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PROVO — Matt James learned how to silversmith in 2017 so he could make turquoise rings to sell at farmers markets and use the profits to help fund an orphanage he started in Uganda.
The ring-making started out as a sustainable way he could fundraise, but in the process of learning how to make rings, he realized it would be "way more fun" to teach people how to make rings themselves.
"I decided I was going to start selling the experience of ring-making rather than just another person out in the world selling rings," James said.
He started to invite friends over to his apartment to teach them to make jewelry. Participants would have to walk through the apartment he shared with several other guys to his room, where he'd move his laundry before starting the lessons.
"It was really, really fun. I grasped the magic of being able to experience with somebody learning something new. People don't really get to experience that often nowadays," James said. "To meet someone, a total stranger and be out of your comfort zone and create something using a torch and using a polishing machine and shaping metal around a stone — all of that has created this really special environment, where I was able to get to know people and have a lot of fun."
Slowly, James' business in his apartment grew as people took a chance on him and so he decided to go all in. He built a shed in the backyard and created the original Gem Studio.
The Gem Studio has grown into a popular date-night and family-friendly destination with seven locations across the country and its headquarters in Provo. It's a for-profit business, but James still donates a portion of his revenue to One Heart One Mind, a nonprofit that promotes opportunity and self-reliance in Uganda.
The magic of the experience
"Just with the way the world has changed, products have lost their meaning in many ways. What people have, especially with where we live in Utah, a lot of people aren't necessarily needing any new products, but they're thirsting after new experiences. They're wanting to be put out of their comfort zone, they're wanting to learn something new, they're wanting to meet somebody," James said.
James said people enjoy making memories and jewelry with each other and he loves seeing customers leave the studio proud of their creations.
"It's a representation of their creativity and their hard work. Instead of buying it, they had to go through the process. When they look at their ring, they think 'I remember it used to be four pieces of metal and now it's one piece of metal because I soldered it together and I used the torch and I did the whole thing myself.' The connection they have to it. ... Jewelry is very much inherently a sentimental product," he said.
Having a product that is fun, cool and has meaning infused into it, James said, makes it more than just a fashion piece.
"It's able to represent your individuality or your story or your memories," he said. "That means a whole lot more than having something show up on your doorstep in a package."
Maysen Minor has had a similar experience with her own business.
She started beading when she was challenged by a professor to start a business with just $1. She bought some beads from the dollar store, made rings and sold them to friends and family.
Over the next few months, she started selling her products at farmers markets and during that time, she realized it was more fun to bead with other people instead of doing it alone.
"I pivoted my idea to a really fun DIY experience, rather than just me doing it," Minor said.
She searched for months for a location and opened Beadology in January at the Riverwoods in Provo, where people come to create beaded jewelry and have a good time.
"I think people love getting creative and having the opportunity to make something totally their own. I think people are proud of what they make so they go home feeling really good about what they created," she said. "They get excited for it and want to make memories with friends and family."
Minor looks up to all the businesses that have paved the way for her beading store to exist.
"I think people love them because they want a fun activity to do, especially in Utah," she said. "They want a fun, clean activity that is family-oriented. I do believe beading is a timeless activity and I don't think it's going out of style anytime soon."
Minor is hoping to expand Beadology and open another location near Salt Lake City.
And, there's more than beads and rings.
Other Utah County places such as the Wick Lab, the Soap Factory, Just Add Chocolate and the Kreative Kiln provide the opportunity to make candles, soap, chocolate and pottery products.
Kreative Kiln founder Tyler Nyland fell in love with pottery in high school and said the process of creating pottery changed his life.
"I didn't have a lot of self-love and I was going through a hard time and pottery helped heal me and center myself again, in a way. It's very therapeutic and calming," Nyland said.
Because of the impact pottery had on his life, Nyland wanted to give everyone the same opportunity to try working with the medium. He saw how the Gem Studio was "trailblazing" in the industry and figured he could create his own experience-based business with pottery.
It started off teaching lessons out of his dad's garage, but expanded to a studio in Pleasant Grove in January 2020, where people come to learn how to make pottery pieces.
"I think that's where the unique part of you comes out. Whether you're throwing clay or you're riding your mountain bike or you're on a hike, anything you do that's outside or with your hands, you do it in your way and it makes it unique. When people make their own piece, a part of their heart went into that piece and so it becomes very special to them," Nyland said.
He is so grateful he gets to share pottery with others, helping them "discover the artist" inside themselves, he said.
"You might be a very good artist and you just haven't found your medium yet. But once you do, whether it's pottery or not, that's a beautiful gift to help someone find," Nyland said. It makes him happy when customers also find comfort, healing or even just fun through pottery.
Making creativity accessible
James said he's proud that Gem Studio is part of the do-it-yourself experience economy in Utah.
"When I got into silversmithing, it really was a dying art," James said. Everyone he talked to was older, or working in the fine jewelry industry that had a lot of skills being outsourced. "There were no young people like me that were rebranding it to something that was accessible to the public."
Although people can still be trained by goldsmiths in fine jewelry, James wanted the craft to be easier for people to enjoy without having to go all in.
"We kinda revolutionized the industry, in that regard, and created a whole new product sect," James said.
He said his studio puts the experience first by hiring workers who have charisma, using high-quality materials and choosing locations in fun, centralized areas.
Experience-based stores give people an opportunity to dabble in different fields and mediums without the pressure of having to fully commit by buying supplies and tools. Not having to buy all the materials helps people be more inclined to creativity, because they don't have to do it on their own or deal with the mess at home, afterward.
"If a business can provide a place that gives you a special experience of having a pottery wheel for a moment, and a kiln — and you don't have to necessarily go all in on everything," Nyland said. "I think as humans, most of us, we love to progress and experience new things, and it's very comforting to know that when you come into a class here, chances are 99% of the people haven't ever tried it before."
Being with other beginners is comforting when you're trying something new, that is difficult, he said. With the right help and good company, the experience can be fun and memorable rather than being painful or stressful because the barriers that keep people from trying are taken away, Nyland said.
"Right now, we are at the beginning of it, where we are 'experience-izing' common products," James said, saying the retail industry is trending towards more experience-based products. He thinks even more classes and experiences will be offered in the future by various businesses.
"People want to make everything personal, it's a core human condition that we want to be unique. And I am so sure that any business that can invest in making their product more experience-based will only see success from doing it," he said.
Nyland believes experience-based stores will continue to be popular as time goes on.
"I think the more people try these experiences, as long as the business can continue to grow and cater a longer-term learning experience, people will benefit for forever. I've been doing pottery for a decade now and I'm still learning," Nyland said.
The Kreative Kiln also offers a monthlong course that provides an opportunity for customers to have a more in-depth learning experience.
"People should get out there and try new things with your hands, especially if you suffer from depression or are going through a hard time. It's helped me go through every hard thing that's come my way," Nyland said.
