Rhode Island–based jewelry brand Air & Anchor has had the kind of year most independent jewelers dream about—and fear at the same time. After riding a wave of exposure from their July 4th appearance on ABC’s Good Morning America, founders Rachel and Omar Ajaj are opening their second permanent retail store on Oct. 11 in Melbourne, Florida.
But behind the success story is a question every small, handmade brand eventually faces: does national attention accelerate growth, or does it risk breaking the very thing that made them special?
Air & Anchor cofounder and designer Rachel Ajaj (left) says Good Morning America’s Tory Johnson (right) was a dream to work with.
The couple admits the expansion hasn’t been easy. “Growing pains are good to have,” Omar told JCK. “Everything we do is handmade, so that takes time.” Rachel adds that they’re moving carefully, searching for wholesale partners who truly share their “made in America” ethos. Yet the irony is hard to miss—scaling up while insisting on small-batch authenticity could become their biggest challenge.
Their Good Morning America feature revealed just how intense that balancing act can be. Selected for the show’s patriotic “Made in America” showcase, Air & Anchor had to promise lightning-fast turnaround: every customer inquiry answered within 24 hours, every order shipped in three business days. For a company used to slower, artisan-style pacing, it meant weeks of sleepless nights and nonstop production.
Rachel Ajaj says speaking on TV to a national audience was nerve-racking compared with posting on social media, as she does regularly for Air & Anchor.
Rachel recalls the pressure of stepping into the spotlight: “I post on social media every day, but when they introduce all of those GMA cameras? It’s a whole different realm.”
And yet, the gamble paid off—thousands of new customers discovered the brand, and the team delivered every order on time. The Ajajs are proud, but even they admit the experience nearly broke them.
Now comes the real test. With a second brick-and-mortar store, monthly pop-ups, and wholesale ambitions, Air & Anchor is entering a new league. Supporters see them as a rare U.S.-made jewelry brand ready to disrupt the market. Skeptics wonder whether chasing growth—and national TV moments—could dilute the intimacy and authenticity that first drew customers in.
It’s the eternal tension in jewelry retail: scale brings opportunity, but also risk. Will Air & Anchor manage to stay true to its handcrafted soul while meeting the demands of a mass audience? Or will the “anchor” of authenticity drag against the current of expansion?
👉 Dive into our Jewelry Guide to explore how independent brands are navigating the tension between artisanal authenticity and mass-market growth.