NEW YORK — The King of Bling is making some changes at his diamond jewelry house, which is revered by such entertainers as Beyoncé Knowles, Lil’ Kim, Jay-Z, Pharrell Williams and Diddy.
Jacob Arabo, also known as “Jacob the Jeweler,” is looking toward the future of the 19-year-old Jacob & Co. by tapping a former Harry Winston executive to manage the business, introducing a design-driven women’s jewelry line and launching its first jewelry advertising campaign in the spring with model Helena Christensen.
Arabo contends that his jewelry is not intended solely for glitz lovers, but that it is suitable for a range of consumers — from society doyennes to corporate bigshots. Starting next month, his firm is expanding its women’s collection, which may increase the business 20 percent, he said. Arabo would not comment on the volume of the overall business.
For the new collection, 30 pieces of diamond jewelry have been added to an existing collection of 20, ranging from a delicate Asscher-cut diamond cross pendant set in platinum to classically feminine French wire earrings featuring a single diamond surrounded by a bezel of pavé diamonds. Retail prices open at $3,000.
The jewelry will be sold exclusively at the Jacob & Co. boutique on 57th Street here, and there are plans to wholesale it within the next few years; this will be the first time the pieces will be available at other stores. The company now wholesales its watches in more than 300 department, jewelry and watch stores, as well as at fashion boutiques worldwide such as Colette in Paris and Jeffrey New York.
The elegant sensibility of the new collection is not exactly the foundation on which Arabo has built his reputation. However, Arabo, a native of Tashkent, Uzbekistan, has designed classic pieces along with his over-the-top custom work since the beginning.
“The kind of jewelry I design is for women to wear every day with jeans,” he said. “I don’t like jewelry that can only be worn with a black-tie dress. My goal is to promote diamonds.”
Arabo has stuck to his word. The jeweler teamed with Sneaker Luxe, adding a diamond insignia to silhouettes from the brand’s footwear. He also partnered with knitwear designer Lucien Pellat-Finet, transferring Pellat-Finet’s diamond hemp leaf and skull motifs that are typically woven into his cashmeres onto the face of two watches.
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In addition to the expanded women’s collection, Jacob & Co. is launching its first jewelry ad campaign, shot and styled by Rocco Laspata and Charles DeCaro, who also shot the Harry Winston campaign with model Carolyn Murphy.
The ads, which bow in the first quarter of next year in national and regional publications, have a theme of “edgy romance” and feature Christensen against a wall of dark ivy, accessorized in pieces from the new line of jewelry. The pieces include a heart-cut diamond pendant; stiletto earrings, each set with two cushion cuts; bangles of fancy pink and yellow intense diamonds set in rose gold and yellow gold, respectively, and a 94-inch, 73-carat diamond chain inspired by Arabo’s wife and muse, Angela, an active participant in the business.
Some campaign shots feature only Jacob & Co.’s watches, a burgeoning business. Musician Thalía was previously featured in the company’s watch advertisements.
The company also is producing its first catalogue, with images from the campaign and jewelry still lifes. The catalogue will be mailed to the current client base and prospective clients.
“Jacob shook up the market with a men’s fine jewelry line,” said Jim Haag, managing director of sales and marketing at Jacob & Co., an industry veteran who has worked for both the Diamond Information Center and most recently Harry Winston. “Any brand needs to evolve to stay young, and that’s what Jacob has to do.”
Haag spearheaded the women’s launch and ad campaign, and was brought into Jacob & Co. in August to up the ante and take the brand to a mainstream level.
Haag believes that Arabo’s success lies in his interpersonal communications and hands-on sensibility.
“Every diamond that is sold in this store goes through Jacob’s hands,” he said, adding that it’s rare for customers to get personal service from a proprietor.
He said 30 percent of sales are custom orders, which Arabo thrives on. To wit, Arabo told a story of a ring he only recently custom-designed for a man who has yet to find a fiancée.
“He wanted the perfect ring,” Arabo said.
As for Arabo’s previous dealings in women’s jewelry, Haag said, “He sells a lot, but not as much as he should.”
In conjunction with the campaign, the company is redesigning its Web site to include the new jewelry pieces and images from the ads. Previously, the site only displayed watches.
As far as retail goes, both Arabo and Haag have considered opening stores in London, Moscow and Los Angeles, among other locations, though there are no immediate plans.
“Since Jacob is so hands-on, he doesn’t want to spread himself too thin with too many stores,” Haag said. “Our focus is here right now.”
Arabo, 40, began his career with two booths in the Diamond District, but came to fame when Faith Evans, then wife of rapper Notorious B.I.G., told her husband about Arabo. The music world immediately took to him, singing about him in their songs and putting Arabo into music videos as the mascot for the Nineties phenomenon of bling.
In 2004, Arabo purchased 48 East 57th Street, a town house with a storefront to showcase Jacob & Co. The store has been described by the New York Times as “Austin Powers comes to 57th Street.”
Designed to look like a diamond mine, the striated Corian walls are inlaid with seamless jewelry cases that when swiped with an electronic card key lower or rise. The sales office, watchmaker and jewelry repair are located within the building as well.
“It’s a fully integrated operation,” Haag said.
This effort is en route to Arabo’s ultimate goal: to be inducted into the unofficial club of Fifth Avenue jewelers, and to count Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Harry Winston as competitors.
The road to Fifth Avenue status has been a bit rocky, though. Copies of Arabo’s colorful and complicated oversize watches inundate the stalls on Canal Street. Also, firms like Tiret, a fine watch company owned by Damon Dash, have come out with watches with a similar look: big, obvious and bedecked.
Chris Aire, a Los Angeles jeweler known as the “Iceman,” has been gaining on Arabo’s turf, dressing Missy Elliott, Foxy Brown, Selma Blair, Lindsay Lohan and Nelly in flashy gems.
To that, Arabo said, “When you come to Jacob & Co., it’s not just bling, it’s an invitation. Everything I make, you will never see me copy. Imagine you’re a customer: Why would you go to the second best? I take it as a compliment.”