MadaLuxe Takes Majority Stake in Ippolita Jewelry Brand

MadaLuxe Group, the diversified bicoastal company involved in distributing luxury goods and investing in fashion technologies, has acquired a majority stake in Ippolita, the New York-based fine jewelry house.

Ippolita is known for its 18-karat gold and sterling silver collections, expressive designs, vibrant colors, sculptural shapes, artisanal techniques and distinct hand-hammered metals and proprietary stone-cutting techniques. The brand blends contemporary art with Italian craftsmanship, and has an international following.

Founder Ippolita Rostagno will continue in her role as chief creative officer, overseeing all aspects of design, MadaLuxe indicated in its disclosure to WWD.

“Fine jewelry continues to show resilient demand, particularly for brands rooted in originality and craftsmanship,” Adam Freede, chief executive officer and cofounder of MadaLuxe Group, said in a statement provided to WWD. “This acquisition reflects our belief in — and continued commitment to — the luxury sector, as well as our strategy to further diversify across categories within our portfolio. With our retail and digital networks paired with Ippolita’s strong creative identity, we’re well positioned to expand the brand’s reach and momentum in key markets.” One possibility would be to open additional Ippolita stores. Currently, Ippolita has just one store which is on Madison Avenue, though there were stores in Milan and Chicago that closed.

Freede characterized Ippolita as “an iconic brand with a rich artistic heritage, extraordinary customer loyalty and a timeless visual vocabulary.…We see significant opportunity to drive brand growth through strategic support and investment. Above all, we saw a great chance to add someone as talented as Ippolita to the MadaLuxe family, who views the importance of people and company culture the same way that we do.” 

In her own statement, Rostagno said, “I founded Ippolita with the belief that fine jewelry should celebrate the artistry of the hand and honor the individuality of the women who wear it. Joining MadaLuxe Group opens an exciting new chapter — one that allows us to protect our heritage while embracing meaningful opportunities for growth. I am delighted to continue guiding the brand’s creative vision as we reach an even broader global audience.”

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

Ippolita is sold at upscale retailers including Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom, as well as independent high-end specialty stores across the country including Halls Kansas City, London Jewelers, Reeds Jewelers and many others.

According to the brand’s website, Rostagno was born and raised in the hills of Florence. She studied sculpture and ceramics at the Istituto D’Arte in Florence and considers herself “an artist first and a designer second.”

In 1982, she moved from Italy to Los Angeles, where she started an alternative dance company. In 1986, she moved to New York, where she began working in sculpture and designing jewelry for retailers. She launched the Ippolita fine jewelry brand in 1999 and debuted it at Bergdorf Goodman, which now is a division of Saks Global. In 2012, Rostagno opened the Ippolita flagship store at 796 Madison Avenue, which in 2023 relocated to 721 Madison Avenue. Ippolita also operates an e-commerce website.

In 2010, the New York- and California-based MadaLuxe, founded by Freede and his mother Sandy Sholl, launched as a distributor of luxury goods to off-price retailers and luxury timepieces from Ferragamo, Versace and other designer brands to casinos, jewelry shops and stores such as Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. The company opened a few of its own off-price stores but those were permanently closed during the pandemic. The MadaLuxe Group’s primary business continues as a distributor of luxury fashion and lifestyle brands spanning ready-to-wear, leather goods, footwear, accessories, timepieces and home categories. The company has offices in New York City, Los Angeles and Seal Beach, Calif.

In 2020, MadaLuxe formed MLG Ventures with a mission to invest in fashion technology companies. MLG Ventures has minority stakes in Psykhe AI, a personalization platform for e-commerce that utilizes machine learning and psychology to customize product recommendations to each user’s personality profile. 

Other minority investments are in Reflaunt, a business-to-business resale platform, and Codeboxx, a “boot camp” teaching coding and technology skills with a focus on women, people of color and veterans.

In addition, Sholl owns Zelig, a technology that allows shoppers to mix and match thousands of items in real-time and create their own personalized digital closets. Zelig has a partnership with Revolve. Unlike apps that place clothes on a scanned body, Zelig accurately simulates how garments behave, how fabrics drape, how proportions change on tall versus petite frames and how textures layer together.

Another key feature of the technology is a “digital closet,” which shoppers have on Revolve’s site to house items and outfits purchased, or those being considered for purchase. The digital closet generates data on purchases and outfitting preferences, creating a profile of the shopper’s personal style and wardrobe preferences, leading to improved personalization and product recommendations online.

MadaLuxe has further diversified by establishing a partnership with Swedish luxury bedding company Hästens, which has been opening Hästens stores across the U.S.

In 2023, MadaLuxe acquired a majority stake in a tequila brand called Enemigo. “We had been searching for two years for a tequila brand because as a family, we love tequila, and everybody in the company loves tequila. It’s a high-end spirit and Tequila Enemigo is really an extraordinary product,” Sholl said at the time.