Rowan Hilldale Shopping Center

Ownership

Louisa Serene Schneider started Rowan in 2017 from the attic of her home in New York, making her the founder. However, Rowan was valued at $100 million in a funding round with $20 million in Series B financing led by VMG Partners, with participation from Kevin Durant's Thirty Five Ventures and Beechwood Capital, indicating significant outside investment and PE backing, reducing local ownership control.

Local Sourcing

Jewelry is made of 14k solid gold, gold vermeil, 14k gold over sterling silver, and sterling silver. The company describes jewelry as designed or curated in-house, but no information was found regarding where materials are sourced or manufactured, making the sourcing profile unclear.

Community Involvement

Rowan is listed as a member of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, indicating basic community engagement. However, no evidence was found of significant sponsorships, nonprofit partnerships, event organizing, or deep community ties specific to Madison. The Madison location is described as Rowan's first location in Wisconsin, suggesting recent entry rather than established community roots.

Local Workforce

Employee reviews are mixed and somewhat conflicting. Some reviews praise the work environment, while multiple Glassdoor reviews describe a highly toxic environment and the worst retail culture. Additionally, concerning factors include verifying if nurses are actually licensed and no thorough background checks, raising labor practice concerns.

Revenue Retention

Rowan brought in over $70 million in revenue last year, and the company operates nationally with nearly doubling studio locations. As a VC-backed startup with national expansion, most revenue likely flows to corporate/investors rather than staying local.

Local Presence

While the site includes some local markers (Madison/WI references, specific address, local landmarks like Lush/Forage Kitchen, Nurse Cindy's quote), the overall tone is heavily corporate with standardized branding, polished template design, 'Join Our Team' portal, and brand-wide messaging ('The Rowan Clinical Piercing Standard®', 'woman-founded' origin story) suggesting multi-location operations with centralized messaging rather than a locally-owned independent business.