Meet Kristan Tiritilli | CEO & Creative Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kristan Tiritilli and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kristan, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
I feel like the most success comes from putting people first and constantly remembering their humanity (their fears, goals, dreams, etc). Whether it’s a customer, an influencer I’m working with, a retail store I’m trying to sell wholesale to, I believe that really treating them as a person just like myself leads to better relationships and a more satisfying connection.

I’ve been aware of times when I start to become too transactional with my business and that is when it loses it’s spark and liveliness for me. Yes there are definitely mundane problems to improve on and people you need to ask for help fixing them, but they can still be good conversations. I hope to leave an impact through my business of a brand that really cared about its connection to others. A brand that leaves good memories for people of times they felt heard, loved, and understood.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
The Salty Gem was created as a safe place to encourage & inspire women to confidently share their stories of transformation, wisdom balance, and healing.

We offer jewelry that is inspired by the ocean and a minimalist style. We name each piece of jewelry after a real person with a real story. Our hope is that these stories and our jewelry will open space for other people to share and to optimistically move forward in their life journeys.

What sets us apart is that our jewelry contains so much meaning within its material, more than just the physical beauty, it also has a symbol of life and the beauty that comes from struggle behind it.

I feel lucky that most of the business venture for me has flowed very well. My challenges mostly come in the way of mental struggles such as ‘am I doing enough?’, and ‘will my business get to where I want it to?’. A lot of overcoming self doubt which I am so proud to say, slowly I am! I recently heard a quote that says, “You don’t need to prove your worth, you just need to stay it”. I try to live by that now.

I want to the world to know that my brand has stayed it’s worth consistently since the start.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love the gas lamp district. There is so much life and fun things to explore there! I would also say La Jolla beach is another favorite. Getting to see all the sea lions and so much wild life is incredible. Be sure to stay for the ice cream truck that makes it’s route along that street too!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are a lot of people that have helped me along my journey to get where I am now. I would love to list a few of those people and what I feel they have done for me in life. First, my parents: they always supported me financially. My mom was AMAZING at budgeting and she taught me everything I know about how to save and spend money wisely. My dad, also an entrepreneur is constantly encouraging me. I get text and calls from him all the time saying things like, ‘I’m so proud of you’, ‘I have a feeling this will be your best month ever!’, and ‘How much did you ends in sales this month?’. I feel a lot of love and support and motivation from both of them.

I have had a handful of friends that create an emotional and physical support for me through all my business adventures. To name even just a few things they do: help me set up my pop-up shops, sit with me for hours during my shows so I’m not alone, assistance creating/ building displays, time spent taking photos and editing for me, and SO much more.

Lastly, I have had a few business mentors I’ve come across in my life that help me to boil down my focus for my time and business. I would like to shout out specifically Spencer Taggart, Natalia Riboldi and, McKenzie Bauer for helping me structure my business, nail down my strategy, and most importantly remember my ‘why’.

Website: www.thesaltygem.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/thesaltygem

Facebook: www.facebook.com/thesaltygem

Image Credits
@thesaltygem