A Natural Leader in her Field, Shilpa Yarlagadda

Shilpa Yarlagadda is the founder of Shiffon, a luxury jewelry business noted for its spiral pinky rings, which symbolize the pinky vow to support and empower women.
Michelle Obama, Serena Williams, Nicole Kidman, and Emma Watson have all been seen wearing her hallmark product, the adjustable Duet Pinky Ring. Through her foundation, the Startup Girl Foundation, Yarlagadda distributes half of Shiffon’s sales to firms that empower women.

Yarlagdda is an Indian-American who grew up in Silicon Valley, surrounded by founders working on cutting-edge innovations. She interned at NASA and Microsoft Research throughout high school, which influenced her decision to pursue a degree in computer science.
After completing her freshman year at Harvard, Yarlagadda established Shiffon in 2017. In 2017, she established Shiffon Co., a direct-to-consumer fine jewelry line, from her Harvard dorm room. She Googled all she could about how to make jewelry and knocked on the doors of the Material Science and Robotics departments to figure out how to build the pieces as cheaply as possible. The solutions ranged from 3D printing to create a castable resin replica.

Shiffon Co. creates ethically sourced jewelry to empower women, with a percentage of revenues going to the Startup Girl Foundation, the company’s non-profit arm that provides money and coaching to female-founded enterprises. Despite the fact that Yarlagadda’s background does not scream “future jewelry designer,” the young entrepreneur is showing to be a natural leader in the field.
She was also named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Art & Style list. She’s building a reputation for herself in the industry, and her company is growing to new heights.