Greg Yuna’s Jewelry is Combining Culture and Art From Nolita to Tokyo

In New York City the streets tell their own stories. On Mulberry Street in Nolita, where boutiques and restaurants line the blocks, one storefront stands apart. Step inside Greg Yüna’s flagship store and you’ll find cases gleaming with fine jewelry, where each piece carries the weight of a personal story.

For Queens native Yüna, the move to Nolita in 2024 was about rewriting the rules of luxury, walking away from the city’s Diamond District where he got his start and betting on himself in a way that fused artistry, authenticity and risk.

KITH

“I never really felt comfortable selling a $100,000 piece out of a little kiosk,” he told Newsweek during a visit to the store. “I wanted to give people more of an experience. Something luxe, something unique. I’d always wanted to be downtown.”

Yüna grew up surrounded by the cultural diversity that defines New York. “Queens was a melting pot,” he said. “I had friends from every background. You pick up a little bit of everything, and it shapes you. That’s the beauty of being from New York.”

Jewelry was, quite literally, in his bloodline. His grandfather had worked in the trade in Russia before the family migrated, and Yüna eventually began apprenticing with uncles in the Diamond District. By 2009, he was working full time in the family business. It was there, amid the suits and hard sells of 47th Street, that he noticed a void in fine jewelry that reflected the tastes of his peers, a generation of trendsetters who’d built their fortunes in arts and entertainment.

“I spoke the language of the culture,” he said. “Everyone else was in a suit and tie. I was just being myself. When people from the worlds of hip-hop, fashion or sports walked in, they came straight to me.”

That relatability became his calling card. Before long, Yüna’s Instagram presence and his guerrilla-style Sixth Avenue photo shoots—with props like beds, motorcycles, even ping-pong tables staged in the middle of Manhattan streets—helped him carve out a lane as a jeweler who sold more than diamonds, with identity and a story factored into every photo.

‘I Knew I Had Arrived’

Yüna’s breakthrough moment came on a billboard. After collaborating with Nike on a sneaker project, he looked up at 34th Street one day and saw himself on a jumbotron. “I almost didn’t believe it,” he said. “That was the moment I knew I had arrived.”

From there, his client list grew—from singers and rappers including Madonna, Rihanna, Meek Mill, J Balvin and Lil Yachty to football player DK Metcalf and actor Michael B. Jordan. Each brought their own story, and Yüna relished the challenge of turning personality into jewelry.

“A custom piece is so sentimental,” he said. “Delivering the finished product and seeing the reaction on someone’s face—that’s the best part. I’ve seen tears.”

In a world where jewelry can veer from stuffy to gaudy, Yüna has carved out a middle ground; refined but youthful, subtle yet powerful. “I don’t care about flooding pieces with diamonds just for the shine,” he said. “I want people to see the artistry. Satin finishes, sandblasted textures, thoughtful details. Less can be more.”

Holding up a brushed piece, he said, “When jewelry is polished, you lose the detail. When you brush it, you see all the details.” It’s a philosophy that separates his work from the clunky, diamond-drenched styles often associated with celebrity jewelry. That instinct to merge craftsmanship with culture has kept him ahead of imitators. “The cleanest moves are the quietest,” his brand mantra reads. “You don’t have to be loud to be legendary.”

courtesy of Greg Yuna

When Yüna opened in Nolita in June 2024, the relocation proved to be a total transformation. His flagship doubles as headquarters, design studio and community hub. “It’s basically an art gallery,” he said. “I wanted people to come in and feel the artistry.” That artistry doesn’t rest on his shoulders alone. Yüna is quick to credit his close-knit team, which includes his longtime business partner J-Frost, who helps steer the brand’s strategy and expansion, and his design partner Rachel Goatley, whose creative eye shapes the look and feel of many of Yüna’s most memorable pieces.

During a tour of the store, Yüna praised Goatley as “one of the best human beings in the world, my creative partner…. She knows how to bring a lot of stuff to life for me.”

Together, they’ve built a space that’s as much about community as commerce. The vibe reflects not just his jewelry but his friendships. Fellow Queens-bred creatives like Ronnie Fieg of fashion brand Kith and Teddy Santis, whose apparel store Aimé Leon Dore is just across the street, often stop by. “It’s a hangout spot. You can’t do that in the Diamond District,” Yüna said. “We all grew together, naturally. It wasn’t forced.”

Jewelry That’s Fun Again

One of the most surprising things about Yüna’s current approach is how playful it is. With gold prices soaring, his team has leaned into silver and lower price point collections. “Now with gold so high, we love playing with silver…it’s just fun again,” he said during our walk-through.

Goatley’s fingers are loaded with $72,000 in Greg Yüna custom diamond rings, as she points out charm pieces and delicate pendants designed for everyone. “It’s personal jewelry. If you notice it, you notice it.” And lately, the gender rules are blurring. “Guys are wearing the colorful, playful pieces now,” Yüna said. “And women are toning down. It’s cool to see the shift.”

That ethos carries into collaborations, like his “Perfect Match” design with painter Sue Tsai—two gold matchsticks made for twin flames—or the candy-inspired pendant he and Goatley created with NFL star Metcalf and Bazooka Candy Brands, complete with yellow diamonds and real functionality.

Though jewelry remains his core, Yüna’s vision is multidisciplinary. Alongside Nick Semkiw, he co-owns Chica & The Don, a Flatiron restaurant offering Pan-Latin cuisine. He trains four days a week in the martial art Muay Thai to keep his mind and body balanced. And he’s no stranger to the camera. In addition to consulting on the film, he appeared in the Safdie brothers’ crime thriller Uncut Gems alongside Adam Sandler and continues to bring cinematic energy to his campaigns, often recreating iconic movie scenes with friends for photoshoots.

“I’ve always loved guerrilla marketing,” Yüna said. “Now it’s become cinematic—Goodfellas, Home Alone 2, Sopranos. It’s fun, and it ties my jewelry into culture in a way people connect with.”

Niko Carste

“I think of myself as more artist than jeweler,” he added. “Jewelry is the medium, but the artistry is what connects people.”

Global Expansion

Yüna expanded internationally this year, opening a store in Tokyo. He says the move was about cultural exchange as much as commerce. “Japan is one of the most incredible places in the world,” he said. “They embrace hip-hop and New York culture so deeply. To bring my brand there felt right.”

It’s a milestone that cements his place not just as a New York jeweler, but as a global tastemaker bridging fashion, music and lifestyle.

Despite the high-profile clients and million-dollar collaborations, Yüna insists his compass is simple: taste, humility and authenticity. He turns down projects that don’t feel aligned, even when the money is tempting. “Once you start doing money grabs, you’re not authentic anymore,” he said. “It was never about the money for me.”

Ask him about the future and he shrugs. “I’ve been winging it my whole life,” he laughed. “And it’s been working. I go by feel. Like putting on an outfit—when you know it looks good, you feel good.”

When pressed, he says: “I’ve done a lot. At this point, I’d love a family. That feels like the next step.”

In the end, what makes Yüna compelling isn’t just the glitter of his pieces, or the celebrity names attached to them. It’s the way he’s managed to stay rooted in where he came from while pushing into new spaces with integrity.

From Queens to Nolita to Tokyo, he’s been guided less by a five-year plan than by intuition, adaptability and taste.

“I just want to deliver the right piece to someone,” he told Newsweek. “Something that makes them feel seen.”

In an industry often defined by excess, Yüna has built his brand on restraint, storytelling and connection. True to his mantra, the cleanest moves are indeed the quietest—and Greg Yüna has proven that you don’t have to be loud to be legendary.

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