Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/226563
a Wade Papin & Danielle Wilmore Jewelry Designers Pyrrha "P yrrha was founded out of our mutual hatred of working for someone else," says Danielle Wilmore, who with husband, Wade Papin, founded the internationally acclaimed Vancouver-based jewelry line in 1995. "I never thought it would be this big. But Wade always thought it would be." Despite an admitted lack of business savvy – Wade Papin's short-lived childhood paper route was plagued by accounting mistakes – it didn't take long for him to be proved right. The pair's symbolic talisman jewelry resonated with Vancouver customers and within five years, the handmade silver and gold charms became as ubiquitous as yoga pants. Film and TV stars shooting in Hollywood North took notice, as did the stores that catered to them, like L.A.'s Fred Segal. Tabloids and fashion magazines followed suit and Pyrrha was eventually stocked in the top boutiques of Paris, London and Tokyo. As demand skyrocketed south of the border, Wilmore and Papin opened Pyrrha's flagship Los Angeles store in 2010 to serve fans like Brad Pitt, Jodie Foster, Julia Roberts, Jennifer Lawrence and Jeremy Renner. But as Papin is quick to point out, Pyrrha remains committed to local production at their East Van studio. Success has offered up its own unique set of challenges. "Growing the business while staying true to our original vision is the hardest part of what we do," he says. "Sometimes we realize that we could run [things] more efficiently, but that would impact the studio energy in a way that we aren't comfortable with." For this design duo, feeling good is as important as looking good. pyrrha.com bcliving.ca bcliving.ca p72-81_VanDesigners.indd 79 november 201 3 | 79 13-10-23 12:11 PM