MEET THE FTJCO TEAM
CAD DESIGNER & SALES PROFESSIONAL
SYDNEY ABRAM
Sydney earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from York University, followed by an Advanced Diploma in Jewellery Arts from George Brown College. Starting her career as a goldsmith in a mass production jewellery company, she quickly transitioned to the design department to learn 3D printing and 3D design/rendering software. Sydney currently sits on the board of the Women’s Jewelry Association’s Toronto Chapter as the Co-VP of Communications. Sydney has worked with FTJCo since 2017, dividing her skills between design consultations, rendering the Made To Order pieces for the website, and co-designing for Parliament x FTJCo.
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
CHRISTINE CUFF
Christine has been with FTJCo since its inception and has helped FTJCo weather the early, challenging years leading to our continued rapid growth and expansion. She manages finance, shipping, and inventory (all remotely) from her home in rural Newfoundland, where she lives with her husband and young children.
SALES PROFESSIONAL
DIBA EKHLASPOUR
Originally from Iran, Diba studied Business Planning and Fashion Marketing at Tehran Marketing School. In Canada, Diba earned an International Business degree from Centennial College and a Digital Marketing Certificate from UofT. Her career in jewellery began in mass production, where her interest in gemstones and ethical values soon drew her to FTJCo. Now, Diba leverages her background in business, fashion, and marketing at FTJCo, focusing on sales, online production tools, and CRM systems. Fluent in Farsi, English, and Italian, and with knowledge of Spanish, she is currently learning French and the computer programming language Python.
CO-CEO + HEAD OF PRODUCTION + GOLDSMITH + GEMSETTER
KESHA FRANK
As a 5th generation artist, Kesha is honoured to produce works of art that become part of the wearer’s identity. After joining FTJCo in 2015, she realised very quickly that this had the potential to be her forever home.
It’s an open secret that the jewellery industry is a misogynistic space. She made it her personal mission to make FTJCo a home for strong, talented, and opinionated people who experience misogyny. She’s immensely proud to look around at the people she sees everyday knowing she’s well on her way to making that dream a reality.
Kesha has held positions on the RJC board of standards, has spoken at OECD on gender issues within the metal and mineral supply chains, and crafted the first piece of work in the world from Just Gold.
Her community at FTJCo is her pride, joy, and raison d’être.
GOLDSMITH, LEAD RESEARCHER (MARKETING & INSIGHTS)
ISABEL GERTLER
Isabel holds a master's degree in Anthropology from the University of Cambridge. She worked in market research before enrolling in the Jewellery Arts program at George Brown College, where she won six end-of-year prizes, and was named the 2018 Valedictorian for the Centre of Art, Design, and Information Technology. As a student, Isabel held a prestigious summer residency at Toronto's Harbourfront Centre. In addition to goldsmithing, Isabel draws on her previous experience to spearhead research and communications at FTJCo, and contributes to the marketing team. In her free time, Isabel practices natural dyeing with homegrown plants and flowers!
LEAD ART DESIGNER
KRISTIN INGLESE
Kristin has been with FTJCo since 2015, starting out in sales and moving her way into marketing. Kristin has a background in art and design that she uses for her day-to-day work creating and managing media at FTJCo. Kristin is currently trying to figure out how to use AI without losing humanity and she also wants to meet a ‘wild’ gorilla. 😉
HEAD OF RETAIL SALES
NICOLETTE KEMP
As Head of Retail Sales, she and her team strive to create a welcoming environment for everyone and aim to provide a well-rounded experience. Being in a role that allows her to be part of special milestones as well as participate in a socially and environmentally conscious business is the best of both worlds. In their downtime they can be found playing Dungeons & Dragons with friends, or hosting their friends and family for dinner. They are always searching for new recipes to try!
LEAD DESIGNER
KATHLEEN KERR
Kathleen is an award-winning graduate of the Jewellery Arts program at George Brown College and previously completed an Interior Design diploma at Humber College. The desire for a more focused and hands-on approach to design led her to jewellery where she finally found her passion, training as a goldsmith and receiving advanced level training in gemsetting and Matrix CAD software. CAD allows her to use her love of precision and problem-solving in the digital construction of custom and stock designs for FTJCo and Parliament. Kathleen won the AGTA Spectrum Gem Diva award for bridal in 2020.
SALES PROFESSIONAL
SONYA SERAFIN
Sonya holds an Advanced Diploma in Interaction Design and Development from George Brown College. She has a background in marketing, digital design, and retail management. Her varied skill set and love of jewellery led her to join FTJCo as a Sales Professional. In her spare time, Sonya likes to read, listen to music, and daydream about her next meal.
LETTY
VIDEO CONTENT CREATOR
MADELEINE YORKE GAMBHIR
Madeleine Yorke Gambhir is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Film Studies program, with a focus in video editing and sound design. They joined the sales and customer service team at FTJCo in 2017 and have now moved to the marketing department as a video content creator. They manage the ideation, filming, and editing of both our short form and featured video content.
CO-FOUNDER, CEO
ROBIN GAMBHIR
Robin Gambhir is FTJCo’s co-founder and manages finance, governance, technology, and sourcing. Robin’s varied experience ranges from working as a software developer with Apple, to a writer for the National Post newspaper. He spent twenty-five years in the wholesale gem trade before co-founding FTJCo. Robin also holds an M.A. in Literature from the University of Toronto.
