Creating a Lifestyle with Sadie + Jean

A new brand launched earlier this year and they are already inspiring jewelry and lifestyle culture all across South Africa. I got the chance to chat with owners Nikki and Ilana of online store, Sadie + Jean, about their start and the unique view on minimalism that’s hitting all the right chords in today’s world.

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Tell us about how you got to where you are today.

Sadie + Jean was born out of a desire to produce and be surrounded by well-made products that embody a relaxed lifestyle where simplicity and effortless living is key.

NIKKI: I have always worked in fashion, PR and marketing. I started my career as an intern for Marie Claire Magazine and worked for brands like Tiger of Sweden and The Kooples. Before starting Sadie + Jean, I worked at a content creation and influencer marketing agency.

ILANA: I, too, have a background in Fashion & PR, having worked for a leading fashion retail chain in South Africa as a trend analyst. I started up my own content creation and influencer marketing agency at which Nikki and myself met. The rest is history!

[We both] felt the need to create something beautiful that reflected their minimal aesthetic as well as their love for simple, considered and uncomplicated design. We have always felt that there was a massive gap in the market and missed opportunity when it came to online offerings in South Africa and wanted to develop something that was of high quality and great service. We started with the jewellery and it just grew from there as we slowly added other suppliers to our site.

The name is a combination of Sadie, Ilana’s daughter, and Jean, Nikki’s grandmother, whose influence have shaped the brand as a whole. This brings in the ‘old’ and the‘ new’ with their inspiration reflecting in the timeless look and feel of Sadie + Jean while still remaining relatable in our everyday lives.

“Sadie + Jean is about appealing to a certain lifestyle and therefore hasn’t only been about the product. ”

What is the process of designing Sadie+Jean jewelry?

Each of our jewellery pieces have been thoughtfully created in order to achieve a timeless yet modern appeal, allowing them to be worn over and over again transcending both time and seasons. We wanted them to provide just the right balance between contemporary and vintage influences as many of these pieces have been inspired by our mothers and grandmothers. We still however wanted to keep them relevant to today's woman so we added our own personal flair to many of them.

But to be put quite simply, these pieces were items that we always looking for but could never find, so we made them! We wanted our jewellery to blend seamlessly into a person’s wardrobe and become an extension of their personal style. These items should ultimately become heirlooms that are passed down between generations as was the case with many of the pieces that we drew our inspiration from.

What has been your strategy for spreading awareness of your brand?

We wanted the brands that were housed on our site to match our minimalist aesthetic while remaining at a level of quality that will endure time and seasons. Sadie + Jean is about appealing to a certain lifestyle and therefore hasn't only been about the product. In this way we try to tell a story through our content and imagery as much as possible.

As we are still a relatively new brand (only having launched towards the end of February this year) we are still learning the in's and out's of what works for us but influencer marketing, social media promotions as well as partnerships have worked well for us so far.

Where do you see Sadie + Jean becoming in the next few years?

We would love to expand our brand globally as well as be able to offer international shipping to all parts of the world! We are also looking to expand upon our own in-house offerings to homeware, clothing etc. This is only the beginning and we are so excited for what's to come!

Big thanks to Nikki and Ilana for sharing their story with us. Find more about them on their website, on Instagram, and on Facebook!

Sadie + Jean is an online lifestyle store based in South Africa housing products with a minimal approach to elevate your everyday life. The brand came about when two like-minded individuals, Ilana Jossel and Nikki van der Westhuizen, felt the need to create something beautiful that reflected their minimal aesthetic as well as their love for simple, considered and uncomplicated design. Having both been born into families surrounded by strong, brave woman they wanted Sadie + Jean to mirror and celebrate this. The name is a combination of Sadie, Ilana’s daughter, and Jean, Nikki’s grandmother, whose influence have shaped the brand as a whole.