Online and catalog gifting company RedEnvelope is poised to double its jewelry selection by the holiday season—increasing offerings in the fine and customizable jewelry categories in particular.

RedEnvelope, whose name has become synonymous with sterling silver jewelry and accessories that can be customized with personal accents such as engraved names and birthstones, has been a go-to for special occasion shoppers since launching in 1998.

Images from RedEnvelope’s jewelry pages, courtesy of the company.

“Our core premise has really been about finding the right gift for the right occasion,” says Kevin Rooney, RedEnvelope’s vice president of merchandising. “And we’re seeing a big opportunity in this for jewelry…it fits really well into that, in that there are often stories behind the pieces.”

Rooney attended the JCK show in Las Vegas for the first time this year and calls it “a huge learning experience.” It was also a success, he says: “We found lots of new things [including] a handful of designers we’re really excited about.”

Among the company’s Vegas finds was San Francisco-based Mabel Chong. “Mabel has amazing pearl pieces and gold,” notes Rooney. “It’s hopefully a [brand] we’re doing in a big way for holiday.”

He adds, “Smaller, more boutique brands, the story of the piece and who made it, the design perspective and ethos…these things really resonate with our customers.”

RedEnvelope is also moving into men’s jewelry, and at JCK chanced upon Zaunick, a South American manufacturer that fabricates “really unique sterling silver cuff links and tie bars,” says Rooney. The brand’s 3-D pieces, which depict everything from great white shark heads to the hands of Star Trek‘s Spock frozen in the Vulcan salute, “are just an awesome, unique gift.”

Jewelry that can be customized to reflect personal milestones “is really where we’ve had our greatest amount of success,” says Rooney. The brand’s Morse Code Sisters Necklace, which spells out “sisters” in a series of gold dots and dashes, is a hot seller, for example.

But though jewelry featuring semiprecious gems is RedEnvelope’s bread and butter, Rooney says he’s also looking to add to the company’s high-end selection of baubles. “We’re seeing that there’s not really a price ceiling, so we’re considering a larger push into diamonds and yellow gold.”

But silver, the retailer’s bedrock, will always be front-and-center on the website and in the catalog. “Our core aesthetic is modern classic,” says Rooney, “and sterling silver really fits that.”

Follow JCK on Instagram: @jckmagazine
Follow JCK on Twitter: @jckmagazine
Follow JCK on Facebook: @jckmagazine