Meredith Lusk knows that when life hands you lemons, it’s time to start making lemonade.
How do you see challenges that come your way? Are they setbacks or the opportunity to create something beautiful?
Meredith Lusk is the owner of Moonrise Jewelry, a stunning jewelry store in Cape Charles. As you walk in to the store, the design put into every inch of the space creates a luxurious experience from the moment you see the storefront. Each piece available in the cases is crafted by hand and designed with care.
But let’s rewind for a minute. All the glamour is breathtaking, but that’s not where it started.
Meredith’s favorite quote is “Sucess is not a destination, it’s a journey.”
Meredith has always had an eye for beautiful things and she started her jewelry business as a hobby from her home, largely making items as gifts for family and friends. Her creativity and talent were in high demand and eventually she was able to move into a small studio in Eastville to expand her jewelry making space.
While in this studio, she received a telemarketing call that changed her life. It’s kind of hard to believe a telemarketing call could change your life, but she describes it as destiny calling. As she was rushing out the door at the end of the day, she heard the phone ring, so she rushed inside and picked up only to receive the worst marketing pitch of her life. On the other end of the line, a voice said, “Hello, this is Stanley Major with Sea Leather Wear and I was wondering if you wanted to buy some fish leather.” Fish leather was an unfamiliar item to Meredith and frankly sounded a little smelly, so she politely expressed her thanks-but-no-thanks response and went on with her day. Like clockwork, a year later she received the same call and asked to be put on the do not call list, she wasn’t interested.
A few more years went by and business had started to dip. She moved her studio back into her home to cut costs and she knew if she was really going to make a living out of this, she would have to do something different, something unique. As she was puzzling over what to do, two words popped in her memory: fish leather.
And who was the first person she found as she searched for fish leather? Stanley Major with Sea Leather Wear. It wasn’t long before she had developed her most popular product, the fish leather asymmetrical cuff, and it took off. With her fish leather designs gaining popularity, she began to be recognized. Meryl Streep named Moonrise Jewelry a “Top Product Pick” in her Green Guide and Sarah Blakely with Spanx awarded Moonrise with a Leg Up endorsement for women owned small businesses. Everything was going incredibly, but then Stanley started running out of fish leather.
Bit by bit, she couldn’t get the colors her customers wanted. When she asked Stanley when he was getting more in, he laughed and said, “Oh, I’m not getting any more. I’m selling these out of a warehouse and when they’re gone, that’s it. You can buy the equipment for a million dollars though!”
With this obstacle, Meredith had to dig deep and find a solution. This led her to working with a tannery in Iceland that focuses on recycling the byproducts from the seafood industry into the incredible fish leather you find in her products today. In the end, she has ended up with a more beautiful and more sustainable product than even before!
She sells these incredible pieces in her gorgeous shop on Mason Ave in Cape Charles and online at moonrisejewelry.com. Take a piece of Virginia’s natural coast home from your stay in Cape Charles when you shop at Moonrise Jewelry and support local women and artists!
Now, the most important question – which of these pieces will be your new favorite accessory? Shop Meredith’s collections here and read more of the Moonrise story here.
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