How it started...

After completing her Bachelor of Arts in Fashion Design at University of Missouri, Nina Berenato moved to New York and through a stroke of luck, met a jewelry designer who was seeking a production metal smithing apprentice. Nina began her first year of apprenticeship under Elizabeth Knight in 2010, but ended up working under the well-known Brooklyn-based designer for the next five years. Under her mentor's guidance, Nina honed her craft and released her first self-designed and fabricated collection, Cosmic, after just one year of study.

While in NYC, she bootstrapped her business, working odd jobs before heading to the studio, bartending on the weekends and working as a buyer for a local retail store in the evenings.

Making Texas Home

Nina grew her wholesale business little by little over the next 4 years, eventually stocking her line in over 200 shops over the US and Canada including Free People, Urban Outfitters, and Uncommon Goods.

Through the advice of a free business adviser at the NYC Small Business Association, in 2015 Nina moved to Austin, TX and turned her focus to brick and mortar retail. After noticing the food truck culture around Texas, Nina decided to create a one of a kind mobile jewelry store built inside of a 1959 Airstream Bambi travel trailer. With her trailer boutique in tow, she did pop-ups all over Texas and quickly became a well-known fixture in Austin’s growing maker community. It was in Austin that Nina realized the full potential her line had, as women all over the state flooded her mobile shop to purchase her designs and meet the designer in person. 

Two years later...

Nina reached a life-long goal and opened up her 1900 sq ft brick and mortar flagship store, recently named Best Jewelry Store in Austin. At the Nina Berenato flagship you'll find Nina's original designs uniquely displayed, the work of other local female artists featured, a one-of-a-kind metal smithing studio where Nina will come throughout the year to create the prototypes for her collections, and most importantly her amazing staff of shopgirls! Nina’s store has quickly become a hub for women to get involved in social justice causes, discover and donate to local charities, find strength in community and collaborate on Nina’s mission to improve the lives of women in Texas through creativity and resourcefulness.