Otiumberg: sustainable jewellery beyond the hype

Sisters Rosanna and Christie Wollenberg founded their chic London-based jewellery brand, Otiumberg, in 2016 as a side hustle. At the time, they were working in, respectively, fashion and media.

Rosanna, 34, an art director and branding expert, was splitting her vocational time between London and New York, while Christie, 38, spent more than a decade working in the communications, buying and VIP departments of Burberry and Louis Vuitton, both in London and the UAE.

By all accounts, the siblings were happily settled in their careers, but momentum built quickly for their kitchen table start-up. Within 18 months, they had decided to quit their jobs and move full tilt into their self-funded venture.

A sense of soulfulness

With Otiumberg, the sisters have set out to fill a gap in the market for well-crafted, demi-fine jewellery that is unfussy, affordable and smartly marketed. Shaped from sustainably-sourced materials, the sculptural pieces are intended for everyday wear. Nothing is overcomplicated, but all are made with the kind of attention to shape and form that allows the wearer to feel and engage with the artist's production.

Above all, the duo felt that a sense of soulfulness was missing in jewellery design, a drive to be completely transparent about provenance, workmanship and artistic intent. The name says it all: the "berg" is drawn from the third syllable of their surname, while "Otium" is from the Latin term for leisure time spent in a creatively enlightening place.

"When we first founded the brand, we were living together in London and both working in the creative industries," said Rosanna. "While we both enjoyed our work, we very much felt a level of frustration and dissatisfaction. We recognised that at that time the jewellery market consisted of high-street jewellery where the quality fell short, or expensive fine jewellery that was simply inaccessible. We instinctively started to build the collection piece by piece based on what we wanted to wear, and the brand really grew organically from there."

Today, Otiumberg operates from a modern studio in London Bridge, producing small, non-trend/non-season-led collections in recycled solid gold, gold vermeil and recycled silver sourced from suppliers certified by the Responsible Jewellery Council, with many premium pieces set with ethically-sourced gemstones that are fully traceable. Christie oversees design, while Rosanna directs the brand image, although the creative process is never clear cut, and the sisters collaborate on all decisions.

A 'savvy' British brand

Otiumberg was described by Forbes as focused on "craftsmanship, style and of course, a healthy dose of good old fun". A driving force is also working towards a smaller carbon footprint. The sisters keep stock levels small, and ensure that 99% of the gold is recycled and that packaging has no plastic or foam inclusions.

And the pair are keen to go over and above the usual "green" guidelines.

According to Vogue Business,gold mining has "come under increased scrutiny" for its links to mercury pollution and human rights abuses, "prompting a move towards sourcing more traceable, fair-mined gold". Recognising the need to support a workforce that relies on the financial stability of a mining culture, Otiumberg recently launched a capsule collection in Single Mine Origin (SMO) gold which offers customers transparency and full traceability.

This London brand has gone from strength to strength, with sales increasing 64% year on year since 2016, gaining further traction with reputable stockists including Alex Eagle, Selfridges, Matches Fashion, Galeries Lafayette Champs Élysées in Paris and Six Senses Ibiza.

When times were tough and the UK entered its first lockdown, the sisters intuitively adapted their sales operation. The Telegraph’s Lisa Armstrong reported how the sister-duo had begun "offering style consultations via FaceTime, Zoom or WhatsApp", and "started photographing new collections on themselves".

Personalised jewellery has been a lucrative branch of the business, with namesake bracelets, necklaces, diamond encrusted initials and engraved pendants proving to be a big hit – notably these feature bold capital letters, which stand out from the more daintily rendered cursive models that have flooded the market. In 2020, things really accelerated on the bespoke front when Irish actor Paul Mescal wore an engraved Otiumberg silver pendant, shirtless, while out for a jog.

'Heirlooms of the future'

For the past two years, the Wollenbergs have been working towards Otiumberg's B Corp certification, a status they achieved this June. It's a small and difficult club to join: currently there are just more than 6,000 B Corp companies globally – among them Patagonia, innocent Drinks and The Body Shop – and the process to achieve certification is rigorous. "As a sister-led, family brand we have always wanted to create a business that we can feel proud of, and B Corp has always been part of that vision," said Rosanna. "B Corp gives us a verified regulation and responsible framework to navigate a space which can so often be unregulated and misleading. We are incredibly proud and now even more determined as a team to continue to do better: this is really just the beginning."

At the heart of things is the emotional connection that jewellery can facilitate, be it a memory, a special bond or a dream forecast for the future. "Jewellery holds such sentimental value and is gifted for so many reasons," said Rosanna. "Our signature name bracelet and necklaces mark new births, and we'll often know the name of the baby before the rest of the family finds out. We even had one customer WhatsApp us from her hospital bed in the maternity ward to place an order. Another memory that comes to mind is of one of our dear customers, who came to the London boutique to treat herself to a new diamond ring to celebrate the end of a complicated divorce.

"There is something beautiful about the thought of these special pieces living on to become heirlooms of the future."