Margot Townsend was raised in Boston and earned a B.A. in business from the University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill. She was recruited by Macy’s/Atlanta Division as an assistant buyer for cosmetics. After a short time, she became one of the youngest executives ever promoted to buyer of a high-volume department, fashion jewelry.

Having established a reputation as a successful merchant, she was recruited by Neiman-Marcus as head jewelry buyer (fashion & silver jewelry) for all stores and catalogs. In that capacity, she traveled extensively throughout the world developing exclusive products.

When she resigned from Neiman-Marcus and relocated to Atlanta, her mentor, Stanley Marcus, and other senior management encouraged her to maintain a relationship with their company. They supported her development of a small company to supply exclusive jewelry to Neiman Marcus stores and catalogs. Based on the success of that endeavor, Margot Townsend, Inc. was formed and relocated to Atlanta in 1982.