{"id":1606365,"date":"2025-12-17T12:00:15","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T17:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/observer.com\/?p=1606365"},"modified":"2025-12-17T13:00:38","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T18:00:38","slug":"studs-anna-harman-jewelry-future-of-piercing-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/observer.com\/2025\/12\/studs-anna-harman-jewelry-future-of-piercing-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"The End of Commodity Piercing and the Rise of the Experience Economy"},"content":{"rendered":"
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As legacy retailers struggle, Studs\u2019 Anna Harman breaks down what today\u2019s piercing customer actually wants, and why. Photo by Tory Williams\/Courtesy of Studs<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This Q&A is part of Observer\u2019s\u00a0Expert Insights<\/span><\/a>\u00a0series, where industry leaders, innovators and strategists distill years of experience into direct, practical takeaways and deliver clarity on the issues shaping their industries. As legacy mall staples falter and consumer expectations reset, the jewelry and piercing sector is undergoing a quiet yet consequential transformation, driven less by price or trend cycles and more by experience, trust and self-expression.<\/p>\n

Few brands sit closer to that shift than Studs. Founded to modernize ear piercing for a new generation, the company has helped reframe what was once a commoditized, often rushed service into a design-forward, hospitality-led experience. At the center of that evolution is Anna Harman, co-founder and CEO of Studs, who has built the business around needle-based piercing, rigorous training standards and a deeply researched understanding of how Gen Z and millennials approach identity, style and retail.<\/p>\n

Harman\u2019s perspective comes at a moment of inflection. Claire\u2019s recent bankruptcy filing has reignited debate about the health of the commercial jewelry industry, but as Harman explains, the decline of one dominant player doesn\u2019t signal a shrinking market. Rather, it underscores a generational handoff. Today\u2019s consumer is older, more informed and far less willing to compromise on safety, materials or aesthetics. They arrive armed with terminology learned online, references saved from social feeds and a clear expectation that piercing should feel personal, celebratory and well-designed.<\/p>\n

Under Harman\u2019s leadership, Studs has leaned into piercing as a long-term creative practice, popularizing the idea of \u201cEarscaping\u201d and building systems that support consistency at scale. The result is a business model that sits at the intersection of jewelry, beauty and lifestyle, shaped as much by digital communities as by in-person experience.<\/p>\n

Claire\u2019s bankruptcy filing<\/a> has put a spotlight on the jewelry and piercing sector. What does their collapse reveal about the state of the commercial jewelry industry today?<\/b><\/h3>\n

The ear piercing market is actually booming, it\u2019s just incredibly fragmented. Countless national retail chains and local boutiques offer ear piercings with guns (sometimes called \u201chand-pressurized devices\u201d). Claire\u2019s is still where a lot of people have their first nostalgic piercing moment, and that\u2019s important. But once the customer ages up, typically into their late teens and twenties, they\u2019re looking for a more elevated and personalized needle piercing experience. That\u2019s where Studs comes in.<\/span><\/p>\n

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