Asprey has been characteristically English since its start in Surrey in 1781 as William Asprey’s silk printing business. His eponymous emporium soon started stocking and selling everything that a gentleman or woman could possibly need, including stationery, leather goods and… Read More

In 1998 Skinner & Co (suppliers of jewellery to Queen Victoria) and Bentley & Co joined forces, as the remaining Skinner had no one to take on his mantle. They moved from New Bond Street in 2009 when the lease… Read More

Rebecca Hawkins, Boodles’ talented Head of Design, has always had a love for the ballet and often queued for tickets as student for tickets in the gods at Covent Garden. She was probably unconsciously creating Boodles’ ‘Pas de Deux —… Read More

  Fredéric Boucheron was the first jeweller to move to Paris’ Place Vendôme, choosing the sunniest spot in the square, number 26, so that his gemstone-filled windows would sparkle as brightly as possible. This was 35 years after founding his… Read More

Mario Buccellati opened his first boutique in Milan in 1919 and to this day the house is celebrated for its high quality craftsmanship and design of one-off significant pieces. The house’s embrace of strong colours, often seen in incredible rare… Read More

One hundred and ten years after Sofino Bulgari opened his flagship on Via dei Condotti, not far from the Borghese Gardens, the luxury house launched a sumptuous high jewellery collection inspired by the art and architecture of the gardens of… Read More

The panther has been prowling around Cartier’s gemmological jungle of watches and jewellery since 1914, but it was from 1934 that Henri Cartier’s long-time mistress, director of haute joaillerie Jeanne Toussain, friend of both Coco Chanel and the Duchess of… Read More

Just over eight decades since Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel unveiled her first fine jewellery collection, ‘Bijoux de Diamants’, in 1932 and almost two since the French luxury powerhouse opened its first watch and fine jewellery store at 173 New Bond Street,… Read More

It is apt that Chaumet uses as its muse for its most recent couture collection the Empress Joséphine, as it was Napoleon who changed the house’s fortunes after the revolution. He wanted to restore France as the centre of the… Read More

The name de Grisogono evokes beautiful people and extravagant parties. Its annual film festival gala held at the Grand Hotel du Cap — a (gem)stone’s throw away from Cannes — is packed with celebrities bejewelled in the creations of Fawad… Read More

Since 1998 Victoire de Castellane  has been the aristocratic creative director of Dior Joaillerie and she has secured the supersonic French fashion house as a go-to for fabulous fine and high jewellery. Her latest collection is ‘Soie Dior’, launched in… Read More

Founded in 1842 by Peter Carl Fabergé, official goldsmith to the Russian imperial court, the house became known for the series of Imperial Easter Eggs which attracted a global clientele of royalty, nobility and wealthy industrialists. The revolution of 1917… Read More

The oldest jewellery house in the world has gone back to its regal roots under the leadership of creative director Sara Prentice, with a spectacular collection inspired by the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, presented to Queen Mary… Read More

For over a quarter of a century Glenn Spiro and his team have been handling some of the planet’s most precious gemstones, creating breathtaking pieces of jewellery for private clients and, anonymously, for international high jewellery houses. During that time… Read More

Laurence Graff is often described as the King of Diamonds and one glance into the windows of any of his 50 global stores will clarify why. However, it is the very rare yellow diamonds that have helped make his name… Read More

Hancocks opened on the corner of Bruton and Bond Street in 1849 and soon developed a reputation as a leading centre for the purchase of fine jewels and silver. Very early on CF Hancock received a warrant of appointment from… Read More

The very foundation of the FF Group, which owns Links of London, is the passion and drive that Koutsolioutsos’s parents, Dimitris and Ketty, have demonstrated since they founded the Folli Follie brand over 30 years ago. They continue to be… Read More

Kokichi Mikimoto is often credited with creating the first cultured pearls, indeed later being known as ‘the Pearl King’, but it was in fact British marine biologist William Saville-Kent whose early experimentations with culturing pearls in Australia in the late… Read More

Sandra Cronan has one of the most established names for rare and collectable jewels from the 17th to early 20th centuries; she was also the first female antique jewellery dealer to be accepted into the British Antique Dealers Association. Sandra… Read More

Possibly the most important antique jewellery store in the world, SJ Phillips was founded in 1869 and is still run by members of the same family: Nicolas, Jonathan and Francis Norton, great-grandsons of Mr Phillips. They have what is probably… Read More

From his third-floor salon above Old Bond Street, Martin Travis is quietly but forcefully ruffling feathers in the jewellery world with a knack of finding incredible and rare pieces. He is difficult to pin down but his inconspicuousness is purely… Read More

Alfred Van Cleef and Salomon Arpels, his father-in-law, founded the house in Paris in 1896. A decade later, Alfred and two of his brothers-in-law opened their first stand-alone boutique at 22 Place Vendôme. In 1933 the house received a patent… Read More

Wartski is a family firm of antique dealers specialising in fine jewellery, gold boxes, silver and works of art by Carl Fabergé. The firm was founded in Bangor, North Wales, in 1865 by Morris Wartski, great-grandfather of the present-day chairman. The… Read More