Muse, the jewelry showroom and West Village boutique founded by Jennifer Shanker, has been tapped by Nordstrom to anchor the reimagined jewelry hall at its 58^th Street flagship in New York.

“From the beginning, it was such a surprise,” Shanker said to WWD of Nordstrom approaching her to open a shop in the new hall. “Since our doors on Hudson Street opened, everything we’ve done has happened organically. This partnership is no different, and it’s an honor that Nordstrom has decided to work together to replicate our customer experience within its walls.”

Unveiled Tuesday, the reimagined space introduces Muse’s blend of craftsmanship-focused jewelry and purposely curated home objects. It debuts with 20 independent jewelry brands, a category Shanker, an industry veteran, has led the charge with since opening Muse showroom in 1999.

Shanker remains humble, but within industry circles she’s a sought-after power broker, last year she helped to bring Mellerio, the 412-year-old French jeweler Stateside. Today she continues to diligently fine tune Muse’s stable of brands, each with singular voices, connecting them with wholesale accounts, stylists and media.

“Jennifer is such a trusted authority in the independent jewelry world, and a strong advocate for emerging jewelry brands — which is a vision we share at Nordstrom,” said Rickie De Sole, vice president, fashion director, to WWD. “We’re proud to partner with her on this shop. There is also an authenticity in partnering with New York institutions; we’re excited to bring this West Village gem to our Nordstrom NYC Flagship uptown.“ 

Shanker admits a retail expansion wasn’t on her radar, but when Nordstrom pitched her, the stars aligned. 

“They made us a deal we couldn’t refuse,” quipped Shanker, who jumped at the chance to give the designers she champions an opportunity for exposure to a new Nordstrom consumer.  

“I think our taste came through, our edit and our casual way of presenting something that is fine, and oftentimes taken too seriously in other environments,” she said of Nordstrom’s appreciation of her take on retail. “It was a chance for more people to have visibility into what we do and how we do it, because on our own, that hasn’t really been our priority,” the founder said.

De Sole echoed the potential: “The Muse shop in our jewelry hall is a highlight of the newly refreshed jewelry experience. We’re making some exciting updates in New York by curating modern-fine and contemporary jewelry brands together in a warm and immersive new space on the first floor of the flagship.  We’re giving the customer a new one-stop shopping experience where they can explore the fullest expression of our jewelry offering as we continue to provide newness.”

The new jewelry hall reaffirms the retailer’s belief that the category, in spite of a luxury downturn, remains strong with room to grow. “It serves as a memorable and emotional purchase for customers and a personal means of self-expression, so it is important that the shopping experience reflects that,” De Sole said of the new jewelry space. “We’re bringing together a curation that offers something for everyone, focused on brands with a strong story to tell, in an environment that feels immersive and fun.”

The assortment was developed in tandem with the Nordstrom team with Shanker carefully considering which of her brands made sense to showcase in a new larger setting. “We’re not bringing anything from downtown that we don’t already sell really well. We’re critical in how we think about the jewelry and how we present it and we’re looking to cover the space with pieces that we know are great bang for your buck,” she said. “It’s all winners.”

The range touches a variety of price points and aesthetics. Entry-level pieces start at $350 moving up to a few showstoppers over $10k. “We certainly can bring in that over $10,000 merchandise, but it wasn’t the focus from the beginning, we were mindful of that,” the Muse founder said.

The assortment ranges from minimal delicate yellow gold by Shihara and carved gemstone earrings and everyday fine pieces from Ten Thousand Things — a brand Shanker pointed out hasn’t been above 14^th Street since Barneys New York shuttered — to colorful whimsical pieces by Bea Bongiasca, “who screams Nordstrom.”

“We thought about brands not competing with each other,” she said. “Brands we love.”

The addition of home was strategic. “From across the room, a jewelry case is a jewelry case.  You can’t really see what’s inside, but I think that the home will draw people in and will give them an easy thing to buy.”

Over the years Muse has hosted a variety of events: book signings, floral arrangement workshops and impressive Broadway and film star appearances — Cynthia Erivo, anyone? She plans to bring the same energy to activations at Nordstrom, including a larger launch event in September with brand adviser and friend of Muse Carmen Busquets.

“I have been working for so long to build Muse and this opportunity could be the thing that helps take us to the next level. It’s really just more jewelry from us now on people’s radar,” Shanker said.