Inviting Beth Hutchens, founder and creative director of FoundRae, to be a part of our community of founders and share her entrepreneurial wisdom and personal style secrets was a complete no-brainer. Below, Beth shares her approach to staying grounded, layering jewelry, and the advice she'd give her younger self.
SHOP BETH'S PICKS
OUR CHAT WITH BETH
Beth Hutchens is the founder and creative director of FoundRae, the fine jewelry line built on symbolism, heirlooms, and self-expression. She left a role at Cynthia Rowley at 23 to start her own path and has kept experimenting ever since. We sat down for a cuppa with Beth to chat about staying grounded, layering meaning into jewelry, and just how important it is for entrepreneurs starting out to stay focused.
BETH: I love an open neckline. The shirts that Frank & Eileen make, and the way their buttons are placed, create the perfect canvas for expressing myself through jewelry.
F&E: You take a deeply personal, layered approach to creating your jewelry, incorporating symbols and heirlooms into each piece. What informs these inspirations? Do you apply that same deeply personal approach to running your business?
BETH: The way I approach wearing and collecting my own jewelry is the same way I approached founding FoundRae. I see myself as someone who, just like our clients, is on a path of self-discovery and self-expression. I see symbols as a way to access the collective unconscious, this deep wealth of meaning that has been passed down through generations. When I design new jewelry or consider which pieces to add to my own collection, it gives me pause to revisit our tenets, like reverie or vivacity, and ask myself how they’re showing up in my life. It becomes a way to reframe and reprioritize.
BETH: I love an open neckline. The shirts that Frank & Eileen make, and the way their buttons are placed, create the perfect canvas for expressing myself through jewelry.
F&E: You take a deeply personal, layered approach to creating your jewelry, incorporating symbols and heirlooms into each piece. What informs these inspirations? Do you apply that same deeply personal approach to running your business?
BETH: The way I approach wearing and collecting my own jewelry is the same way I approached founding FoundRae. I see myself as someone who, just like our clients, is on a path of self-discovery and self-expression. I see symbols as a way to access the collective unconscious, this deep wealth of meaning that has been passed down through generations. When I design new jewelry or consider which pieces to add to my own collection, it gives me pause to revisit our tenets, like reverie or vivacity, and ask myself how they’re showing up in my life. It becomes a way to reframe and reprioritize.
BETH: Sitting outside—you can feel that fall has arrived, but it’s still terrace and patio weather. I love that about September.
F&E: What’s the moment everything changed for you as an entrepreneur, for better or worse?
BETH: Just starting. Leaving my role at 23 as an assistant designer for Cynthia Rowley and deciding to dive in, deciding that I was going to be an entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur is a winding path, and choosing to step onto it is the single biggest moment that changes everything.
F&E: What are you juggling right now that people don’t see?
BETH: I try to be really present, which means I don’t want to be on my phone, but at the same time, I want to be genuinely accessible. I’m constantly balancing being in the moment with being reachable. Because of that, I also tend to struggle with managing my calendar. When I’m in a meeting or with someone, I’m not thinking about what’s next. I get energized by the conversation and want to keep going. It comes from a sincere desire to engage, but it can have a snowball effect on my schedule.
BETH: Sitting outside—you can feel that fall has arrived, but it’s still terrace and patio weather. I love that about September.
F&E: What’s the moment everything changed for you as an entrepreneur, for better or worse?
BETH: Just starting. Leaving my role at 23 as an assistant designer for Cynthia Rowley and deciding to dive in, deciding that I was going to be an entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur is a winding path, and choosing to step onto it is the single biggest moment that changes everything.
F&E: What are you juggling right now that people don’t see?
BETH: I try to be really present, which means I don’t want to be on my phone, but at the same time, I want to be genuinely accessible. I’m constantly balancing being in the moment with being reachable. Because of that, I also tend to struggle with managing my calendar. When I’m in a meeting or with someone, I’m not thinking about what’s next. I get energized by the conversation and want to keep going. It comes from a sincere desire to engage, but it can have a snowball effect on my schedule.
F&E: What would the future look like if we had exponentially more women entrepreneurs? If 50% of the companies were run by women, how would our world be different?
BETH: I think female entrepreneurs run their businesses differently, primarily because we recognize how multi-faceted women are in their lives. We bring more empathy and sensitivity to helping women find balance and carve out time for the things they care about. From a very early age, I recognized this, and I felt the difference I could make was to show that you can be a dedicated mother, a family-oriented person, and career-driven, all at once. I felt we weren’t given enough role models who were all of these things. At Rebecca Taylor, even when we were a very small business and well before paid maternity leave was required, we offered 100% paid maternity leave. Those kinds of benefits reflect a core belief: that supporting multi-faceted women is a priority.
BETH: For someone starting now: stay focused. Develop a strong point of view and a clear reason why you should exist in the marketplace. If you have a big vision and more ideas, let those unfold only after you’ve built a single core competency. For my younger self: I know in hindsight what would have made things easier, but I didn’t have access to that knowledge or those resources at the time, and honestly, I wouldn’t change it. I would tell myself that things are never perfect, and that the path of entrepreneurship is never smooth or linear. The real skill is learning how to navigate the challenges.
F&E: Do you have an everyday uniform that limits your decision fatigue, or what’s your approach to getting dressed?
BETH: I really love fashion as a form of self-expression. I try to gravitate toward things I haven’t worn in a while. I’m always experimenting.
BETH: For someone starting now: stay focused. Develop a strong point of view and a clear reason why you should exist in the marketplace. If you have a big vision and more ideas, let those unfold only after you’ve built a single core competency. For my younger self: I know in hindsight what would have made things easier, but I didn’t have access to that knowledge or those resources at the time, and honestly, I wouldn’t change it. I would tell myself that things are never perfect, and that the path of entrepreneurship is never smooth or linear. The real skill is learning how to navigate the challenges.
F&E: Do you have an everyday uniform that limits your decision fatigue, or what’s your approach to getting dressed?
BETH: I really love fashion as a form of self-expression. I try to gravitate toward things I haven’t worn in a while. I’m always experimenting.
F&E: What’s your “stone in the hand?” In other words, what keeps you grounded and helps you never give up? Is it an object, a memory, a person, a word of advice?
BETH: My parents keep me grounded. They’ve always encouraged me. From a very early age, they instilled in me the belief that I can do anything I set my mind to, that the world is open to me. They would ask me where I wanted to live: “Paris? New York?” even before I’d ever been to either place. They’ve always lifted me up while keeping me grounded, with a lot of humor and a lot of love.
F&E: What does it mean to you to be part of this community of founders in this September Issue, committed to using your experience to pay it forward to the next generation of women entrepreneurs?
BETH: I feel really proud to be included, because I genuinely believe that if I could do it, anyone can. I didn’t have connections, money, or an elite education. What I found is that all you need is will, determination, and resilience, and the choice to stay on the path. I’ve always believed that success doesn’t have one true definition. To me, it means doing what you love. It can look like a million different things. Being a successful entrepreneur means doing what gives you joy. It’s not an exclusive club—anyone can join. There is no barrier to entry that can’t be overcome.
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