# Charities to benefit from students’ jewellery designs

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2013/07/10/charities-benefit-students039-jewellery-designs/
- Published: 2013-07-10T13:34:56+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

East London second year jewellery and silversmithing undergraduates have designed
and produced jewellery that will be used to raise funds for charities. 

After six months' work, the efforts of the students at The Cass (London Metropolitan
University) in Whitechapel was presented to a judging panel that included Shaun 
Leane, founder of jewellery masters The House of Shaun Leane and acclaimed for his
work with Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen.

The winning designs will be produced and sold exclusively through the M.A.D. online
store, which donates 100% of the profit of every jewellery purchase after wholesale
to the shopper’s charity of choice. Any charity can register for the scheme free
of charge.

## Advertisement

The judging panel also consisted of Simon Rainer, Chief Executive of the British
Jeweller’s Association, Spencer Cohen, Founder and Director of M.A.D., Nina Gopal,
Head of Fundraising at Ovarian Cancer Action, Helen Pope, Marketing Director of 
luxury jewellery brand J-Jaz, and Marianne Forrest, Course Director at The Cass.

## Winning design

The winning design was the handiwork of Caroline Jackson, whose project “We all 
need a little help to grow” impressed the judges with its "combination of high quality
silversmithing, widespread aesthetic appeal, heartwarming concept and potential 
to generate sustainable income".

The design features a silver pendant in the form of an opening flower pod, into 
which individual gemstone “seeds” can be hung. The wearer can collect a range of“
seeds” featuring different coloured gemstones that reflect different flowers.

The judges were impressed with Jackson’s comprehensive approach to the project, 
which included her design of the packaging in the style of a flowerpot, her economy
of scale costings, and the element of sustainable revenue for charities through 
the initial one-off purchase and follow-up collection of additional gems.

Shaun Leane congratulated the students for their "real maturity in not just their
designs but [also] their execution and commercial planning".

He commented: "I think the idea of being able to buy jewellery online to support
any charity you choose is a great concept – it reflects the very personal and emotional
nature of jewellery and offers a really fresh, commercial perspective for the charity
merchandising market.”

## chooseMAD

Spencer Cohen, founder and Director of M.A.D., explained that he called the website
[chooseMAD](http://www.choosemad.com) because it was all about choice. "A consumer
can choose to go to the high street, or they can choose to come to M.A.D. where 
they will find just as fabulous a range of high quality jewellery – often at more
competitive prices. They can choose any charity to benefit, making their buying 
decisions very personal.

"Plus, because of our superior wholesale relationships, we guarantee that for every
single purchase made at M.A.D. 100% of the net profit goes directly to the shopper’s
chosen charity."

 * **[The Big Give wins Digital Giving Award at Technology4Good Awards 2013](https://fundraising.co.uk/2013/07/10/big-give-wins-digital-giving-award-technology4good-awards-2013/)**(
   10 July 2013)
 * **[Chameleon launches iRaiser digital fundraising platform to UK charities](https://fundraising.co.uk/2013/07/11/chameleon-launches-iraiser-digital-fundraising-platform-uk-charities/)**(
   11 July 2013)
 * **[Macmillan’s DRTV ad recruits 50,000 hosts for World’s Biggest Coffee Morning](https://fundraising.co.uk/2013/07/11/macmillan039s-drtv-ad-recruits-50000-hosts-world039s-biggest-coffee-morning/)**(
   11 July 2013)
