Style Blueprint | Faces
Meet Margaret Ellis’s Mother-Daughter Tastemakers: Mclaine Richardson and Connie Cathcart-Richardson
Meet the dynamic mother-daughter duo behind Margaret Ellis Jewelry. These Nashville-raised trendsetters are making their mark on local fashion and beyond!
Published on September 17, 2023
Two of Nashville’s most passionate fashion advocates happen to be mother and daughter. Connie Cathcart-Richardson and Mclaine Richardson joined forces for Nashville Fashion Week and in business — with Mclaine as designer and owner at Margaret Ellis Jewelry and Connie serving as the head of business management and marketing.
Today, find out about Connie and Mclaine’s lifelong loves of art and fashion, what inspired them to go into business together, and how they spend quality time outside of work as this week’s mother-daughter FACES of Nashville duo!
What is the career trajectory that led you to this point?
Connie: I started modeling when I was 13 and really wanted to study fashion and move to NYC to run a fashion magazine. But a cute boy (hubby of 40 years) changed my trajectory, and I never left Tennessee. I studied marketing and English and pursued a 25-year career in the print advertising agency business, pre-internet. Automotive financial services, real estate, and hotels were my focus for years. When Mclaine left for college, I had that mother meltdown that I didn’t expect to have and started questioning what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I did a deep dive, tapped into my 18-year-old self, and knew it had to involve fashion.
It’s a long, crazy story, but I was offered the opportunity to launch a local style magazine in 2007, which led to several years of styling, creative direction, and fashion show production. That path led me to meet and mentor a lot of young creatives (designers, models, stylists, photographers, etc.), which ultimately translated to co-founding Nashville Fashion Week in 2010 to give them a platform for exposure.
I’ve also managed back-of-house and cast models for the Nashville Symphony Show with Gus Mayer since 2011, so I’ve had the privilege of working closely with most of my dream designers. It’s hard to believe that I’ve been living and breathing Nashville fashion for 17 years. I love the creativity of fashion, but it’s the people that have my heart. This has truly been my favorite and most fulfilling season of life so far, and it’s even more meaningful because I’ve gotten to share it with Mclaine.
Mclaine: A couple of years after graduation, I worked on a freelance graphic design and photography project for a client and reconnected with Margaret through a Facebook post my mom had made. I had grown up very familiar with Margaret because it was the only jewelry Mom wore, and it was the first piece of nice jewelry gifted to me at 10 years old.
Margaret brought me on temporarily to help during the holiday rush while one of our metalsmith artists was sick. I started to learn her techniques and how to create jewelry in a studio rather than in the production methods I had been taught in jewelry classes. And I taught her how to use social media and updated manual tasks she had been doing since the ’80s. I worked for Margaret for three years before she asked if I’d like to buy her business. That was almost 11 years ago now; the rest is history.
What inspired you to go into business together?
Connie: Mclaine and I are a great team! Our varied gifts, skills, and personalities complement one another. I’ve always sucked Mclaine into whatever I’ve been involved with since she was a little girl. She’s been an instrumental team player in Nashville Fashion Week since day one. She serves as our creative director, designing and overseeing all of our graphics and photography, as well as anything else that needs to be done at all hours of the night.
When she purchased Margaret Ellis Jewelry in 2012, I “volunteered” to help her with marketing and strategic planning. Little did either of us know what we were signing up for!
Mclaine: Working with my mom wasn’t originally a “conscience” decision. We’ve always balanced each other out. I started helping her with graphics for Style615 when I was in college, then once she started Nashville Fashion Week, it was just something I continued to help her with. Whenever she needed help with check-in, backstage, or styling photoshoots, I would help. I enjoyed those tasks and being part of her world. Eventually, I told her I was done with the anxiety of working backstage, so she put me in charge of wrangling photographers and front-of-house tasks.
When I took over Margaret’s business, it was just as natural for her to help me with it. I was 26 years old. I had never run a business, and she had managed several. We’re a good team!
Lightning Round:
What was your most recent (local) memorable meal, and where were you?
Connie: A recent family dinner at Il Forno is at the top of the memorable meal list. Sharing homemade pasta and pizza with people you love is always a good idea.
Mclaine: I’m always game for Il Forno. The last time we went was while my mom’s sister was in town, and we were gifted limoncello from the owner. Watching my uncle and grandmother’s reaction to their first sip was a family memory we will talk about for years to come.
What is one piece of jewelry you can’t imagine living without?
Connie: That’s a hard question, considering I literally have a giant tackle box full of ME jewelry. I have an extensive collection dating back to the early ’90s. My husband bought my first piece for me from Margaret at McClures and continued to gift me with her designs until Mclaine took over. That bronze cross will always hold a special place in my heart. Mclaine’s Electron Bracelet is also a statement piece I will cherish forever. Carolina Herrera admired it when I met her, so Mclaine made her one, too. I framed her thank you note.
Mclaine: My most precious piece of jewelry is my diamond stack rings that I made after my grandfather’s death. I have diamonds from his tie pin, my mom’s original engagement ring, and a ring my parents gave me when I turned 13. It reminds me that my family is always with me.
For the full article, click here. Big thanks to Courtney Eckdahl for the images.