Our Mission
We believe there's a badass inside everyone. We're here to INSPIRE you to live unapologetically, take up space, and live life on your own terms. We're here to AMPLIFY our community's diverse feminine and queer power by raising awareness for causes that impact women and the LGBTQ+ community in St. Louis and beyond. We're here to CELEBRATE individuality, authenticity, femininity, diversity, and inclusion. Life isn't easy, so let's make it fun. We do this by designing and making products that subtly remind you to be bold and boldly remind everyone that you are here. Let's make cool shit, take no shit, and have a damn good time while doing it! You're a fucking gem.
Our Story
Golden Gems is a lifestyle brand that designs and sells accessories, apparel, stationary goods, and home decor. All of their products exude their mission of inspiring and empowering you to live unapologetically, take up space and live life on your own terms.
Sisters Susan Logsdon and Amanda Helman started Golden Gems in 2016 headquartered out of Amanda’s living room. What started with lots of long nights and just 8 products, the Golden Gems gals quickly gained a local following through Etsy and opened up their first brick and mortar in a small shop on Cherokee Street in South St. Louis City in 2018. Over the next few years, Golden Gems experienced such rapid growth that Susan and Amanda tripled their product line, grew their team with 18 new employees, and quickly outgrew that little 1200 sq ft shop on Cherokee.
In October 2021, Golden Gems moved into our current 5600 sq ft flagship store & warehouse space on Locust Street in Midtown St. Louis. The new space houses a bigger retail store in the front, with headquarters in the back for shipping, housing their ever growing product line, offices, event space, photography studio and more. 2021 was a busy year, as they also launched their holiday disco edit pop-up, turned permanent store, at the City Foundry. In 2023, Golden Gems expanded their reach to St. Louis County by opening their third retail store at West County Mall.
As the Gems brand growth continues, Amanda and Susan branched out in December 2023 to the bar industry, and opened their one-of-a-kind disco dive bar, Hidden Gem, just two doors down from their flagship Locust HQ in Midtown St. Louis. The bar features 300 disco balls above the dance floor, and offers an inclusive space for the surrounding community.
As they look to the future of Golden Gems, Susan and Amanda continue to focus growth with our wholesale partners, local shoppers and online customers across the U.S. and globally - encouraging everyone to live life like a badass.
Our Fearless Leaders
Sisters — you know … from birth.
Sisters, Amanda Helman and Susan Logsdon, are the co-founders, operators, designers and overall 'Head Badasses in Charge' of Golden Gems. Having grown up on Golden Gems Road in Apopka, Florida, these babes transplanted to St. Louis and spent way too many years on other career paths before finally saying enough was enough and creating the brand that we all know and love today.
Amanda Helman is the younger sister, the woman behind the Golden Gems Instagram, and the hands that most likely packaged your orders. She loves supplying the attitude to the Golden Gems brand. She loves cats, and she’s an 8 on enneagram.
Susan Logsdon is the older sister of the pair…by 3 years. Susan is a lover of the creative process and enjoys writing and playing music, baking, designing, and naturally enjoys designing new Golden Gems products. She hates bees and wants to be on the Wheel of Fortune.
xoxo – amanda + susan