Harriet Kelsall

Initially, Harriet Kelsall founded her multi-award-winning business from her kitchen table in 1998. This started a wave to bring reachable bespoke jewellery design to the high street for the first time.

Harriet was the first female chair of the UK’s National Association of Jewellers and finished her terms of office in 2022. Now, she sits on the Steering Board for the UK’s Intellectual Property Office, which is part of the governmental Department for Science Innovation and Technology. As well as that, she’s a non-executive director for British Allied Trades Federation.

As a Freeman of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths and of the City of London, Harriet’s been responsible for the training of several goldsmith’s apprentices. She undoubtedly continues to make a huge impact in the industry. Of which she has a mission for combining expert design skills and craftmanship, alongside tackling ethical, social and environmental issues.

With determination and resilience to ensure everyone in the supply chain is treated and paid fairly, she helped launch Fairtrade Gold in 2011. Harriet Kelsall Bespoke Jewellery then became the first in the world to be both Responsible Jewellery Council certified and licensed by the Fairtrade Foundation.

Since 2016, she has been a judge of the National CSR awards and the Global Good Awards.

In 2018, she facilitated a conference in Tokyo for Japan’s Ministry of the Environment. This included the Minamata Convention‘s work to prevent the use of mercury in the gold supply chain. Thus leading to an academic paper publication with the Geographical-Political science Medical and geological and urban journal.

From 2016 to 2022 she was a non-executive director for the British Hallmarking Council. She also sat on the International Responsible Jewellery Council board from 2016 to 2019. Additionally she advised the UK government via Creative and Cultural Skills Academy on jewellery skills from 2012-2018.

In 2016, she was HSBC Forward Ladies “Retail Businesswoman of the year”. Then Everywoman’s “Retail Woman of the Year” in 2011. Later in 2014, she was named one of The Institute of Directors Magazine’s six “women who have most changed the business world”.

Equally, Harriet is passionate about inspiring people to pursue creative careers and helping creative businesses flourish. For example, she mentored many successful creatives, including being a titan of industry for The Peter Jones Enterprise Academy between 2010 and 2014. From this experience, she wove together the threads that led to success and consequently included them in her book. ‘The Creative’s Guide to Starting a Business: How to turn your talent into a career’ won at the 2019 National Business Book of the Year Awards.

Beyond this, she’s also a regular keynote speaker. Importantly, she discusses subjects including starting and growing a creative business and SME ethics and responsibility. Furthermore, how to tackle stigmatisms in business around dyslexia and neurodiversity. As well as that, she’s spoken nationally and internationally. This includes at Brunel University, Cambridge University (especially at Judges Business School and Lucy Cavendish College ), Birmingham School of Jewellery, numerous colleges, schools and organisations such as the Gemmological Institute of America campus in London.

Harriet lives in Cambridge with her two children and their cats and chickens.