If someone had told Reema Chopra two decades ago that she’d become a jewelry designer, she would have laughed. “I started out in banking,” she says, recalling her early career with Canadian bank CIBC. “Private wealth, mortgages, asset management — that was my world.” But after relocating to New York in 2013 and being unable to re-enter the corporate sector due to visa restrictions, she returned to an old love: jewelry.
Born in Canada and raised in New Delhi, India, her earliest creative instincts were shaped by history and art. Her British-run school was academically intense. The emphasis on history and design cultivated in her a deep love for the subject. Creative sensibilities were further nurtured by her mother, a jewelry collector. “I would often spend my days, after school, at her jeweler’s workshop; watching her pick stones and turn her vision into reality,” recalls Reema. “She was often praised for her style and jewelry, and people were enamored by the pieces she would come up with.”
Reema’s first foray into design included bold, one-of-a-kind pieces set with diamonds and colored gems such as emeralds and rubies. As collectors responded enthusiastically, Reema quickly realized she needed to adapt to the American market. “I had a more challenging time breaking into a larger audience or retail,” she says. “Growing up in India, ornate jewelry was everyday wear.” However, in North America, women reserve those pieces for rare occasions. “They wanted wearable jewelry.” The cultural contrast prompted a strategic shift. She moved into wholesale manufacturing and studied at the Gemological Institute of America (GIA); all in an effort to understand the business better. She also realized that sellers, oftentimes unaware, sold heated, dyed, and glass-filled gemstones. Reema’s goal, therefore, was to “become an expert in diamonds and precious-colored stones. I needed to protect myself and my clients.”
A decade later, Khepri was born. Named after the Egyptian god of rebirth, the brand channels themes of transformation, regeneration, and emotional storytelling. One pivotal moment came when a newly divorced client brought her an old engagement ring. “She didn’t want the money; she wanted a fresh start,” Reema explains. “I redesigned it into something new, something fierce.” That piece became the Kumaree, part of her Cartouche collection. Soon after, word began to spread across the Upper East Side, and Reema started receiving commissions from women who had collected diamonds over the years: stones in various shapes that had long been tucked away in safes, gathering dust.
Reema, drawn to emeralds and diamonds for their symbolic power — vitality, strength, and endurance, favors elongated cuts like marquise and pear for their movement and personality. Khepri’s signature designs balance contemporary minimalism with bold, expressive shapes. “Jewelry should feel luxurious, but also effortless,” she adds. Her pieces are everyday wear and can be paired with jeans or worn to a gala.
Recurring motifs include feminine V-shaped rings, “dancing drops” of fancy stones, and 22k yellow gold, layered for richness and warmth. Most pieces from Khepri are available in multiple variations, such as emeralds, fancy colored or white diamonds, in yellow or white gold, giving clients flexibility and choice.
But above all, Khepri is about personal transformation. And Reema relies on craftsmanship to ensure the pieces aren’t just beautiful but remain “enduring treasures, made to be worn and loved for a lifetime.”
