Meet Ava Manukyan | Designer/Cofounder of manukyandesignstudio.com

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

Hi Ava, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
There is more than one factor behind my success as a jewelry and fashion accessories designer. It’s my industrial design and art education, curiosity to always learn, my creativity… plus my Gemini personality … on one hand very strong and opinionated and on the other hand very observant and flexible.

I arrived to Los Angeles three decades ago all alone, with no money in my pocket, but well equipped with my education.
Through a mutual friend I met Yesai Manukyan (who later became my husband) who was looking for a designer to help him with his Post Production Company and the TV show. We started to work with each other and became very close friends. This is when I learned that he is also a founder of the Manukyan Design Studio which was back then, a Jewelry Design and Prototyping Services company.

He was the one who identified and valued my talents and guided me through. He believed that I had to start my career path with some reputable company, but the problem was that I was new in the country, I spoke very little English, no connections whatsoever, no relevant experience and I had no idea how to land an interview.

Long story short, he helped me to put together my portfolio and advised me to make a call to 1928 Jewelry Company and ask the owner if he will be kind enough to give me fifteen minutes of his precious time to see my portfolio…and that was it! I got hired as an A Class Senior Designer, which is the highest rank for a designer position available. I was very lucky, because I never had to start from the bottom and work my way up.
I held the lead designer’s position at 1928 Jewelry Company for six years and during my time there I designed two high end brands within the company called “Antiquities” and “The Vatican Library”, both collections were represented in major department stores nationwide and internationally, also in fashion boutiques and all US military bases.
The “Antiquities” brand was inspired by the art and heritage of the world and in the year 2000 it was recognized as the “Best Jewelry Brand” at the Harrods, in London.
“The Vatican Library” brand was under the license of the Vatican City State, and was inspired by the treasures of the Vatican Library and Museum.
I had also the privilege to design products for The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, The Smithsonian Museum, Joan Rivers Worldwide, and The Disney Company…

My next major role as a senior designer/product developer was with the Brighton Collectibles, where I was focused on creating different categories of products, such as Jewelry, Eyewear, Gifts and some Leather Goods. My contribution to Brighton Collectibles was refreshment of the brand with new and unique, innovative ideas also refining and elevating the esthetics of the brand to the level of fine jewelry.

I am an experimentalist artist… creative in my heart and an engineer in my mind which allowed me to conduct lots of technical and technological experimentations and come up with new implementations of innovative ideas, making my designs unique and fresh.

Parallel to my fashion industry career I designed fine jewelry for well-known different brands working with precious metals, gems and diamonds.
So, having vast experience in both fashion and fine jewelry industries enabled me to blend the two together by implementing the fine jewelry techniques, philosophy into the fashion jewelry and to apply fashion ideas in to the fine jewelry, in terms of styling and trends.

Three decades long career is a strong base, and yet there is another factor, the pandemic, during which I had the luxury of a down time, to stop and think, reflect and contemplate on my successful career path and make a balanced decision to turn the page with an enormous sense of gratitude toward the people who trusted me to walk alongside with them and take an active role in their brand’s vision, which made me so confident to start a new chapter in my life by joining my husband/business partner in creating our own brand and an online boutique called manukyandesignstudio.com

So… yes, we are a creative duo. He is an expert jeweler, who gives a physical life to our product by handcrafting delicate and artful pieces. He also runs his own production, implementing the old and new age technologies of jewelry production methods.
The main factor that had a positive impact on our success is the vision behind our brand. Its mission is to educate and inspire our customers and promote our Armenian cultural heritage among Armenians and none Armenians alike and Southern California is the best forum for this, since it’s a home to so many nationalities and diverse communities.
Our Armenian ancestors created an enormous wealth of cultural heritage throughout our long history, which is the endless inspirational source for our creations allowing us to promote our unique heritage though a wearable art.

Our creations look like they belong to a museum because of their artistry and superb technical quality, and this is what really sets us apart from many well-established brands.
What we offer cannot be found elsewhere, and all of them proudly made in the USA.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Was it easy? Was it challenging? I don’t know… that’s not what matters to me. I believe that every single individual has a purpose in this life and needs to fulfill that purpose. I just followed my heart and did what I liked, what exited me the most, and gave me a deep sense of satisfaction.

I learned that without a vision one cannot create anything meaningful.
For instance, when we think of Versace brand, we all can agree that it has a distinct Italian or Roman cultural base and aesthetics and yet it is universal and understandable for everyone else. This is the formula that I like and it speaks to my heart. As I said the Manukyan Designs have an Armenian cultural base developed and refined throughout the millenniums by the collective experience of my people. We reformat it so, that it appeals to wide range of audience and to fit the lifestyle and the need of the modern women.

What sets our brand apart from others is exactly that and this is what we strive to emphasize.

As an artist I believe in standing out and not blending. We live in a world where the individual taste or thought is almost none existent, where everything is homogenized and dictated… knowing and following the trends has nothing to do with the personal style that suits one’s individual needs and taste requirements. Jewelry and fashion accessories are a very personal items and we need to connect to them, it needs to speak to our hearts. I always encourage my customers to buy it, if and only they love the piece and if it’s meaningful to them; otherwise, the item that they just bought will become another thing that they don’t need and will be forgotten in a drawer or closet.

We take the signature and the visual consistency of the Manukyandesignstudio.com very seriously, to make sure that when our customers come back, they can find more interesting and exciting pieces to buy.
The women buy our product not just because they liked the design, the colors, or the quality, but because they are conversational pieces, they tell a story.
I know that some of our customers frame our scarves, they are art pieces and customers appreciate that.
They get so excited to share the stories behind the pieces with their friends and family members and because of this our brand gets recommended a lot.
When the response level is that good, it indicates that there is a need for it and we are on a right path.

We also have loyal customers who became our friends through the process of our fine jewelry custom works that Manukyan Design Studio offers. Yesai’s delicate signature handmade masterpieces are in high demand. It cannot be found elsewhere because it’s tailored to the customer’s needs, custom designed to commemorate their special day or the occasion, or eternalize their sentiments.
The process of making those special pieces is very pleasant for our customers, they become active participants of the process. We sit down with them one on one in person or via zoom, learn what is it that they want or desire, and design within the frame of their budget.
We have our trusted sources of unique and quality gems and diamonds suitable to our customer’s needs.
The next step is sharing the design concept with them, hand rendered on paper with such realistic feel that one can pick it up from the paper. This is done to eliminate misunderstandings and misinterpretations and also creating the opportunity to experience the design, development and creation process of their special piece.
The customer approves it and we make it.
It’s that easy!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well, it will all depend on what kind of interests, preferences, likes and dislikes my friend has. If my friend is into a jazz music, I won’t take him to LA Philharmonic, or if he is a vegan, we are definably not going to a Brazilian restaurant.
If he is an art lover, I need to know what is his preference, MOCA or Getty Center? Maybe the Huntington Library? The Getty Villa for sure!
Hollywood Pantages or a local small theater, watching the Shakespearean drama evolving?
Santa Monica Promenade or the Pier, watching the sunset? Hiking or whale watching?
Magic Mountain? No, thanks…I’ll take Disneyland instead.

But there is one thing which is a must see. It’s the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It’s like the passport of the city.

As I said, I will first investigate and then come up with a nice, creative, unique plan, that would be remembered for years to come.
As you can see I like to customize everything. It is all about creating a memorable experience.
Luckily LA and Orange counties have so much to offer in all levels of tastes and preferences.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
First of all, thanks to the Lord, our creator, for his generous gift of my creative abilities.

My sincere gratitude and honor to my grandparents, from whom I learned, humility and wisdom, the life philosophy which shaped me as a person.

To my parents who provided me with everything they could… for the sacrifices they made to give me a great start in life. I owe them my multifaceted education…it’s all because of their love and inspiration.

To my beloved husband and loyal friend Yesai Manukyan, without whose tender love, endless support and guidance, I wouldn’t be where I am.

To my incredible teachers and professors, from whom I acquired the wealth of knowledge and refined my artistic God given talent. It’s a whole army of great people.

To Mel Burnie of 1928 Jewelry Company, to the late Mrs. Velta Nelson of Special Projects at 1928 Jewelry Company, to Jerry Kohl of Brighton Collectibles for their trust and three decades of successful career and growth.

My special thanks to Shoutout SoCal for what you do… shining light on creative individuals and small businesses like us… this is incredibly important and helpful. Thank you for this great interview. It means whole lot to me.

Website: manukyandesignstudio.com

Instagram: instagram.com/Ava_Manukyan

Facebook: Facebook.com/AvaManukyan