My first big trade show was JCK Las Vegas in 2020.

If you don’t know what JCK is — it’s the largest jewelry trade show in the world. It spans exhibition halls and hotels. Thousands of brands. Retailers from all over the globe. It’s overwhelming in the best way.

Walking into that space for the first time felt surreal. The only way I can describe it is like walking into Times Square for the first time — you look up, you spin in a circle, and you just try to take it all in. It’s loud. It’s bright. It’s massive. It makes you feel small and inspired at the same time.

And I had a booth there. URBAETIS Fine Jewelry.

I had owned my business for three years before I could even consider applying. You don’t just show up. You have to build a collection large enough to fill showcases. You need pricing, production, displays, employees, booth design, capital — and the confidence to stand behind it all.

I had around 200 designs at the time. (I have 700+ now.) But those 200 pieces were mine. They were designed by a millennial, for a millennial. And people understood that. Other millennial women who owned jewelry businesses came to my booth and immediately got it. There was this unspoken connection — we all knew what we were building.

I was accepted into the Design Collective, which meant my work had been reviewed by a board of industry professionals — people who had seen jewelry for decades. Some of my neighboring brands had been in business for 40+ years. To be placed among them felt… confirming. Even now, thinking about it makes me emotional.

I was also the youngest woman-owned jewelry brand showing in that section that year.

People would walk into my booth and ask where my father was so they could “get down to business.” When I told them I was the founder and designer, they were surprised. When they asked if my family was in the industry and I said no, they were confused.

But I stood there anyway.

My goal that week? Just survive it. Make sales. Don’t look young and dumb. Don’t make a mistake I couldn’t recover from.

But I didn’t just survive it. I exceeded my own expectations. I spoke confidently. I made my sales. I signed up for the following year before the show even ended.

The most exciting moment was Day One — when everything was set up. The marketing. The displays. The jewelry in the cases. It felt like my baby had finally come to term. And she was beautiful.

There was one moment that has stayed with me.

A store from Beverly Hills — a dream store — came to my booth. I was thrilled. They looked quickly and were about to leave, so I asked if I could show them anything.

The woman squinted and said, “Honey, I can’t even see the jewelry. Your designs are so small.”

It hit me. Hard.

She wasn’t wrong — my designs weren’t for her client. But in that moment, I realized I still had more to do. More to design. More to prove.

Two years later, I sold to that same retailer.

That moment didn’t shrink me. It sharpened me.

When I first started, I designed for myself. As I grew and expanded into wholesale, I started designing for stores — for price points, for trends, for requests.

But somewhere along the way, I realized I didn’t want to design for the extra sale.

I wanted to design for the connection.

I still sell to stores across North America and the UK. But now, I design for me. And for women like me.

Intentional. Stylish. Unapologetic.

That trade show made me feel real.

But choosing to design for feeling instead of approval — that’s what made me confident.