What is the success rate of a wholesale jewelry business?

Just starting off? It depends on your designs and your ambition, as well as a lot of luck.

Most start-ups in any industry fail within three years. But if you’re convinced you can do it, start small. Figure out who your customers will be and start presenting your product to them before you invest heavily in production. Then, once you have some firm commitments to order, start production.

If you think you have some talent for production of jewelry then you should begin by thinking about selling through one of the crafts-oriented websites.
I am an amateur potter and the website of choice seems to be www.etsy.com.
The rates for listing items is reasonable and you have a great possibility for nationwide exposure. There are some things to worry about on Etsy: your pricing should reflect the ACTUAL costs of getting the product to the customer. One of my friends underestimated the cost of freight and ended up losing money on a couple of her initial orders.

But check it out. Many, many businesses have gotten a foot in the door using Etsy.

Just to be clear, I am NOT an Etsy user and have no interest in the website.

SRM