Having positioned itself with some of the finest jewellers in the UK and Europe since launching in 2017, Little Star has recently undergone a complete refresh. Boasting a new website and an overhauled aesthetic, the brand is now embarking on a more fashion-forward direction, crossing the divide between children’s jewellery and fashion markets. CWB speaks to co-founders Rob Walker and Vicky Leyshon to learn more.

 

01. What’s the back story of Little Star?

Rob Walker: Little Star became a reality in 2017. Vicky had been Head of Design for a leading UK jewellery supplier for 15 years, and I spent my career in senior production roles and then running my own supply agency in the fashion industry. We’d been married for 10 years at that point, and with skill sets that fit together, we had always wanted to do our own project.

Vicky Leyshon: I wanted to give the market something that I felt it was lacking by way of a high-quality, contemporary jewellery brand, where the main focus is kids. There’s a lot of kids’ jewellery out there, but it can be a bit twee, a bit “pink is for girls” type handwriting, and we wanted to offer something to break that mould. Our story, and Cosmo the Rabbit, our original logo, started in Greece where we were visiting my family. At the time we lived in London, where light pollution often means you’re starved of a bright, starry sky. We sat marvelling at the beautiful night sky in Greece thinking, wouldn’t it be nice to somehow take the shining star quality from the sky? It was then that the idea of Cosmo catching stars for us was born.

 

 

02. What does the collection comprise?

VL: My plan was always to keep the collection quite a tight, commercial offer of pieces I knew would work. So, there are classic elements in there that people might consider perfect for gifting and keepsakes, such as a baby bangle or locket, but these are given a contemporary twist. We have pendants, bracelets and earrings, all in recycled sterling silver with 9-carat gold and rose gold plating, and real diamonds and pearls that are manufactured by ethical factories I’ve been working with for over 20 years.

 

 

03. Do you also offer options for adults?

VL: We do. In fact, our Mummy & Me and Daddy & Me ranges are very popular. I wanted to give the range an added facet so that we weren’t just a kids’ brand catering for girls and boys, so we also offer adults’ pieces that can be worn to match the kids or just as a nice piece of jewellery in its own right. As we offer free engraving to all our stockists, the matching sets are a great way to add a personal touch to a sentimental gift that can be shared.

04. What would you highlight as your all-time bestsellers?

VL: Historically, our diamond pieces have always done well. They’re a great way to introduce kids to the idea of something precious to be cared for. At the same time, we do very well with some of the more contemporary pieces, like the rose gold styles. In fact, in the last 12 months, our bestselling line is our Jessica Bangle – a sterling silver adjustable bangle that has inlaid rose gold stars around it.

 

 

05. Can you tell us more about Little Star’s rebranding?

RW: The timing just felt right. The last seven years have simply flown by and we’ve come so far with the original branding and handwriting, but we wanted to give it a new lease of life. We encountered reluctance from some people who love Cosmo and the back story, but don’t worry, he isn’t totally gone. At times we don’t agree on how things should look, which is no bad thing, but we were both on the same page with this from the get-go.

06. How would you describe the brand’s new aesthetic and direction?

VL: It is most definitely a more fashion-focused, contemporary, grown-up approach to what we do. But it was also about striking a balance between new fashion audiences we intend to reach and not alienating some of our established jewellery customers who come to us for classic gifting. At times, it was also about striking a balance in-house, as if left unchecked Rob may have ended up turning our brand into some art-house vanity project.

RW: That is a fair comment.

 

 

07. You also have a new website.

RW: As a brand, it’s essential to have a strong online presence, it’s a window into who we are and allows us to tell our story. We felt that after seven years the website was our biggest asset in showcasing the change we wanted to implement. The starting point was bringing Emma Tunbridge on board, who we’ve worked with before to do the photography, and we couldn’t be happier with the results – everyone loves it. I’ve also got to tip my hat to our developers Alt Design, who worked closely with us to really understand where we wanted to get to and were instrumental in everything from the new branding to themes on the site.

08. How many stockists does Little Star currently have and how wide is your distribution?

RW: I need to keep a running score on this as we’ve taken on a new agent who is opening doors every week, but the last count in the UK across independents and multiples was around 200 doors. We did have quite a healthy EU customer base that became difficult to service after Brexit, which led to us partnering with a distributor in Ireland where we have around 50 doors. You can still find us in some Dutch and French stores, and it’s something we’d like to re-energise, so we’re crossing our fingers that something can be done to improve the current restrictions on trading with the EU.

 

 

09. In terms of wholesale accounts, who are you targeting?

RW: It sounds entirely cliched to say anyone and everyone who likes what we do, though we have a very definite plan to expand more into the kids’ fashion market. We’re absolutely delighted to have just launched with Childrensalon, which is a great place to start and we hope to do much more with them. From a wider perspective, our business is already set up on a wholesale model, servicing small and big customers alike, so we have options for customers right through from people wanting a taster of the brand to taking our full range and lovely new POS for their window.

10. What are the plans for the business?

RW: To keep doing what we do but on a bigger scale. Little Star isn’t some big corporate brand with offices full of people and hoops to jump through, so we love having great direct relationships with all our customers who know the flexibility we can provide. In the immediate term, from the Jewellery Industry perspective, we’ve just been invited as an official supplier to the buying group the Company of Master Jewellers. Hopefully, that will bring its rewards on that front, leaving us the time to begin our world domination of the kids’ fashion market!

For wholesale enquiries contact info@littlestarjewellery.com. Alternatively, click here to visit the brand’s website.