#12 - Shelby Brachmann: Selling Jewelry and Ambitious Goals

This week I spoke with Shelby Brachmann, a 2025 UVA alumni who’s now the Founder and CEO of Funky Fads, a consumer jewelry brand.

The Rundown:

• COLD OPEN: Middle school jewelry maker to top Depop seller

• TURNING POINT: Scaling the business

• STEAL THIS: What’s something people don’t know about you?

• INDUSTRY INSIDER: Woman vs machine

• IF I WERE YOU: Set ambitious specific goals

COLD OPEN
How Did You Get Your Start?

I started making jewelry in 7th grade. Noticing my friends were interested in what I was wearing, and wanting to buy, I saw the opportunity for demand.

In 2018 (8th grade) I started selling, and in 2020 I coined the name Funky Fads.

The core focus was customizable necklaces, bracelets, earrings – and my customer base was mainly friends and classmates.

Selling on Depop, I was able to reach 733rd top best seller in the world at one point, which was really cool. I used Etsy too, and now I'm using Shopify.

At UVA, I sold at in-person popups and sorority events. I found philanthropy events were the most lucrative because there was the added bonus of supporting the cause for buyers (and if their parents were there, that was great too!).

One semester, I took an entrepreneurship class where I got help from 4 other people to grow the business. We called ourselves the “Funky Five.”

Selling at UVA was super successful, but it was also hard being a full time student and doing sales on the weekend.

TURNING POINT
What’s A Challenge You Faced Early On?

Finding a way to scale the business was and still is a challenge for me. 

A lot of times scaling comes with investment. 

Right now, something I’m working on is figuring out where my money is best spent ad wise because now that I'm not a student, I need to figure out a way to reach people who aren't just mutual friends.

The jewelry market is so saturated too. There are so many brands to choose from, so I need to promote why people want to choose Funky Fads over the millions of other brands.

STEAL THIS
What’s A Question You Love Being Asked (Or Asking)?

What's something that not a lot of people know about you?

What is your favorite movie?

I have an ongoing movie list and I think asking someone that gives you a little glimpse into their personality and it gives you potential movie recommendations.

INDUSTRY INSIDER
What Do People Misunderstand About The Consumer Jewelry Industry?

People often misunderstand exactly what’s behind the product they’re buying.

I think it's well known that a lot of jewelry products are being mass produced and there's a machine behind it rather than a person.

Companies do a great job using marketing tactics to make the brand feel very personal, even when it's machine manufactured.

IF I WERE YOU
Do You Have Any Advice For Students?

A piece of advice that I’ve found helpful as a business owner and a student looking for jobs is to set ambitious specific goals.

Setting measurable goals will not only serve as motivation, but it also provides a clear roadmap for progress and helps you track achievements over time.

Prior to last semester, I set very specific goals for growing my brand with the “Funky Five” from my entrepreneurship class.

We set three goals: get featured in at least 2 Charlottesville businesses, maintain a 50% profit margin, and generate at least $6,000 in profit.

We ended up getting featured in 4 businesses, consistently hit a 65% profit margin, and generated over $8,000 in profit.

CLOSING TIME
You’re Not Behind – This Is What Figuring It Out Looks Like.

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