Mejuri, which has won a following among young women-including high-profile celebs like Taylor Swift-is riding a metal-market roller coaster
By David Uberti | Photography by Francesco Lastrucci for WSJ
Mejuri, a jeweler that built a following among young women with pieces worn by the likes of Taylor Swift, was already feeling the pain of costlier gold when prices touched $3,000 a troy ounce.
But then gold hit $4,000, then $5,000. And kept going up.
A wild stretch for the market has upended the way many investors view a commodity long considered a stable store of value. It has also forced many jewelers -- not to mention their necklace-layering customers -- to rethink their gold purchases.
At Mejuri, big boardroom decisions were soon tied to government inflation data, policy moves in Washington, and even reports of armed gangs turning to gold mining. Add in President Trump's reordering of global trade that boosted costs further, and the jeweler was faced with an emergency, said Chief Executive Noura Sakkijha.
"It would kill a business if you don't act very quickly," she said in a recent interview. "Everything was going up. At some point you're looking at your margin and you're like, 'How can we run this business?' It's not feasible."
Mejuri's globe-spanning operation must execute with precision before its customers can slip on the jeweler's tennis bracelets and signet rings. Refining partners such as Italpreziosi in Tuscany process raw gold, scrapped jewelry or old electronics into usable metal. A slate of contract manufacturers stretching from Italy to India to Thailand and beyond shape it into jewelry. Designers in the Manhattan neighborhood of Tribeca envision new styles. Sakkijha oversees it all from the company's Toronto headquarters.
As prices catapulted higher, the company leaned in to 10-karat gold, vermeil plating, silver and even (gasp) stainless steel. Mejuri rejiggered parts of a supply chain through which tens of thousands of ounces of gold flow each year. Expansion plans slowed for its roster of roughly 60 retail locations. Sourcing targets changed after reports of illicit metal piled up.
Although a recent rise in interest rates and the dollar have pushed gold lower, the market continues to seesaw wildly. Before 2025, futures prices swung by triple digits on a given day just three times in records stretching back a half-century. There have been 42 such sessions this year alone.
At the same time, as wealthy Americans continue shelling out for want-to-have items and experiences, some inflation-weary consumers focus more on what they need to have. Analysts and executives say that has contributed to a widened gap between luxury brands geared toward the ultrarich, and those that cater to everyone else.
Even though Mejuri ate some costs from gold's run-up, the company still had to raise prices. Executives say loyal customers -- the firm derives about 55% of monthly revenue from repeat buyers -- have come along for the ride.
But not everyone is game. On TikTok, where small armies of women routinely post about how they are styling the latest Mejuri drop, one user with a quarter-million followers this spring described a price hike on a 14-karat necklace as "DIABOLICAL."
Now, as Mejuri adapts to the new market, its contingency planning for the coming years includes a scenario that was previously unthinkable: gold nearly doubling again -- to $8,000 a troy ounce.
"It's been a really big wake-up call," said Majed Masad, Sakkijha's co-founder and husband. "And I think any jewelry executive is really thinking hard right now: What are we doing? What are we changing? What materials are we investing in? What bets are we making? Where's the consumer going to go?"
'Water levels have changed for everybody'
Sakkijha's father and grandfather were both jewelers in Jordan. She studied engineering and earned an M.B.A. in Canada before putting her own spin on the family business. Sakkijha married Masad, and in 2015 the pair launched Mejuri.
The firm focused on making jewelry for everyday wear -- often at price points below $300 -- rather than big-ticket wedding and anniversary gifts. Digital marketing powered by Instagram influencers helped spread the word. A business model that cut out wholesalers pushed down costs. The pandemic-era e-commerce boom fueled expansion.
The company ground through a number of challenges: the subsequent inflationary spike that dinged real-wage growth, a financial scare when Mejuri's primary bank, Silicon Valley Bank, collapsed, and diamond-market shock after Russia invaded Ukraine.
In retrospect, Sakkijha said, "That was small potatoes." A customer base advancing in their careers -- earning more disposable income -- didn't hurt. "Many of them are now ready to graduate in a higher price point and more extravagant design," she added.
But gold costs rocketed higher in 2025, dovetailing with unexpected changes in tariff policy. Suddenly, Mejuri was under siege.
Hoop earrings produced in countries such as India wouldn't only cost more to make. Mejuri would also face import taxes on those costlier shipments to the U.S. The end of a tariff exemption for products below $800 in value meant that Mejuri couldn't route jewelry stateside through a fulfillment center in Canada.
Pointing to higher costs, Sakkijha said, "The water levels have changed for everybody."
'Value doesn't equal price'
Since then, the company has fulfilled more orders at a facility in Ohio, as well as from retail locations stateside. Mejuri also shifted production of certain styles within its manufacturing network to minimize tariff effects.
With an eye toward sustainability seen as key for brand loyalty, Mejuri also changed how it sources supplies in a market often associated with worker and environmental abuse. Executives previously pushed to use recycled gold to minimize such impact. Reused supplies tend to be between 1% to 7% more expensive, said Holly McHugh, Mejuri's vice president of sustainability and social impact.
But reports of illicit gold making its way into the supply chain crimped Mejuri's confidence somewhat. "If we don't trust the traceability, what are we actually paying for?" McHugh said.
The firm has trimmed recycled gold to 90% of supplies, down from 96%, and hopes to use more newly mined gold in the future. An investment in a firm that recovers "salmon gold" from abandoned mines in western Canada and Alaska promises to add traceable metal meanwhile.
While gold costs have retreated in recent months, Masad is reluctant to respond to short-term volatility for fear of whipsawing customers with price cuts that could quickly reverse.
His team analyzed reams of data to understand the extent to which price hikes on smaller-ticket pieces could scare off new customers who are key for growth, or slow impulse buys. "Our entire pricing architecture needed to change," he said.
Mejuri hopes to maintain value by bolstering its retail locations with more styling help and a better ambience, as well as investing in the tech behind digital transactions and customer service. Masad said the company is putting even more emphasis on distinct design.
"Price is one part of the equation -- it's not the only part of the equation," he said. "Value doesn't equal price."
This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (October 06, 2026).