Jay Sharpe doesn’t carry giant inventories or drive customer traffic through expensive advertising campaigns. But he’s survived 10 years as a solo jeweler in Carytown through a passion for custom design and personal attention to his customers.

“We’re not a big-box retailer,” he told Bonnie Newman Davis for today’s Metro Business. “We’re about good service and meeting deadlines.”

Customers seek Sharpe's service for custom-made anklets, earrings, bracelets and other designs. The Virginia Commonwealth University grad keeps three or four books of sketches. "Being creative is all I know how to do," he said. "I am flooded with ideas and constantly retooling."

Sharpe has sold his craftsmanship to some Nordstrom stores on the East Coast and Henri Bendel in New York. He was commissioned to design Christmas tree ornaments for the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and designed cufflinks for Lexus of Richmond, and he’s had his work featured in Essence magazine, a fashion leader for African-American women.

In an effort to broaden his clientele, the 41-year-old Sharpe is using his website to display his work, host a blog, generate e-mail blasts and spark direct sales. He’s also secured a New York public relations firm to give him more visibility.

While he hopes to grow his business, Sharpe is an artisan at heart. He will sometimes work on a piece 40 hours until he’s satisfied it’s perfect. He often takes longer to complete a job than when he launched his career, he says. “But if it’s in the [display] case, I’m crazy about it.”