Samantha Wills closing down

Heather McIlvaine

14th Aug 2018

Online jewellery retailer Samantha Wills on Friday announced that January 2019 will be its final month of trade.

Founder Samantha Wills shared the decision with customers in a series of Facebook posts last week, but did not say exactly why she has decided to close her business.

“We are doing this now because integrity has been one of our core values and I will always live up to this in all that I do. Yes we are profitable and yes, we are considered successful, but walking away is what I need to do to be creative again with integrity, passion and energy,” she wrote.

Describing the difficulty of reaching the decision to walk away, Wills wrote that “it is a much more tormenting decision to close a multi-million dollar company than to persist with a small in-debt one, and the spectrum of emotions I have felt in the process of reaching this decision have conflicted me greatly”.

Wills said the decision marks the end of the jewellery business she started at her kitchen table 14 years ago at the age of 22, but not the end of her brand, which will live on through the Samantha Wills Foundation.

Through her Foundation, Wills works to support young entrepreneurs about the ins-and-outs of startup businesses and making decisions with integrity, truth of heart, kindness and authenticity.

She plans to continue sharing her own success story – and failures – through writing and public speaking.

Wills said she is focused on supporting current employees transition into new jobs over the next six months and introducing the brand’s suppliers and production houses to other jewellery brands in Australia.

“It is the incredible Samantha Wills community who have been the heart and soul of this journey, and many of you have been with us since I had a little Bondi Market table with some handmade jewellery on it. I can never thank you enough for everything you have brought to the SW team,” she wrote.