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Born in Guatemala, Cristy Cali, 34, got her start in jewelry sales and design as a teenager in her parents’ New Orleans tourist-oriented business, Sterling Sylvia, before launching her career as a jewelry designer focusing on New Orleans themes. She opened a retail storefront in 2019, but the advent of COVID-19 made her reconsider that business model. Now Cali, who sells primarily online, also operates a retail showroom in St. Rose, LA, for walk-ins on Saturdays and weekdays by appointment. Cali is a recipient of the 2024 Small Business Administration’s Entrepreneurship Success Award. 

EARLY DAYS. The first time I sold a $100 beaded bracelet, I could not believe someone spent their hard-earned money on something I made from scratch. That motivated me. I felt like I was adding value to someone’s life. Even in such a small way, if it brought joy to someone, that was fulfilling.

FINDING JOY. About two years ago, I started prioritizing my health and well-being more than the business. That was a big change for me. I find joy in doing anything that helps me move my body: hiking, bicycling, running.

DIVERSIFYING DESIGN. Recently, I have been designing things that have nothing to do with New Orleans. The Cosmic Collection is inspired by my interest in stars, planets and seeing what’s beyond our world.

GUATEMALA CONNECTION. I work with Guatemalan craftspeople to make jewelry that celebrates New Orleans culture and Mardi Gras. The artists in Guatemala need help and support, so giving them business makes me feel good.

ONLINE EXTRA: Q&A With Cristy Calli

What did you enjoy about the jewelry business as a child?

What I loved about my parents’ business was whatever we bought, that was it. We didn’t stock things forever. There was always something new and fresh and I got to go on buying trips with them. We would travel to different places for handmade jewelry, like Bali and Taxco, Mexico. I would hang out with the artists, seeing how things were made, and I noticed that every culture went about it in a different way. It made me fall in love with a variety of styles. That’s why my line is so diverse. I may have a certain aesthetic, but the designs are all so different.

What was it like to work at Sterling Sylvia?

I started working for my parents when I was 15, right after Hurricane Katrina. I’m an only child and wanted to make a difference because they always worked. I wanted to contribute. What made a huge impact on me was after mom taught me to make beaded jewelry, I felt I could creatively contribute to the business in my own way. The first time I sold a $100 beaded bracelet, I could not believe someone spent $100 of their hard-earned money on something I made from scratch. That motivated me. I felt like I was really adding value to someone’s life. Even in such a small way, if it brought joy to someone, if someone connected with it… that was fulfilling.

How did you begin to design jewelry?

As I got older, I did some work for an art class. My mom turned one of my art pieces into a piece of jewelry, and I started selling that. I realized I could turn my artwork into jewelry, and I started building my own collection. I was the designer who represented Sterling Sylvia.

Why did you decide to start your own separate business?

By 2012, I had been designing for them for three or four years and I had already established a following. Mostly tourists in the French Quarter, but also quite a few locals. Around that time, social media started blowing up, and I was leveraging social media to make sales when it was slow in the store. But that’s when we had a clash of generations. They thought I was spending too much time on the computer, and they thought I was playing around when I was making sales online. My ideas were too out of the box for them. I was spending a lot of time adding jewelry to their website, but they didn’t want to invest in building a better website. It eventually got to the point where I valued family over business and I quit so I could have a mom and dad. But unfortunately, they saw my quitting as an act of betrayal. We didn’t talk for seven years. It was a really difficult time in my life. But it allowed me to rediscover who I was. It opened a new world of asking myself, if I could have my own company, what would it look like? How would I brand it? I didn’t know what branding was till a year after I opened the company. I learned from doing it.

How did your business evolve?

As my world expanded, so did the designs. I knew New Orleans jewelry sells, but I am more than just New Orleans. So, I started making other things, and they sold. That helped me grow. I realized people liked my designs because of me. As creatives, we tend to judge our self-worth and value based on how our creativity is seen in the world. It is validating when people pay hard-earned money to buy something that we make. But the lesson is learning that you shouldn’t rely on that for your self-worth and fulfillment. I learned to find fulfillment in the process, not how successful it is in the marketplace. When you wear the jewelry designer and entrepreneur hats, you have to realize that sometimes a certain collection doesn’t resonate with an audience.

What are you working on now?

Years ago, 60 to 70% of my designs were related to New Orleans. Recently, I have been designing jewelry that has nothing to do with New Orleans. My most recent collection is the Cosmic Collection. I wanted to be an astronomer when I was younger. I am interested in stars and planets and seeing what’s beyond our world. I’m also really fascinated by botanicals. My Latin background had a lot of sugar skull stuff, so I like doing skulls. There’s something about skulls I feel fascinating, a celebration of life and death.

What is your relationship to Guatemala?

I was born in Guatemala, and I went back and forth until fourth or fifth grade because my family had a business in both places. After that, I lived full time in New Orleans, but I went to Guatemala every summer to visit extended family. Now I work with Guatemalan crafts people to make jewelry that celebrates New Orleans culture and Mardi Gras. The artists in Guatemala need help and support, so giving them business makes me feel good. I want to integrate and infuse that into the collection. I’m working on selling jewelry in Guatemala. One of my goals within the next year is to find retail partners in Guatemala and also do some private shows. My mom is helping me with that.

What do you do when you have time off?

Fitness, being athletic, and being active are important to me. I prioritize that now because I spent a lot of years behind the bench, sitting and standing, and it started affecting my back. I was prioritizing work more than my well-being. About two years ago, I started prioritizing my health and well-being more than the business. That was a big change for me. I find joy in doing anything that helps me move my body: hiking, bicycling, running.