Meet jeweller to the stars, Payal Shah – the Hong Kong-born entrepreneur founded the brand L’Dezen that boasts celebrity fans Rihanna, Demi Lovato and Sofia Vergara …
Founder and creative director of L’Dezen jewellery, Payal Shah has found that good timing has helped her business grow from small beginnings to a jeweller to the stars.
“My company L’Dezen officially turned 10 years old this year,” says Shah, who grew up in Hong Kong. “I started off with the idea of a manufacturing business, which wasn’t supposed to turn into a brand or label of any sort. The idea was to create pieces and then sell them to stores or brands that would then rename them under their own brand.”
“However, because my pieces were so distinctive, people could tell they were mine. That’s when I realised I should start my own brand,” continues Shah.
Shah is the second generation of jewellers in her family. “My father is a diamond merchant, and I learned a lot from him,” she says. While taking from the past, Shah also knows how to change with the times. Notably, she started a new, more affordable, ethically sourced jewellery brand, Psylish, launched during lockdown.
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“People around me wanted to have jewellery that they could sleep in, wake up and go to the gym, and also wear with a black dress,” adds Shah, who describes her brand as “beautiful, quirky yet elegant”.
People around me wanted to have jewellery that they could sleep in, wake up and go to the gym, and also wear with a black dress
For L’Dezen, she created a new accessory and clothing line, recently adding fun bracelets, necklaces and headbands.
“I took inspiration from the jewellery that I created in my past collection, especially the bejewelled athleisure – it was all crystallised and just something that I saw that people would like during Covid-19,” she added.
“I see Sharon Osbourne in my earrings and I know they’re my earrings because they were one of my most distinctive pairs. Like America’s Got Talent today, the world was watching the show, it was the No 1 show and so I took a screenshot of it and put it on my Facebook just to see how much business it bought in,” says Shah.
“And yes, people were more interested in learning about my brand.”
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Despite her busy schedule, Shah says she manages a regular fitness regime. “I love boxing and I love just going to the gym,” she says, admitting she has so much energy that if she did not go for a 5km run or boxing, she would not be able to sleep.
A tip? “I juice every morning, which is something I cannot live without.”
And she always has time for family. “As a family, we have lunch together – my mum, dad and brother.”
Payal Shah’s preferred watch – a vintage Piaget
“It was passed to me by my mother and was the first nice watch she bought after she moved to Hong Kong. It was a sign to show how she had adapted to a new city, learnt to run a business and was able to buy something so beautiful.”
- Mindy Kaling once asked Shah to style her for the Cannes Film Festival, and Sharon Osbourne wore a pair of L’Dezen earrings in an episode of American Idol
- Shah, whose jewellery brand includes bracelets, necklaces and headbands, says her preferred watch is a vintage Piaget, which was passed down to her from her mother