Kendra Scott started a jewelry company with $500 from her spare bedroom in Austin, Texas. No outside investment, no fashion industry connections, just a woman making jewelry and selling it wherever she could. That was 2002. Now Kendra Scott is one of the biggest jewelry brands in the country with over 100 retail stores and products in major department stores nationwide.
She grew up in Wisconsin and eventually landed in Austin. Before the jewelry business she tried a hat line that didn't work out. When she pivoted to jewelry, she started by going door to door at local boutiques with her designs. The colorful, bold aesthetic connected with people immediately and the brand grew through word of mouth and grassroots retail before scaling into something much bigger.
What sets Kendra Scott apart from a lot of fashion brands is the giving component. The company has donated over $50 million to local and national causes, and the Kendra Scott stores do these community events where a portion of sales goes to charity. It's built into how the brand operates, not just a PR thing.
On Shark Tank as a guest shark, Kendra brings real retail and consumer brand expertise. She's built physical stores, she's done wholesale, she's done e-commerce, and she's done it all while maintaining a very specific brand identity. She knows what it takes to grow a product-based business from $500 to a billion-dollar valuation.
A few highlights:
- Founded Kendra Scott jewelry with $500, grew it into a billion-dollar brand
- Over 100 retail stores across the United States
- Company has donated over $50 million to charitable causes
- Built the brand from a spare bedroom in Austin, Texas