Interviews

Published on December 10th, 2019 | by Darren Paltrowitz

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Auvere Co-Founder Gina Feldman Love On Selling Top-Notch Gold Jewelry, Future Plans & More

Jamaican-born designer Gina Feldman Love is the co-founder of Auvere, a modern, sculptural and handcrafted jewelry line made from 22K and 24K pure gold, ranging from $200 to $20,000. Now based in New York City, Love was a long-time real estate lawyer before her creativity and passions led her to photography and ultimately design. Her “entrepreneurial road less traveled” has made all the difference in inspiring the architectural and minimalist designs of the very-acclaimed Auvere.

After five years of exploring photography, enrolling in Parsons and launching her first brand — Peryton, a small leather goods and finely crafted handbags line — she finally left her “big law” career working with two large international firms to devote herself completely to designing Auvere. Auvere is made entirely with 22 and 24 high-karat pure gold yetoffered at prices that are competitive with that of 14k and 18k jewelry. Giving “Investment Jewelry” an entirely new meaning, Gina’s hope is that Auvere will play an important role in the incredible story of gold as well as increase awareness about the astute financial investment one makes in purchasing 22K and 24K gold jewelry.

I had the pleasure of doing Q&A with Gina Feldman Love about Auvere and more on behalf of The Hype Magazine. More on Auvere can be found online by visiting www.auvere.com.

How would you describe Auvere to someone who hasn’t yet experienced the brand?

Gina Feldman Love: Auvere is New York-based luxury jewelry company founded by me and my husband, Steven Feldman. We both left our more traditional careers to pursue our true passions. For him it was entrepreneurship and building companies that provide unique value propositions. For me, it was designing and building things of lasting beauty. Auvere is the culmination of those passions. In a short period of time its jewelry has become known for its focus on high-karat gold, distinct architectural design and hand craftsmanship.

What was the first piece you designed for Auvere?

Gina Feldman Love: The first piece I designed for Auvere was the Callista Cuff. I love big and bold jewelry — especially cuffs. I love to make the kind of jewelry that I imagine Wonder Woman would choose, if she were real.

Before founding Auvere, you were an attorney and a photographer. When in your life did you first realize that jewelry was such a passion of yours?

Gina Feldman Love: For as long as I can remember, I have loved design and making things; I remember doodling up shoe designs in 5th grade class. For me, composing a photograph is just another form of creation and design, which is why I love it so much.

My passion for design comes from my mother, who is an artist and jewelry designer. She is also a magnificent seamstress who can make any outfit you can think of. She is the one who taught me how to draw and encouraged me to make things. My father on the other hand was quite the opposite, an engineer who was all about math. He influenced my decision to go to be a lawyer — when he realized that I was math-intolerant!

My first design passion was leather goods. I learned that trade after taking night and weekend classes at Parsons. I left the law in 2017 to start Peryton, a fine leather goods brand, which makes bags on a made to order basis. With that under my belt, Steven encouraged me to think about designing jewelry. He is the owner of a precious metals business. We came up with the idea for Auvere together — using traditional craftsmanship and 22 and 24-karat gold to make bold and modern jewelry. It also helps that I was familiar with 22 and 24-karat gold jewelry as a result of my travels to Turkey and Greece, where high karat gold is common — and having grown up seeing people wearing it in the Caribbean; I am from Jamaica, W.I.

To you, what separates Auvere from other gold-oriented jewelry brands?

Gina Feldman Love: We use only 22 and 24-karat gold. 22 karat gold is 91.67% pure gold and 24 karat gold is 99.99% pure gold. Our jewelry contains so much more gold than jewelry that is typically sold in the United States. We are primarily direct-to-consumer via our website, auvere.com. As such, we can sell for prices that are competitive with the 14K and 18K jewelry sold by traditional retailers. By skipping the middlemen, we also get to skip the excessive markup.

Is there an Auvere accomplishment you are most proud of?

Gina Feldman Love: Yes. The creation of the entire brand from scratch. Building a brand is so much more involved and important than any individual piece that we create. It takes forethought and vision as well as daily attention to mundane and routine tasks. The process is challenging. But it’s incredibly-satisfying, and I’ve never enjoyed anything that was easy.

What does 2020 look like for Auvere?

Gina Feldman Love: I anticipate another year of rapid growth. This past year, all of our major metrics, including revenue, have doubled over 2018. That is indeed a blessing but requires that much more management. What else? We are also going to introduce an updated website in the spring of 2020 as well as a new collection — our fifth — in the summer of 2020. Finally, we are introducing gemstones to our jewelry. Initially, we will focus on diamonds and rubies. But expect more colored gemstones to follow!

When not busy with Auvere, where does your free time usually go?

Gina Feldman Love: It goes to spending time with my family and traveling around the world. My husband and I got married in May, so my family has expanded, and they live all over the place! Fortunately, we like to travel — nationally and internationally. In the past four years, we’ve been to Jamaica, Bermuda, Columbia, Peru, Mexico, Morocco, Japan, India, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Portugal, Great Britain and Canada. We are heading to Australia in 2020!

What was the last concert you attended for fun?

Gina Feldman Love: Well, I only ever go to concerts for fun! The last one I attended was Travis Scott at Madison Square Garden earlier this year. He was promoting his new album, Astroworld.

Finally, Gina, any last words for readers?

Gina Feldman Love: Yes! Thanks for reading all the way down to the end! Stop by the online store sometime and say hello. If you see something that you like, use the code “TRUEGOLD15” to enjoy 15% off all full-priced items. Offer expires December 22. Website: auvere.com; Instagram: @auvere_true_gold.


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About the Author

Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."


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