Tamara Al-Shamari is a successful entrepreneur and the founder of TAÏÏA Jewelry and VÏÏBE Jewelry. With a background in MBA, Tamara has combined her passion for business and jewelry design to create unique pieces that reflect her clients’ individuality. Tamara’s focus on creating joy and happiness for her clients is reflected in her bespoke approach to jewelry making, where she works closely with each client to create a piece that they will cherish forever.
She is committed to maintaining a human touch in jewelry-making while embracing new technology to enhance the customer experience. With plans for future expansion and a commitment to sustainability, Tamara is a rising star in the world of jewelry design. Learn more through our interview with Tamara Al-Shamari below.
What’s the idea behind Your Company?
The idea behind TAÏÏA was simple: create high-end jewelry with exceptional craftsmanship using affordable gemstones. The brand then expanded to offer various lines, from daily high-end jewelry to high-end wedding jewelry.
How did you begin your career journey?
Never in a million years would I have imagined that I would be studying gems and diamonds, let alone designing them. However, it has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. When everything else failed, I decided to start over and pursue what I truly loved. Initially, I was on a completely different career path, which meant starting over from scratch. I took a chance on what really mattered to me and enrolled in Gemology School (GIA and IGI), followed by Design, and now here we are!
Do you have some advice for beginners?
Uncertainty is a natural part of any journey. Sometimes we don’t know where to begin or how to organize our thoughts, and this can be extremely overwhelming. That’s why I offer private sessions and lessons for beginners on “How to Start” and “How to Get Your Thoughts on Paper.”
I view things in my life as a puzzle and consider each piece separately. It’s not my job to know the whole picture in the end, but rather to focus on each piece as it comes my way. There is always a bigger, divine plan for each one of us. Trust in this plan, and you will receive everything you have ever wished for. Always follow your gut and heart in everything you do, and never take advice from someone who is not knowledgeable in the field.
What’s the goal of your company?
It’s funny you ask this because I always ask the same question, and my answer varies each time. I guess the goal of my company is to create joy and happiness. I love seeing the delight in my clients’ eyes when I remake a piece of jewelry they’ve hated for years or when they’re thrilled to own a piece they thought they could never afford. I create pieces based on budget and always try to find a way to make it happen. People’s happiness is priceless to me. I deal with my clients one-on-one, which makes all the difference for me.
How important are employees’ energy levels to the success of your company?
The energy of the employees is everything. They must believe in and love the brand, or they won’t be able to deliver the same passion to the clients. The people around me, whether employees, craftsmen, or manufacturers, play a significant role in my life because it’s all a positive process. Creating jewelry is a “positive” experience, and nothing should be negative about it. Once negativity arises, I’m out of the equation because I will not bring that into my brand.
How do you plan to motivate your team to go the extra mile?
When you love something, you give it your all. My team loves the brand, and they are close to me and understand what I’m trying to sell. They go the extra mile out of loyalty to me and the brand.
What keeps Your Company moving forward even during challenges?
I hold onto the hope that there is a bigger picture that I cannot see. My faith is what keeps me going, and I follow this saying religiously at every step of my life: ‘If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.’ We all face challenges daily, and our values and the people that matter are the reasons we keep moving forward.
How do you think technology is leading to changes in businesses? Do you feel it’s helping Your Company grow?
Unfortunately, as much as I advocate, love, and embrace technology and the future, I do not want to eliminate the human factor during the jewelry-creating process. There is a soul when things are done manually. Machines have no soul, and a piece of jewelry off the assembly line for me is empty. I fear the day when a piece of jewelry will be printed and set by a machine from start to finish.
Aside from jewelry making, if embraced in the correct manner, technology is amazing. Being able to create a 3D image of a piece of jewelry within seconds on an iPad and showing it to a client on the spot is comforting for the client and instantly builds trust. I guess it’s a double-edged sword.
How is Your Company adapting to digitalization?
TAÏÏA Jewelry can be found on all social media platforms, and an online store is available for orders. Clients can easily find products on www.taiiajewelry.com and customize them according to their preferred size and color. Delivery is available worldwide.
Do you use innovative ideas to be unique?
Everyone wants to be unique, and every jeweler/designer wants to have one-of-a-kind pieces. Unfortunately, the market is heavily saturated, yet there is still room for innovation, but it’s extremely minimal because, at the end of the day, jewelry made with diamonds and gemstones has a certain level of class to it, no matter how innovatively crazy it may look. It’s hard to be innovative with something bought “forever.” Aside from that, I try to look for new materials to work with, but the logistics are still not there to create such pieces. There are plans for the future to create a new line, but it’s still within the creative process.
What are the services/solutions or products offered by Your Company as par with the current industry standards? Tell us something about your upcoming products or services.
There is a plan for expansion in the future, which includes becoming at least partly sustainable, specifically with gold. The aim is to use only recycled gold to create jewelry.
TAÏÏA currently offers bespoke “100% sustainable” jewelry through confidential private orders. This is becoming increasingly popular nowadays, especially with the rise of lab-grown diamonds and “flux-made” gemstones.
Would you like to say anything else to our viewers?
Thank you to whoever has supported me and for reading this article. I appreciate all the feedback I have gotten and hope to keep creating love.
Connect with Tamara Al-Shamari on LinkedIn.
Find TAÏÏA Jewelry on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, & YouTube.