‘I’ve had a fascination with precious gemstones since I was a child. Moving to Kenya at the age of 11 was when I first saw magical Amethysts and Tsavorites, which Kenya is famous for. I studied philosophy at Edinburgh University and a chance encounter on a post university trip to Sri Lanka led to me landing a job in Colombo with an old established Sri Lankan family-run gemstone firm. I got to understand every aspect of the business: from mining the rough gemstones, to the cutting, polishing and gem dealing in the markets of Rathnapura, to the final stage of setting the polished gemstones into jewellery with experts in Bangkok and then finally selling to clients all over the world.

I came to understand the best - and the worst - aspects of the business. It’s a very male-dominated industry and many companies really don’t care about where their gemstones come from or how their jewellery is made. I knew this would be an important part of any business I set up and I made personal connections in Sri Lanka with people who now contribute to every part of Jean - from craftsmen in Galle to an amazing family of miners in Rathnapura.

My first line of jewellery - Hannah May London - that I created when I was 23 - was very delicate and minimal. It was traditionally ‘pretty’. There followed a very difficult period in my life. I had to deal with a stalker and it made me rethink everything. I wanted to make a collection that was bold and powerful and I suddenly realised that my grandmother Jean had embodied all of those values. She was a fighter, a female pioneer, and she became the inspiration to pivot from delicate jewellery to this more assertive incarnation.

Jean is an externalised version of the strength I had to summon to overcome these difficult personal issues. To me, it’s a symbol of how I had to become more powerful and more prepared to fight, more like Jean. And that’s what Jean the brand is. To become more powerful. The designs went from pretty and delicate to bold and accomplished. And that’s the feeling I want to give everyone who wears a Jean ring: to feel bold and powerful too.’