Beth Hutchens, founder of iconic jewelry brand Foundray, admits so when asked about expanding to the Upper East Side and opening a new store in the woods near Madison Avenue. After all, Hutchins is the perfect inner-city girl. Today she wears a scissor-torn T-shirt with a smile on her face and a bottle of ketchup and mustard, which is nothing like what you would imagine a strong woman on the Upper East Side would wear. For the past nine years, she has owned a beautiful store on Lispenard Street in Tribeca, a destination for visitors to Canal Street who seek out Foundray’s collectible jewelry to express their unique personalities.
But as her daughter began attending school in town and Hutchins got to know the community better, she realized that there were, in fact, countless men and women who were not yet members of the Foundre family. “We all have egos,” she admits. “I used to think everybody came to town — and then suddenly I realized that not a lot of people came here and that there was actually a lot of creativity and interest in arts and crafts.”
Hutchins firmly believes that her design aesthetic is universal. Her work is filled with highly personal symbols, principles, affirmations and celebrations of what she calls “our unity.” Miami made headlines last year when she recently opened her store at 8405 Melrose Place in Los Angeles and now it’s a Manhattan venture. She has no plans to be an absentee owner—her ambitious goal is to visit the locations at least once a month. “I love getting to know this community,” she said. (It’s much easier if the store is just a short subway walk—take the 6 train—or Uber to Madison.)
Once the decision was made, no amount of possessions would help. “As soon as I saw this place, I knew I wanted it, and not just because the address was 777 Madison. It was much smaller than the other stores. And I knew I wanted it to be red all the time. Red — the whole store, the floor, the ceiling, the walls — but it had to be cinnabar, light red, like cinnabar ink!
This Cinnabar mini palace may be relatively small, but it’s big enough to house a jeweler and a hand-carver. Because you’ll probably want to carry your charms around — raise or lower them as you reach different milestones — and you want something with just a personalized enough message that this is what it’s all about. “People create their own work,” Hutchins said, explaining the essence of her brand. “You’ll never see your necklace on someone else’s hand, and even if you’re in a room full of people wearing Foundrée, they’ll retain their identity.”
Does she expect customers with different tastes in different cities? Yes, probably. Just for fun, she’s set up what she calls “discovery drawers” in various locations, containing items no one has seen before. “They’re not photographed and they don’t appear on our website — it’s just my excuse to have fun and explore!” And — spoiler alert — for the new Madison store, she’s probably dropping a huge malachite and gold four-leaf clover. “It’s bigger than anything I’ve ever made before. I love it! Not everyone wants to invest in something that’s normal but not wearable every day. But now with the discovery drawer, I’ll probably reach one or two people who will think it’s the coolest thing they’ve ever seen in their lives.”
If the adventure of Discover the Drawer gets too exciting for you, you can always stop at the Wendy Coffee Shop and consider your options over a cup of daily coffee. “Or you can even have breakfast at Carlisle,” laughs Hutchins, “and suddenly you have the pleasure of being in two places at once.” The splendor of Lispenard Street and Madison (Madison) makes an eclectic atmosphere welcome you to the world of Founder.
The new Foundray store is located at 777 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10065.
