Continuing our feature series on the East Providence businesses included within “Rhode Island Monthly’s” annual awards edition, we’re looking at two more local spots — totally unique from one another in their history, business model, and clientele, but both possessing the so-called “secret sauce” to success.

Whether they’ve been around for only a couple years or more than 100, one common theme from these businesses is an insistence on doing things “the right way” — and the results have spoken for themself.

A gem giant on Warren Avenue
If you’re from around here and your parents, grandparents, or even your great grandparents went shopping for an engagement or wedding ring or other piece of precious jewelry at some point, there’s a good chance they did business with M.R.T. Jewelers, located right off I-195 on Warren Avenue.

What started in downtown Providence in 1918 with Michael Radoccia and the Tasca family (hence the M.R.T. name) has since grown into one of the country’s largest independently-owned jewelry stores for its market size. The shop earned two statewide awards from reader polls this year, one for the best fine jewelry shop, and one for being purveyors of the best wedding jewelry.

Serving as the owner and president of the 7,000-square-foot store — and its second-generation owner since the business was sold following a fire that destroyed its original location in Providence — is David Audette. Audette’s father, Joseph, became manager of M.R.T. in 1972 when a silent partner acquired the business. Gradually, his share of the business grew until he became the outright owner. David came into the fold in 1988, when the business moved to East Providence down the road from its current location, which opened in 2006.

“I didn't have plans to come into the family business,” Audette said. “Providence in the late 80s, early 90s was not a great place to be. Traffic was down, sales were down, people were complaining about crime, lack of parking. And we were on the third floor of a jeweler's building, no visibility…I knew my father needed help. So I came on board with the intention of maybe not doing it permanently, but helping him out. And it just took off.”

Audette, who was originally on track to become a physical therapist, said he found a natural knack for running the business, and within the first 18 months of his involvement, they had doubled the shop’s revenue.

The shop has always prioritized its jewelry repair and customization while having a smaller showroom of actual jewelry for sale. Audette kept the two master jewelers who do repair and custom work, both of which were hired by his father and have over 100 years of experience between the two. Meanwhile, he gradually and continuously expanded the showroom while keeping the core concepts his father prioritized central to the store’s identity.

In other words…

“We do things the right way,” Audette said. “All of my father’s DNA, going back to the 70s, is still in this store. We provide a higher quality than industry standard product here at below industry standard pricing…That sounds simple in concept, but it’s very difficult to do. The global connections that we have for purchasing jewelry — loose diamonds, fine emeralds, sapphires from all over the world — those are connections that I still utilize that he set up some 40-plus years ago.”

Part of the magic comes from providing a top-notch customer experience, which is especially important to cater to a younger demographic that has steadily moved away from casually buying expensive jewelry — and from shopping in-person at retail stores in general.

“The younger generation, their mentality is very different with regard to how they view this stuff,” Audette said. “They would would much rather go on two vacations a year and have no diamond bracelet than have a diamond bracelet and go on no vacations…So it has challenged stores like mine to rethink things, to continue to innovate all the time.”

Audette said that when younger people do shop for a large purchase, they care about the experience and the quality, which is where they have to step up and meet the expectations.

“When people come in, they feel welcome. We're not pretentious. We don't overdress. We don't talk down to our clients,” he said. “We give them excellent customer service at better prices than you're going to get at Jared, and a better quality. And I think people still want that.”

Business name: M.R.T. Jewelers
Address: 927 Warren Ave., East Providence, RI 02914
Website: www.mrtjewelers.com

The art can be ODD, but the mission is not
Kate McNamara wears a lot of hats.

The Boston native turned Rhode Island resident is an author, art curator, and an educator by trade; fittingly enough teaching curation at the Rhode Island School of Design for a time. And somewhere at the intersection of all of those skills and interests you’ll find ODD-KIN, a contemporary art project space located on Valley Street that opened in 2023.

It recently won the editor’s pick award for best Contemporary Art Space, statewide, in “Rhode Island Monthly”. It’s the first win for the business, which was born out of a desire to bring together artistic people of all types to have meaningful experiences through interacting with the space.

This is helped by the fact that ODD-KIN only features two exhibitions each year.

“I think there's a nice opportunity to engage with work over time and not feeling like there’s that rush to see something before it switches,” McNamara said.

McNamara said that ODD-KIN strives to embrace artistic endeavors that reside in the gray area between conventional art galleries and museums, providing a sizable space to set up exhibits that involve moving components, multiple pieces, or require a large amount of real estate to properly convey the point of the piece.

“The invitation is also to work with artists who are really thinking through kind of maybe a larger installation or an idea or a project that doesn't fit easily into a commercial space or a museum per se,” she said.

But more than simply display art exhibits, McNamara sees ODD-KIN as an artistic incubator of ideas and collaboration. With between 200 and 300 people coming to openings of exhibits and spending time with one another, she strives to capitalize on the interest to help out local artists.

“It felt really important to find ways to bridge contemporary local artists in conversations with more nationally or internationally renowned artists,” she said. “So we try and work with a lot of more regional artists and then we'll work with an artist from outside of Rhode Island and then try and do a group show that brings everyone together…We’ll invite a curator to come and give a talk here about something they're interested in, a bit about their practice and process, and really make that available to people so they understand the curatorial process.”

That also means creating a space welcoming to families, and a space people don’t want to immediately walk out of.

“I have a small child so it’s been important that this is a welcoming space for intergenerational gathering,” she said. “We always have food, we'll have a talk and find ways for people to really spend time and stay rather than, you know, running to an opening and leaving.”

McNamara, who has lived in three of the largest metropolitan hubs — Boston, New York, and Los Angeles — said she has been inspired by the concentration of artistic interest happening in the Greater Providence area, and in East Providence specifically.

“I can't tell you how many artists I meet and are like, ‘Actually, I live just down the street.’ … East Providence feels like such a center in a lot of ways,” she said. “Regionally this is such a creative hub.”

McNamara said that the recognition was not something she knew about ahead of time or even knew was a possibility, but that it was a great indicator ODD-KIN was doing things the right way.

“It feels like ODD-KIN is doing something right,” she said. “We’re really looking forward to finding new ways to kind of continue to dig in and think about collaborations.”

Business name: ODD-KIN
Address: 89 Valley St., East Providence, RI 02914
Website: www.odd-kin.com