At the heart of Francesca Jewellery’s success is a commitment not just to craftsmanship, but to community — and in particular, to creating meaningful opportunities for women from refugee backgrounds.
Founded by sisters Hannah and Rachel Vasicek, the Hobart-based jewellery brand started at Salamanca Market when Hannah was just 16. Over the years, it grew into a national business with international reach, but one of its most impactful initiatives began quietly in 2016, in the brand's beading room.
"My husband's a social worker and he was telling me about, you know, a lot of people that he works with… that just need employment and they need opportunity," Hannah said.
At the same time, demand for Francesca's handmade beaded jewellery — a cornerstone of the brand — was growing. "We're going to need more and more people to bead with us," she said. "And you don't really need to know fluent English to bead."
That realisation sparked something powerful.
"We employed our first refugee background women coming from Eritrea, which is a really amazing part of Africa. We firstly met four of them, sat down and had tea and they couldn't speak the best English but they were so excited to be able to make something and to be able to, I guess, join our family — the Francesca family."
Since then, Francesca's beading team has grown, with 30 per cent of all products — including their signature pearl and beaded bracelets — still handmade in Hobart.
"They're beaded by an amazing team of women. We have anywhere between eight to ten people in our beading room at one time."
For Hannah, the impact has gone far beyond business.
"They've been with us ever since. We know their families, they speak fluent English now… and it's been amazing to see them just grow more and more confident in what they do every day.
"To be able to see that people enjoy the pieces that they make in-house, that's probably the most life-changing thing."
More than just a jewellery label, Francesca has become a platform for empowerment — helping women rebuild their lives, one bracelet at a time.