Mike Cooke has been in the jewelry business for a while, but nothing in his past prepared him for the interest he is now receiving from celebrities.
He started the business that would become Sterling Forever in his parent's basement, just selling jewelry on eBay.
Attention From Iconic Celebrities
“We try to make jewelry that anyone can wear,” he says. “We have customers who shop at Nordstrom Rack that are in their early twenties. We have customers who watch Good Morning America and see our product on television that are in their eighties.”
Eventually, the brand started to gain celebrity interest. The company was even named one of Oprah’s favorite things in 2022.
Sterling Forever’s Instagram profile features images of celebrities such as Jenna Ortega, Kelly Clarkson & Jennifer Coolidge wearing the brand’s jewelry, much to Mike Cooke’s amazement.
Attention From Major Networks
Sterling Forever’s on-trend style has even garnered attention from major networks, which has helped them reach more customers. Cooke recalls one instance where a producer reached out because their website included multiple pieces reminiscent of the Duchess of Sussex’s style.
“We had some products that looked like jewelry Meghan Markle was wearing, so a “Meghan’s look for less” type of television segment was pitched to us,” Mike Cooke recalls. “They showed our products next to the ones Meghan Markle wore, which was basic diamond jewelry. It ended up being the highest revenue day in company history.”
Even though his celebrity list has now grown to include celebrities like Carmen Electra and Lizzo, Cooke is still amazed by the celebrities that wear his designs.
Sterling Forever on The Red Carpet
Red carpets are an endless source of inspiration for Sterling Forever’s products and part of their success comes in creating designs that take inspiration from the runways and involve the process Mike Cooke calls “downsizing” to make them wearable for everyday settings.
“Even people who have them aren’t going to wear a $100,000 pair of diamond drop earrings to work or even a night out,” he explains. “So we’ll change it to a size that works for everyday use. And then obviously take the diamonds out and replace with cubic zirconia white toning the overall piece down to make it wearable, but still mimic the look of the red carpet.”
A Collaboration With Oprah
Sterling Forever recently collaborated with Oprah for The Five Days of Hoops Advent Box Set, which contained five Sterling Forever pieces. It was a different feeling altogether.
“I was very worried about being able to do our part, to the point that we hired an extra twenty people to make sure we could meet the demand,” Mike Cooke recalls. “We had tons of space, tons of products. We were all ready to work around the clock, with overtime – whatever it took.”
The Hottest Trends in Jewelry For Regular Customers
Celebrity or not, Sterling Forever offers plenty to all its customers. It starts with a good product, carefully designed and tested for quality. The company releases two major collections yearly, the spring-summer line and fall-winter, with seasonal collections of a few pieces in between. This way, Sterling Forever is always on the mission to take the hottest trends in the jewelry world and bring them to the regular customer.
Sterling Forever also works hard to ensure they’re available to customers in the way they like to shop the most. It has products in stores with some of the biggest retailers, its own e-commerce shop, and a television presence and has also collaborated with FitFabFun.
Giving Back to The Community
Additionally, Sterling Forever is consistently aware of how it can give back to the community as the company continues to expand its reach.
“Our customer retention rate is through the roof, largely thanks to our great customer service,” says Mike Cooke. “And any time we have an opportunity to give back to a charitable cause, we do it. We’re still a small business, so we like to work with smaller charities, and our customers respond to it. Who doesn’t like shopping and supporting a good charity simultaneously?”
This article was produced and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.