The miniature secrets of championship rings

While sports fans enjoy the defining moments of this month’s NBA Finals and Stanley Cup, Jason Arasheben studies like a college student before exams.

Arasheben, a famous jeweler whose clients include rappers Drake and ASAP Rocky, is investigating the contending teams’ history, connections to their hometowns and any other interesting facts that might go into an extravagantly bejeweled ring. He is also examining his personal contacts to find someone who can facilitate a meeting with the wealthy owners of the winning franchises.

“You just have to start connecting the dots,” said Arasheben, CEO of the Jason jewelry house in Beverly Hills, near Los Angeles. “Billionaires talk to other billionaires.”

In recent years, Arasheben has established itself as the go-to jeweler for title-winning teams, carving out a corner of the market long dominated by Jostens, creating dynamic rings that include reversible faces and detachable compartments.

“He reinvented what the championship ring meant,” said Eric Tosi, marketing director of the Vegas Golden Knights, who won the Stanley Cup last year.

“Every team that wins a title, regardless of sport, will receive a ring,” Tosi continued. “But how can you stand out? How can you do something that has never been done before? He did it.”

Arasheben uses both word of mouth and direct contact to acquire new customers and its reputation has grown rapidly. Over the past five years he has designed championship rings for nine professional teams, including the reigning NBA, MLB and NHL champions.