NIQUE JEWELLERY - UK HARPER'S BAZAAR FEATURE UNDER CLASSIFIED SECTION

“The best way to build trust is to be open, transparent and honest”

Pieces that “break the rules”, says Australian designer Danica Roderick of her brand Nique Jewellery. Although traditional in her training and approach to jewellery making, Danica Roderick is particular when it comes to the originality and uniqueness of her designs. When asked about how she “breaks the rules” with Nique Jewellery, she referenced her design process specifically. She spoke passionately about the unconventionality of her creations, including her use of multicoloured metals, mixing different coloured stones, as well as the asymmetry of gemstone placement. Danica explained that conventionally one would find one, three or five main stones symmetrically distributed, however she enjoys playing with twos, thus creating the asymmetry of stone placement and “[breaking] the rules” of traditional jewellery designs.

Danica’s pursuit of jewellery making traces back to her childhood. Aged eleven, Danica discovered her passion for jewellery whilst caravanning with her grandparents through Queensland, Australia. Here they explored the gemfields, spending ten days looking for sapphires. This intimate experience soon grew into a relentless pursuit of her own jewellery brand: “That was the start of it… The appreciation for the different colours of sapphires really got me ticking. With the sapphires that I found, I then started to design things to put them in and that just led on. When I got a bit older, I had sketchbooks full of jewellery sketches… That was where the passion started.”

Danica Roderick’s Nique Jewellery can easily be defined by the brand name itself, a name which speaks for itself. “Nique” originates from Danica’s abbreviated childhood nickname “Neek”, however its spelling also implies the uniqueness of her brand’s designs and overall aesthetic. Her brand name and brand values have always been one and the same, unique and indicative of the person that she is. It is challenging but also simultaneously crucial to develop one’s own, definitive artistic voice in order to differentiate from the masses. This is exactly what Danica has achieved with her brand Nique Jewellery: “People that know me look at my jewellery and say it’s very you”, says Danica Roderick of her brand identity, continuing on she describes her brand, “It’s very classic, it tells a story and it’s personable, all in one go.”

A fascinating detail about Danica’s Nique Jewellery is the educational process she takes her customers through. Danica has always been adamant about incorporating educational aspects into her jewellery advertising/selling approach. She shares these moments with her customers through social media, namely Instagram, posting about the manufacturing process. This results in a very unique experience for her customer base as it is not often that customers are given insight into how their purchased products came to be. Danica shares with her customers the beautiful intricacies of the older trade that is jewellery making. Danica welcomes and encourages her clients to even spectate the jewellery making process in person or over zoom. This has allowed Nique Jewellery to establish a special, intimate relationship with its customers, fuelling Danica’s commitment to her brand identity as being personable.

“The best way to build trust is to be open, transparent and honest”, says Danica of the business side of Nique Jewellery. Upon establishing her brand, it was Danica’s priority to ensure transparency and trust. And so going back to the educational behind the scenes jewellery making process, this is one of Danica’s main ways in which she can connect with and engage her customers, forming the transparency she speaks of. The full glass paned window in her store encourages this honest approach. 

Speaking of honesty and openness, this was felt throughout the entirety of our interview with Danica, who emitted warmth and sincerity so effortlessly. It was evident to us that Danica’s character is very much intertwined with her products, hence her unique artistic voice. Danica was also honest about the challenges she faced along the way. She spoke of how jewellery making is constantly a learning experience, especially since it is an old trade. Earlier on in Danica’s career, in the process of trying to find an apprenticeship, she experienced doubts because of how long it took to find work. Danica persevered regardless of this, sharing with us: “All your doubts turn into lessons and teach you things, which are fantastic, especially if you are going into business in the long-run.”

When asked to share advice with those who possess the same aspirations and dreams, no matter the industry, Danica was quick to elaborate upon her wisdom: “Surround yourself with supportive people because you need sounding boards to bounce ideas off. Even if you’re not going to take on anything that they say, it’s good to just say things out loud over and over. You need to be really good at problem solving… and also know that at times you’re going to be juggling four, five different issues and you need to be able to prioritise what needs to be done.”

It was charming to have Danica share with us some of her favourite designs during the interview process, as well sketches of both her current designs and designs to be. One of her favourite designs, which she showcased in our interview, was the baguette wisp rings in rose gold. The story behind the wisp collection, as Danica explains, is to showcase your inner beauty and strength, “every woman, young or old, needs to be reminded of that.” Sentimental stories such as these are what inspire Danica’s beautiful collections. Another special service she provides her customers is the restoration of old jewellery, jewellery that may have belonged to a parent, grandparent, etc. Danica takes these pieces and revamps them into designs that echo the stories of the customer’s loved ones, with a touch of her own artistic voice. Beyond being a jewellery designer, Danica Roderick is a storyteller.

During a sweet moment between her partner Brandt, who made a special appearance, and Danica, we were given a gorgeous description of Danica’s pieces. We tied this quote right back to Danica’s inimitable artistic voice, a detail often remarked by her loved ones: “I think that there is something beautiful about the connection that Danica creates from the piece itself. It is something handmade from her heart. You see that through the collection pieces, as well as the bespoke pieces. They are living, breathing, tangible heirlooms.”

Regarding up and coming pieces, Danica shared with us exclusively her future plans for men’s jewellery, which we so look forward to. It was an absolute pleasure and honour to interview Danica Roderick of Nique Jewellery. We thank her again for inspiring us so deeply.