This Week We Feature Young Professional Alexandra V. Durante
Surrounded by the beauty of her creations and adorned by glistening jewels of the sea, an artist conducts the daily routine of her life with little fuss along the Main Street corridor.
Always ready with a warm and inviting smile, this week’s Young Professional, Alexandra V. Durante, is a young artistic entrepreneur with gifted hands at crafting magic from the ocean.
Her business, Pearls VI, offers a variety of exquisite handmade pearl jewellery for the most part as the name suggests, but also has a selection of Bamboushay Pottery as well. Alexandra also makes a range of beautifully scented soaps for sale.
Alex, as she is affectionately known, revealed that she grew up in an artistic family and that her father was an artist. “When I grew up with him, he showed me how to paint… how to carve wood… he’s always tried to include me in what he was doing and he still does,” she said.
Ably supported by her father in her business venture, Alex related that there is often much friendly competition between the two as they try to outdo each other at crafting the exotic pearls into the finished products that adorn the shelves of her store.
Explaining how her business got started, Alex said she was in Florida when the idea struck her. A few friends who had visited her in the Virgin Islands (VI) each year since high school, visited her in Florida where she had been staying for a few years and they took a trip to Walt Disney World.
“When I got to Walt Disney World we actually found this great idea, that I didn’t tap into until obviously I came back here… we all did something which I call ‘pick a pearl’,” she explained, “it’s pick an oyster and everyone has a guaranteed pearl inside. The surprise is the colour and the size.”
Describing the Akoya pearls as being all perfectly round with different colours and a AAA (triple A) grade rating, the highest standard of pearls, Alex said these are placed in different settings and persons could then pick out earrings, necklaces or rings to go with the pearls, which can sometimes have the bonus of an additional pearl in the set.
She decided though, that her idea at the time could not be the sum total of her business, so she worked on crafting something better by the time she returned home to the VI.
After doing some research, she arrived at the conclusion that pearl jewellery was something that persons have been wearing for thousands of years that had simply never gone out of style.
“All I’ve seen before I went into jewellery making was the single-strand classic pearl necklaces so once I started doing it… I thought why not make something that’s affordable as well as fashionable and it will always be fashionable,” she said.
Pearls, according to Alex, were very much in their own little niche, so she started out with her own ‘pick a pearl’ operation at the Crafts Alive Village where she said business went really well at first.
She eventually began making her own full blown jewellery after some time at the Village before transitioning to the building that she is currently at on Main Street.
Often referred to as the ‘Pearl Lady’, the twenty-five year old said demand for her business has steadily grown over the years since her relocation to the Bamboushay building and she expressed excitement about this.
“I love it, I love being recognised for my work and people appreciating my custom designs… you’ll never see more than one person wearing the design,” she said.
Alex often manages to incorporate everyday concepts in her jewellery designs such as ear cuffs and the illusion necklace, which she said is often popular in plastic beads.
She disclosed that it is now second nature for her to wear her own designs and this has become an excellent way of marketing her own creations, and a lot of her work has been sold in this way.
Most of what she does in her business has been self-taught and she continuously enhances her skills with the research she does whenever she finds the time. She emphasises that even though there is always something new to learn, one has to be creative to survive in the business.
Alex advises that youths wishing to start their own businesses should never give up on their dreams. “You just keep going with it and don’t be hard on yourself and don’t try so hard that you lose the passion in the end,” she said.
Alex suggested that one should start off small and slow and work their way up because they would always be there in the end. “Being in the BVI, there are lots of opportunities for young folks,” she added, while advising that persons should take advantage of all the business opportunities that came along.
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21 Responses to “This Week We Feature Young Professional Alexandra V. Durante”
There are so many young entrepreneurs in this community, and thanks to VINO for its regular feature in showcasing them.
Best wishes for a long, happy and successful career Alex. I have no doubt that you will be successful in anything you set your mind to. Your products look lovely!
Your old KATS sailing teacher.