Jay Hartington’s family store, Marissa Collections, has represented the crème de la crème of Naples society since 1975. The iconic light pink edifice spans half a square city block in Old Naples.
Even though he’s the only child of founders Burt and Marissa Hartington, it wasn’t preordained Jay would assume his current role as co-owner and CEO. A natural risk taker, Jay cultivated a hyper-growth mindset, studying business at Emory University and working in New York in investment banking and later in corporate Saks Fifth Avenue’s executive program.
He acknowledges it was easy joining Marissa’s—it was already high-performing and there was nothing to fix—but his drive for growth on a professional and personal level wouldn’t let him rest on their laurels. When his parents asked him to come on board in 2007, “I said, ‘I’m good with this, but I’m not just going to take over and run this how we’ve done forever,’” Jay, who was nearing 30 then, recalls. “‘If that’s your expectation, I love you, but I’m not doing that.’”
Fast forward to 2023, and the changes he’s introduced have quadrupled revenues, partly by diving head-first into e-commerce, beauty, menswear and, most importantly, jewelry. With 123 fine jewelry lines, the program has rocketed to the top of the industry, winning the 2022 GEM Award for Retail Excellence (the Oscar for Best Picture in that world).
He’s also initiated tangible expansions, such as purchasing their Marissa building on Third Street South, opening a second location in Palm Beach in 2021 (“When everyone was on the defense in the pandemic, we went on the offense,” he says), and now debuting a capsule collection boutique in the newly renovated The Ritz-Carlton, Naples.
Aside from carrying the mantle of company visionary, Jay is a consummate entrepreneur who seems like he won’t rest until he’s changed the face of the fashion industry or Naples—or both. Beyond the store, he’s partnered with friends to launch several brands, including Ballast (rugged nautical men’s timepieces), MakeupDrop (silicone cosmetic sponges) and RumbaTime (chic, affordable watches). He’s on the retailer advisory council for COUTURE—the nation’s preeminent fine jewelry trade show—and locally, he sits on the Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens board, where Jay spearheaded the $25 million capital campaign to fund a new visitor center.
Amidst all that, he married television personality and executive producer Courtney Hansen, and they share a 9-year-old daughter, Holland. “Every minute of my life is planned for the next nine months,” Jay says, thinking about juggling managing the stores, researching and developing Naples real estate projects, and having family time (much is spent at soccer prodigy Holland’s games).
Friends endearingly call him the “Mayor of Young Naples”—he can effortlessly canvas a room no matter a gala or a sports bar, and is a natural at pulling people together and lifting them up. “I say this to my friends a lot. We’re at the age now that we have the capital resources and know-how to bring things we want to Naples,” Jay reflects. “It’s our responsibility to open the restaurants, entertainment or whatever we feel is missing. We’ve been good at philanthropy and involved in our children’s schools. Now we need to put our stamp on the community.” —D.H.S.