early on, as I was creating the collection, I was working that vibe in, and I don't think I even realized it. I was just kind of like, that's the stuff that I like. When I first started making jewelry, my other thing that I was thinking a lot about was, I typically dress a little bit more on like, I don't know, the masculine side. Like I love a suit. I love a jacket. I don't wear a lot of dresses. I'm not a super girly girl.

32:09Like I definitely like a more edgy masculine vibe. So I was like, how can I make jewelry that vibes with that? And that kind of feels that way. So I thought a lot about that too. So it's interesting as I started out, the pieces were small in the beginning because I just didn't have a lot of money to buy a ton of gold. And so I started small and I was working these little bits in, I'd make a little money and put it back in the business. And it went like that for a while. It took a while to become profitable, but I loved what I was doing. And I'm like, this is going to land, this is going to hit.

32:40And I didn't want to pivot again, but I loved it so much. It wasn't even a thought. To backtrack a little bit, can you also explain to our audience a little bit of the difference between like fashion or costume jewelry versus fine jewelry? Yeah. So fine jewelry is made with fine materials. I personally work in 18 karat gold, platinum. I'll work in white gold and rose gold. Those are typically more for custom pieces and then also fine gemstones. So I work with precious and semi-precious gemstones, but they're all at a level of fineness. When it comes to costume jewelry, it's typically not made from precious materials.

33:17So it'll be typically like gold plated, synthetic stones, things like that, that just aren't precious materials. Although sometimes people will work silver and like, I love Native American jewelry and that uses a lot of silver and turquoise. And I would still consider that not costume, you know, that's still fine technical jewelry. But yeah, so I think that's the difference. And I wanted to hit the fine jewelry market. I was very deliberate when I started making jewelry that I wanted to work in fine materials. So I went for the 18 karat golds and the precious stones and all that, because like coming from the advertising industry where I was working with the best directors and the best photographers.

33:53I had a taste of the good stuff. I wanted to create work that would live up to that. Okay. So you decided to go the fine route. You had spent time working on the brand. You were making smaller pieces, putting that money back into the business. What was actual launch like? So launch was interesting. We technically launched it in Paris at an event that the showroom was doing. I wasn't even there, but they brought some pieces, which is great. I would say my first launch that really felt very memorable to me, there's a trade show that I still attend called Couture. I'm going to it next week, launching my new collection.

34:28But my first launch at Couture felt like a pivotal point. And part of that that was really interesting is that, again, as part of this showroom at this trade show, I was in a booth with other designers in that showroom, some of whom were very well known at that point. And I was the new kid on the block. And so I very distinctly remember stores coming in to have meetings with these designers. And I was just kind of eagerly standing behind my work. And they would come over and take a peek and walk away and not even ask a question. No connection whatsoever. Just sort of a like look and walk. And that happened repeatedly.

35:01And as you can imagine, that's a pretty hard feeling. Yeah. And so I had another bout of soul searching. I'm like, okay, can I stick with this? Can my ego handle this? In my showroom, again, my friend Randy was great. And she's like, they want to know that you're going to be here next year. These stores aren't going to invest in you if they don't think you're serious. You have to keep showing up. And that's when this is going to start gaining traction. And she was so right. The next year was very, very different. But that first launch at Couture was rough. So how did you get the word out? Being a part of a showroom, I will say, has been an amazing experience.

35:36It's not everybody's journey in this industry, and it might not be right for some people. For me, I was interested in having a business that was multifaceted where I was selling to wholesale stores and also fostering direct-to-consumer business and custom direct-to-consumer work. But I felt like if I can get some really good stores behind my work, that'll just help me with all aspects of the business and to have people take me more seriously. And again, I'm not a very patient person. So I'm like, how can I accelerate this process to getting from unknown in the jewelry world to known in the jewelry world and running a robust business?

36:12So I was very strategic about the showroom because I thought they'd help me get there and they really did. I love that. So I also want to talk about another big moment, couple of big moments, 2022 and 2023. Your work was recognized multiple times. You were a CFDA Vogue Fashion Fund finalist, a Fashion Trust US finalist, and a CFDA American Emerging Designer of the Year nominee. Yeah, that was a big time. That is incredible. Thank you. That is also a lot. What was this process like of going through Fashion Fund being acknowledged by the Fashion Trust and the CFDA, this is just so exciting, but it also feels like complicated potentially, or at least time consuming.

37:03Yeah. You know, I think again, in my head, trying to build a brand that people trust and know and have exposure to, I felt was critical. And so these amazing programs really do get you in front of a lot of people and they are known programs. So again, the trust starts growing and retailers see it and customers see it. So while it is a time intensive process, even just applying is difficult. Like what they ask for in the application process is really diligent and it's deep and it takes a lot of work. Can you tell me more about that? I mean, you have to basically put together a big portfolio of your work, lookbooks, press clippings, you name it.

37:44You have to tell them why you, and you're telling them why you with a bazillion other brands applying. And in the CFDA Vogue Fashion Fund, it's also fashion brands. So it's not just jewelry brands. You're competing. It's fashion brands. I was the only jewelry designer that ended up in that particular round. And I noticed that there aren't always jewelry designers in the fashion fund. I will say one thing I felt very fortunate, my run through the fashion fund was during the pandemic. And so it was a completely different program where they were like, everybody needs money and everyone needs help.

38:16There was no winner. They were like, everyone's a winner. Every single finalist gets money. We're going to help all of It wasn't as competitive as it usually is. And I've heard when it's in competitive mode, which I believe it's back to, it's gnarly. I think I got very lucky and it was a very kind of like nurturing process. My experience was very different than a lot of people who've gone through that process, but it is a lot of work just getting there. Okay. So I also want to talk about some of your celebrity fans, including the one and only vice President Kamala Harris, Coleman Domingo, who we cover constantly on You It We're Best Dressed Human.

38:52And best dancer, in my opinion. 100%. And of course, the queen herself, Rihanna, who wore one of your necklaces when she gave birth in 2025. I mean, talk to me about that piece of information because I don't know if I would be able to recover if I were you. That was a funny one because she had bought something through the showroom. So I was sort of like not totally part of the transaction a while back. And I forgot about it because I never saw her photographed in it. So when that photo came out, somebody else was like, is that one of your pieces? I was like, oh wait, she did buy something like years ago, but saved it for this amazing moment of like, here's my first picture of my new baby.

39:39Like I almost fell out of my chair. I couldn't believe it. It was such a surprise. That wasn't planned. It wasn't placed. The only money exchanged is that she actually bought jewelry, which I really appreciate a celebrity who actually buys jewelry. It's kind of amazing. So that was really special. Brianna and Elizabeth Taylor supporting the arts. A lot of people do. I actually want to talk about Coleman because he does not own that piece of jewelry, but it was a very special moment too. That piece of jewelry was placed on him by a stylist for a shoot for Vogue that was surrounding the Met Gala when it was the Black Dandy theme.

40:11I loved that theme so much and I was so excited to get behind it. And a lot of Black designers were being asked for work, which I think was really incredible. It was really elevating, I think, to a community of Black designers that I'm a part of. And I know so many of my friends in the industry were asked for their pieces. And I feel like there's a really amazing light being shown on really special, creative, amazing work. And so to have that ring on Coleman, who I admire so much, it was so meaningful to me because his energy and just all the things he projects. I was like, this is very cool. It's extremely cool.

40:43Okay, so I also want to talk about growth and newness. So on top of selling direct-to-consumer and being stocked in retailers across the country, you also opened a flagship store a couple of years ago. Plus, you're also growing your custom jewelry business. Talk to me a little bit about these decisions and how the business has evolved and why you work in so many different ways? Well, I think it's really smart to have different channels that you're making money from because if one channel starts to have trouble, retail has been so strange. It's kind of been a funky marketplace. I have some very wonderful, very stable retailers, but some of the bigger guys, we all know they've been struggling and I sell there too.

41:27So I like to have that diversity of lanes that I can sell in. So yes, I have a good, strong, direct to consumer business and this strong wholesale business. And I was operating that way for a while. And then I saw an opportunity, which is that I live near where my store is. And it used to be a jewelry store before I took it over. It was a multi-brand store. And I saw that they had closed. So I actually approached the owners. I'm at the Marin Country Mart in Larkspur, California. And I approached the owner of the Marin Country Mart and said, are you looking for another jewelry business to fill that space?

42:01And he really likes multi-brand. I was like, I'm telling you, I've got an audience here. This is my hometown. We can make this work. And so he gave me a chance and basically gave me a year to see how it worked. And two years later, I'm still there, which is really great. It's been such a wonderful part of my business and I've learned so much from it. I get to see how people shop for my work, which is really special. I'm around there a lot. I don't actually like have hours where I'm permanently working in the store, but I'll meet with customers there. But I kind of just come in and out. I have an office very nearby the store.

42:35So I'm there all the time and I get to just see how it works. And besides my job at Macy's, I was never really a retail person. So this has been a full-on education in another way. But something I've also realized with business is that I like to identify an area where I think there's opportunity and try. And if it doesn't work, it doesn't work. I've had some successful attempts and I've had some less successful attempts that like, where can I take this? How can I, you know, shift what I'm doing a little bit and see if something else gains traction in the store has been wonderful. I love that. Talk to me about the custom piece of it.

43:07You know, a lot of people want something where it feels very personal. I mean, that's jewelry, right? You're wearing it. It's very close to your body. I think it's a storytelling device and people want to really connect with it. So be it a special stone or maybe there's somebody that has a very particular importance to them from a design perspective or like a talisman that they want or an engagement ring. There's just all these different reasons for custom jewelry. Sometimes it's a reset of an existing stone that somebody's not wearing and they're like, I just want to be able to wear this again.

43:39I get that a lot. This is sitting in a drawer. It's collecting dust. I think it's beautiful. How can I wear this again? So there's all these different reasons to do custom. And I love custom because as a creative person, it lets me problem solve in ways that are different from when I'm creating a collection because those are my ideas, right? And when it's custom, it's a partnership with the person you're building it for. And so the inputs are completely different. So I find that I learn a lot through that process and it's very cool. I love it. Talk to me a little bit about your next slash upcoming collection, Gold Rush.

44:13Yes. And also anything else that you have coming up, whether it's happening soon or still on the vision board, because this has been a place of a lot of manifestation over the years. And I truly believe that speaking something into fruition is possible. I almost want to start with that, but I'm going to go to Gold Rush and then I have a very manifest-y thing I want to bring up. So Gold Rush, though, I launch one big collection every year. That's one thing I love about jewelry is it's very evergreen and it's slower than fashion. I feel like these pieces are going to be around forever. They're made of materials that can be around forever.

44:49So moving a little slower is I think the responsible thing to do. So I launch one collection every year. It's always at this time because couture is at this time. And that's the best opportunity to get in front of the editors and the buyers. And Gold Rush is what I'm doing this year. Last year I did 1975 because I turned 50 last year. And I like to have a theme like coming from advertising. I want to write myself a brief, like what do I want to explore through jewelry? What stories am I trying to tell? What is speaking to me and resonating with me that I think will resonate with other people? So Gold Rush came about because we're in one and I live in Northern California.

45:27That's where this original Gold Rush happened. And it wasn't always pretty. The Gold Rush was kind of a terrible time. It was chaos. It was greed. It was violent. There are all these things that we're seeing again. I don't like it, but it's on my mind. I believe in joy and I believe in optimism. And I like that part of the gold rush era was the optimism of there's opportunity. There's something to be searching for. There's seeking, there's all these things. And I think leaning into optimism at a time that can feel as dark as this one is just how I need to go through life. I can't go through life being angry about it.

46:05I am plenty angry about it, but I want to celebrate some joy. So gold rush is kind of in reaction to that. Also, gold has been such a hot topic, you know, because gold is a commodity. And when things are really challenging in the world, gold tends to be a stable force and that's why gold will go up. But what I think it shows is that gold's an amazing investment. And I'm kind of like making things that feel like currency in this collection for the first time, because I think that's really interesting and they're made out of gold. And then I'm also kind of doing a wink to the Western life. Which has also had a moment.

46:38Beyonce cracked it open and I feel like it just keeps going and it's the year of the horse. And it's our bicentennial. It's like all these things. So I don't know, it all just felt very topical to me and a really fun vehicle to tell stories through, but also to acknowledge what we're living in. I don't want to pretend it's not happening. It's happening. It's not great, but how can we like come at it from a place of like optimism? And I am excited to show this to people. I think it's very cool. Amazing. Are you ready for me to manifest? Yes. Where's my manifestation? What's next? So this is something I've always wanted to do.

47:11And I love that I get the chance to put this out in the world. I love the idea of creating a collection for a film. And I'm really inspired by Black Panther, for example, and a director who happens to be from a town not far from mine, Ryan Coogler, who's from Oakland. I'm like, I just want to have a coffee with that guy. and I want him to make it because he makes amazing coffee from what I can tell. But I would love to take this sort of ability that I have to help tell stories through jewelry and apply it to a film and a universe that's slightly different than mine, but still put the things that I know into it.

47:48You know, I feel like I can really tell stories through my jewelry and I know how to tell brand stories, which makes me think I could tell a story through the work that I do that's different from just the Harwell Godfrey brand. So that's my manifestation. Ryan Coogler, if this gets to you, I'll be thrilled. Talk to me. I love it. Consider it manifested. Let's get this going. Okay. So our final questions are always the same for all of my guests. The first one is about mistakes because we all make them throughout the course of our career, but we don't always talk about it. We tend to give the highlight reel version.

48:23And I think it's important for women to hear about other women overcoming mistakes and bouncing back from it. So I'm hoping you can tell me about a mistake that you've made at any point in your career and what you've learned from it. I think I've always struggled with mistakes. I'm a perfectionist. And so it's actually even hard for me to admit them to myself. There was a time when I was doing work and this was more of an advertising thing, but I saw what was popular within the culture of the place where I was. And I was trying to like force myself into that mold and to fit the culture, even though it wasn't me.

48:58And I wasn't successful and it felt very inauthentic. My work wasn't breaking through. And I actually had a creative director who called me on it and was like, this feels just like something else I've seen and you need to pull it together and get more original. And I was really offended by that and actually impacted my work at that place. I think the mistake there was that I didn't hear it and I didn't take it for the gem that it was because it's true. He was right. And so I think being more authentic through my work when I wasn't that way, I think that was a mistake. And I think not hearing that advice was a mistake.

49:35So a lot of the folks who listen to this podcast are in their first lives and they know that they want to do something different, but they're scared. Maybe they've got some sunk cost fallacy that they've spent a certain amount of their lives building up one career and they don't want to throw it away to go to something else. Or maybe they want to stay in the same industry, but just explore something different. As someone who has made pivots, what advice would you give someone who's standing there thinking about doing it, but hasn't made that leap quite yet? I think if you're standing there having that thought, you're already making the pivot.

50:10You're in pivot mode already. I've had people come to me who've seen me do this, and I typically tell them to go for it. And I know that there are risks involved, but if you're already feeling like you want to go somewhere else, I don't think you're going to be happy where you are. So I think listen to that voice and honor that voice and honor that thing because there's a reason why it's happening and then do all the research and talk to as many people as you can towards where you want to go. I think that applies more if you're going outside of your industry than if you're staying in it you might already know what you're getting into.

50:43But I do think when your being is telling you something, you're in a process already. Yeah. Having been through it a few times and I look back and I'm like, I'm glad I listened. I think I would have been miserable had I not done it. And you know, the culinary thing, was it a huge professional success? No, but did I learn a lot? Yes. Did I apply those learnings to this next thing? 100%. It all adds. It does. It all adds on. And yeah, I'm glad I did it at the time. Again, when that pivot was quick and I was in and out of food, I didn't feel great about myself. But now that I can look back at it, it was a critical part of getting here.

51:21So my last question is also my favorite, which is if you could get into a time machine and go back in time and speak with your younger self and give your younger self some advice, what would you say? Buy more gold. Ah. for career advice though, if we want to dip into what career advice I would give my younger self, I really do think finding your voice, finding out who you are, like what makes you, you and special, the earlier you can find that and have confidence in that, the better, especially as a creative. I think that's a real thing in creativity is just like being able to articulate your voice.

51:58It took me a long time to get there. And it took me a while to understand why that mattered. I would love to have started really understanding that journey earlier in my career. I think it'd be interesting to see what happened, but I'm glad I found it. I'm glad it's here now, but I think that's a really special thing to hone in on. I love that. Lauren, thank you so much. This has been such a pleasure. Congratulations on all of your success and your pivots. And thank you so much for sharing everything so candidly with us. It's much appreciated. Sure. Thank you. I really love being on here and I'm so excited.

52:33Thank you.

53:01We love seeing you spread the word on social. And now you can tag us in your posts. We are at Second Life Pod on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. We always want to know who you're interested in hearing from on the show. So send in your requests to hello at secondlifepod.com, or you can DM us on Instagram. I'm at Hilary Kerr. The show is at Second Life Pod. Our DMs are always open. I'm Hilary Kerr, and you've been listening to Second Life. This episode was produced by Hilary Kerr, Summer Hammeris, and Natalie Thurman. Our production assistant is Grace Ingram. Our audio engineers are at Treehouse Recording in Los Angeles, California.

53:44And our music is by Jonathan Leahy.