Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt James.
Hi Matt, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started Gem Studio in 2017, and I actually started it originally as a fundraiser. It was originally started in my bedroom to help me raise money for an orphanage that I founded back in 2013 in Uganda.
Back in 2013, I was traveling a ton doing humanitarian work, and I ended up working for a company out in Uganda helping organize volunteer groups. And I met this amazing community out on the western side of Uganda in this small little town, and I knew that was like the spot where I wanted to make sure I set something up that was sustainable and long-lasting.
I partnered with this small community, and I told them, if you guys give me a plot of land, I will build a school. I was 22 years old, had literally no idea what I was doing. They gave me this piece of land, and I worked with some local people, and we built this three-classroom school that was able to take care of, you know, maybe like 20 or 30 kids. And they slept there, and they had food there, and they had school there. And it was something that I was incredibly proud of, but it was very small, and it wasn’t anything that I knew was going to be sustainable and be able to really provide the education and the life that I wanted for these kids.
So I came home one summer, and I was like, I need to figure out a way to make some money. So I decided to kind of combine my two favorite things, which was working in Africa with the orphanage that I started, as well as turquoise jewelry. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve been obsessed with turquoise. I don’t know why, it just like was in my DNA. I just loved it. So I wanted to learn how to silversmith and sell those rings.
Once I learned how to silversmith, I actually learned really quickly just watching YouTube videos. I quickly realized instead of selling the rings, I should sell the experience of teaching people how to make the ring. I started inviting people over to my house, and it was just literally in my bedroom, and we would just do these long workshops side by side, and I would teach them how to make their own jewelry. And it was just such a special experience and like something that I was really good at, and I loved it, and it was so fun for me.
I started posting about it on Instagram, and it just like exploded. Like within just a few months, I had thousands of people that wanted to come to my room and make rings with me. So I was like, this is like legit. So I dropped out of college. I renovated a shed in my friend’s backyard, and we opened up the gem studio, and it was literally super low key. You had like park at a park, and you had to like walk down the road and into this like alleyway and into this like shed in someone’s backyard.
Once you got in the shed, it was like loud music, super fun atmosphere. I hired all my friends to be instructors for me. It was like probably the best time of my life. It was amazing. I met my wife there. She came into the workshop as a customer, and I thought that she was in love with me because she was like so nice and fun, but she actually is just that way to everybody. But I thought she was amazing. We started dating. We got married, and then we decided to like be serious with gem studio and scale it.
So we ended up convincing City Creek by some miraculous event to let us open a gem studio there. So we went from a shed in a backyard to being next to Louis Vuitton in City Creek Mall, and that location just did incredibly well. We were able to use the money that we were able to earn from that location to expand, and now we’re up to 10 locations across the country.
It’s been an amazing journey. We’ve been able to continue donating to Africa. We now have five acres of land that has a full primary school, free dormitories that takes care of like 250 children. We’re just getting started. We want to open up a lot more over the next few years.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Yeah, it definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. As a small company, there’s just so much you have to figure out on the fly. For example, we were literally just three months into opening our first real location at City Creek Mall when COVID hit. That completely flipped everything upside down. We had to pivot fast to e-commerce just to keep income flowing, and that whole process taught us a lot—about online sales, marketing, and just being adaptable when things don’t go as planned.
Once we could finally go back to doing in-person workshops, it was a whole new challenge. We had to rethink how to teach smaller groups that were more spread out, and really redesign our experience from the ground up. Staffing was also super tough, especially since we were originally such an in-person, hands-on company. Honestly, COVID was a total roller coaster, but what got us through it was our community. Our fans were so supportive—they were excited to get out of the house and do something creative. That energy really helped carry us through and made us stronger in the long run.
And beyond that, scaling a company is just incredibly challenging. We now run in-person workshops and retail spaces across five states and multiple time zones. Learning how to hire, train, and manage teams remotely has been a big learning curve. But one of the biggest things we’ve focused on is making sure our company culture actually exists across all locations—not just our home base. We’ve really leaned into hiring people who align with our core values and making sure every studio feels connected to what we stand for.
So yeah, those are some of the struggles we’ve had to work through—but we’ve come out stronger on the other side.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
At Gem Studio, what really sets us apart is that we were first to market with this kind of hands-on, interactive jewelry-making experience.
We teach hands-on jewelry workshops where guests can create their own high-quality, heirloom piece—totally from scratch. People use real sterling silver and one-of-a-kind precious stones, and they actually get to do the work themselves. That means soldering with a torch, polishing, hammering—everything. It’s immersive, creative, and incredibly empowering. You walk away not just with a beautiful, handmade piece of jewelry, but with the pride of knowing you made it.
What makes Gem Studio truly special is that we’re obsessed with the experience. We care deeply about the vibe in the room—our staff aren’t just expert silversmiths; they’re warm, fun, charismatic people who genuinely connect with each guest. When you leave a workshop, you leave with more than a ring or necklace—you leave with a story, a memory, and often a new friend.
We’re especially proud of making something that once felt inaccessible—like silversmithing—totally doable and approachable. Most people don’t think they could ever make their own sterling silver ring. We prove them wrong in the best way. It’s fast, affordable, and something people love sharing with their loved ones.
In addition to our classic silversmithing workshops, we also offer:
Permanent jewelry – for those simple, seamless, never-take-it-off pieces
Charm workshops – where you can design and create personalized charm necklaces from hundreds of options
Whether you’re coming in for a date night, a solo creative moment, or a girls’ night out, Gem Studio is here to make sure you leave with something unforgettable.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
Yeah, I’d be naive to say that luck hasn’t played a major role in Gem Studio’s journey. I feel incredibly fortunate to have started the business right at the tail end of the golden age of Instagram. We launched Gem Studio at a time when Instagram still had this really organic, growth-friendly vibe. That window allowed us to build a loyal and engaged audience fairly quickly. We were able to work with incredible influencers, host meaningful giveaways, and create community-focused content that helped get the word out in a big way—especially during those early days in 2017 and 2018.
We also just happened to start Gem in one of the best places in the country to launch a small business: Utah Valley. Not only is it incredibly business-friendly, but it’s also full of creators and influencers who genuinely want to help local brands succeed. We were able to form connections with people who have since gone on to become some of the biggest influencers in Utah, and they supported us from the very beginning.
And honestly, I believe a huge part of our success has come from the heart behind our brand. From day one, Gem Studio was created as a way to raise money for a primary school in Uganda. We’ve always made giving back a central part of our mission. And I genuinely believe that kind of energy—putting good into the world—has come back to us tenfold. Being a give-back company isn’t just a line in our bio—it’s who we are, and I think that’s something people can feel when they walk through our doors.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gemstudio.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.gemstudio/?hl=en
