Lafayette’s Embark Fine Jewelry is expanding into Baton Rouge. The company plans to open a location in the Coterie Exchange development on Jefferson Highway, across from Towne Center.

Embark was founded by Erin Judice, Katie Kennedy and Michelle Robertson in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, the three of them worked together at Stuller, a Lafayette fine jewelry manufacturer.

The business has humble origins, having started around Kennedy’s dining room table. It quickly gained traction, though, evolving into a full-scale retail operation with the opening of its flagship storefront on Lafayette’s Kaliste Saloom Road in 2022

“We saw this trend happening across the country where there was this ‘concierge’ jewelry business model,” Robertson tells Daily Report. “It was a different take on the traditional jewelry store that we all know so well, and we wanted to bring that model to Lafayette.”

In the context of jewelry, a concierge retailer is one that offers customers an intimate, highly personalized shopping experience. Embark’s Lafayette location features a space for private consultations, and its new Baton Rouge storefront, though a bit smaller, will feature the same.

“We’ve worked really hard not to lose that side of the business,” Robertson says.

Embark carries items at all price points, from $20 demi-fine jewelry to high-end statement pieces. It also offers “luxury” ear piercings performed by licensed medical professionals.

The new Baton Rouge location is set to open in mid-August, with a grand opening slated for early September.

Embark’s expansion plans don’t begin and end in the Capital City, though. The co-owners say they see their second brick-and-mortar as a prototype of sorts.

“The three of us are very forward thinking,” Kennedy says. “We’re not stopping with Lafayette and Baton Rouge. As we develop this Baton Rouge business model, we’re going to try to figure out how we can kind of ‘copy and paste’ it into other places.”

This article was originally published by Daily Report. To keep up with Baton Rouge business news, subscribe to the free Daily Report e-newsletter here.