Events & Awards

Here’s Who Made Jewelers of America’s New ‘20 Under 40’ List

Events & AwardsMay 06, 2025

Here’s Who Made Jewelers of America’s New ‘20 Under 40’ List

Expanded this year to include suppliers, JA’s 2025 list honors 40 up-and-coming professionals in the jewelry industry.

Jewelers of America 20 Under 40 for 2025
On Tuesday, Jewelers of America announced the names of the 40 individuals who made its two “20 Under 40” lists for 2025. One list of 20 recognizes retailers, while the second list of 20 individuals is dedicated to suppliers.
New York—On Tuesday, Jewelers of America revealed who made its “20 Under 40” list for 2025, a recognition that has been expanded to include another facet of the industry.

Launched in 2022, the 20 Under 40 program originally was designed to highlight emerging talent in jewelry retail.

This year, JA added a new category recognizing jewelry suppliers—individuals working in design, manufacturing, wholesale, and service companies that support retail.

A total of 40 individuals are part of the 20 Under 40 Class of 2025, 20 representing jewelry retailers and 20 representing jewelry suppliers.

The 20 retail members are as follows.

Daniel Arik, co-owner at Happy Jewelers, Fullerton, California
Cece Baggott, chief strategy officer at The Vault Nantucket, Boston
Lauren Boc, founder and CEO at Hera Fine Jewelry, Brooklyn, New York
Fallon Bock, vice president and head buyer at Bachendorf’s, Dallas-Fort Worth
Chase Brinson, owner at Ed & Ethel’s Fine Jewelry, Christiansburg, Virginia
Chae Carter, president and owner at Carter’s Collective Fine Jewelry, Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Robert Chorost, CEO at Precious Metals Refinery, Tucson, Arizona
Helen Fuqua, bench jeweler at Christopher’s Fine Jewelry, Pawleys Island, South Carolina
Vanessa Guarino, director of social media at Louis Anthony Jewelers, Pittsburgh
Ricardo Guerrero, manager at Ben Bridge Jeweler, Bellevue, Washington
Peter Hannes IV, chief operating officer at Craig Husar Fine Diamonds, Brookfield, Wisconsin
Iris Jarvis, vice president at Young Jewelers, Jasper, Alabama
Kathleen Thompson Kimball, CEO and president at George Thompson Diamond Company, Camarillo, California
Chelsea Holtzman Lawrence, chief marketing officer at CD Peacock, Oak Brook, Illinois
Joseph Meadows, creative design manager at David Douglas Diamonds, Marietta, Georgia
Mike Nekta, partner at Leon Diamond, New York
Mallory Shelter, owner at Shelter, Washington, D.C.
Megan Sherrer-Neel, graduate gemologist/marketing and sales manager at Lou’s Jewelry, Mobile, Alabama
Chris Wattsson, owner and bench jeweler at Wattsson & Wattsson Jewelers, Marquette, Michigan
Rose Wong, CEO and founder at Kolohe Jewelry, Honolulu

The 20 supplier members are as follows.

Allyna Ahrens, director of sales at Aurora Payments, Tempe, Arizona
Aaron Ariel, co-founder at Dialog Solutions Inc., Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Dakota Badia, co-designer at Buddha Mama, Miami
Mathew Behnam, president at Everspark, Great Neck, New York
Cecily Bowen, national sales director at Hearts On Fire and Memoire, Boston
Fernanda Durmer, owner and designer at Universal Deco, Denver
Vanessa Fernández, jeweler and artist at Vanessa Fernández Studio, Miami
Kiran Golakiya, chief operating officer at Dharm International LLC, New York
Nichole Guillory, public relations and social media manager at Stuller Inc., Lafayette, Louisiana
Joy Haugaard, creative director and co-founder at Lionheart, New York
Joshua Israileff, co-owner at ASBA USA Inc., Sarasota, Florida
Jean Kee, vice president of design at John Hardy, New York
Jonathan LeVian, vice president of sales and marketing at Le Vian, Great Neck, New York
Haim Medine, creative director at Mark Henry Jewelry, New York
Raja Mehta, president at AG Gems, Los Angeles
Trevor Mendelsohn, vice president of merchandise and sales at Robert Procop Exceptional Jewels, Beverly Hills, California
Paras Pandya, managing director at Ashi Couture, New York
Jordan Peck, head of operations at Brevani, New York
Romy Schreiber Gow, art director at Gumuchian, New York
Ross Wesdorp, senior director of sales/co-owner at Jewel-Craft Inc., Erlanger, Kentucky

 Related stories will be right here … 

A panel of industry judges selected the 20 Under 40 recipients for 2025, evaluating them on their professional success, innovative thinking, leadership qualities, and dedication to the industry.

Each nominee also demonstrated a commitment to JA’s Code of Professional Practices and the highest standards of professional ethics.

“We are incredibly proud to announce this year’s class of the 20 Under 40 program and to expand our recognition to include supplier professionals, who are essential to our industry’s growth and innovation,” JA President and CEO David Bonaparte said.

“The 20 Under 40 Class of 2025 represents the future of fine jewelry, and we are honored to celebrate their accomplishments and support their continued success.”

For more information about the recipients, visit the JA website.

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