After co-founders Adam Bohbot and David Benayoun created the direct-to-consumer jewelry brand Ana Luisa in 2018, they immediately set their sights on global brand awareness. The first step was building up their social following and e-commerce business, and a store finally followed with a soft opening in November and an official announcement this month.
According to the founders, the brand’s main selling points are its earth-friendly approach to production and affordable price points, with most pieces retailing for under $200. In addition, the brand hosts frequent sales and works with a network of beauty and fashion influencers through gifted and paid collaborations.
The brand quickly gained traction among millennials and Gen Z, its target consumers. On Instagram, the brand’s primary social platform, it has over 630,000 followers, and its TikTok account has 28,800 followers.
“Over the last five years, we’ve [gifted product to] over 30,000 influencers in over 150 countries,” Bohbot told Glossy. “And three out of four new customers are coming from influencer marketing.” He said Ana Luisa’s revenue has grown each year, but declined to share specifics.
Ana Luisa’s first store is located in the heart of New York’s SoHo neighborhood, on Spring Street. The team settled on the location based on data from the New York Business Journal showing that, in April 2023, foot traffic in downtown Manhattan was up at least 13% month-over-month. That signaled that consumers were returning to in-person shopping. What’s more, the founders launched the brand in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
Bohbot and Benayoun raised an undisclosed amount of capital from different investors to launch the brand, but according to Bohbot, the retail expansion initiative has been a self-funded effort.
“We’re giving ourselves six to nine months to understand [and perfect] our retail model,” said Bohbot. Over the next two to three years, the plan is to roll out 10 Ana Luisa stores in the U.S., on the East and the West Coasts.
The founders have already gained learnings from the brand’s new presence in physical retail. “We’re seeing the [level of] demand for new products, which [is helpful], merchandising-wise,” Bohbot said, calling out fulfilling demand as a new challenge. In addition, he said, in-store customization, which the brand doesn’t offer online, has been popular among shoppers.
To get people into the store, Bohbot said the team will somewhat rely on organic foot traffic. In addition, to also connect with the brand’s online community, the Ana Luisa team will organize monthly IRL events, which will include exclusive opportunities for participants in the brand’s loyalty program, Ana Luisa Rewards.
The store offers private styling and gifting sessions for influencers, and in the future, there are plans to roll out permanent jewelry, engraving and piercing services.
