Union City jewelry designer to open permanent showroom in Atlanta

Local jewelry designer, Michele C. Dodge, has been working with an international group of jewelers to open a permanent showroom at America’s Mart in Atlanta this winter.

Dodge will be joining 17 other jewelry artists from such places as Australia, the U.K., Kenya, Canada, and across the U.S. to display and sell their work at the largest wholesale market in the country. The group is calling themselves EmpowerDesign on 8, a reference to their showroom being on the 8th floor of Building 3.

The team is currently in the process of remodeling the showroom so that it will be ready to open for the Atlanta Gift Show starting Jan. 9.

The EmpowerDesign group was formed by their mentor, pageant jewelry designer Stefanie Somers from Houston, TX. Somers hand-selected jewelers with a diverse range of styles, including eco-friendly vegan jewelry, ocean-inspired mini-sculpture, bold leather cuffs, photography-turned-jewelry, and dainty silver earrings. The group meets with Somers via web video conference once a week to plan strategy and to assist each other in business.

Dodge says, “The showroom is a collaborative effort in every way. You think of designers as being competitive with one another, because they often are, but we are working on every aspect of this project as a team. We advise each other in creating our jewelry collections, hiring subcontractors, and even making sure we’ll have enough candy available for customers in the showroom.”

Dodge has been making and selling jewelry in the Bay Area since 2006. She uses sterling silver, gemstones, and hand-crafted cloisonné enamel to design, “math-inspired jewelry for geeks and the people who love them.”

She says, “The Atlanta showroom is a huge leap for me and my business. I’m hoping to make connections with retailers from across the country. It’s exciting to finally show the public what I’ve been working on, and it’s just incredible to able to do it with such a great group of friends.”

Dodge works out of her studio in Union City, and her work is currently available for sale at Abrams Claghorn Gallery on Solano Ave. in Albany.