Buccellati’s low profile is about to rise a bit.
The 300-year-old, family-owned fine jewelry brand is to open two boutiques, in Aspen, Colo., and in London, in time for the holidays, and renovated stores in New York and Beverly Hills are to be launched next week. Despite the growth, the brand is intent on limiting distribution.
“Buccellati isn’t for everybody,” company president Andrea Buccellati said during an interview at the company’s temporary Manhattan boutique in the St. Regis Hotel. “Our clients are looking for luxury and exclusivity. They want to be part of an inner circle. We’re looking to make the Buccellati experience more tailor-made.”
The stores will reflect the firm’s ornate Italian Renaissance aesthetic, with modern touches such as improved lighting and contemporary materials like lacquer. The company also wants the new boutiques to be a destination for social events, arts and entertainment, particularly at the 900-square-foot Aspen store.
Buccellati, which became a brand in 1919 under the leadership of Andrea Buccellati’s grandfather, is known for its engraved brushed gold and platinum jewelry embedded with fine stones, including rubies, emeralds, diamonds and sapphires, designed by the firm’s president and his father. Only 3,000 to 4,000 pieces of jewelry are made in Milan each year and prices range from $1,000 to well into the millions for custom pieces the firm creates for its best clients.
In 2000, the firm launched its first watch collection — average price $15,000 — and began a U.S. wholesale operation that now includes distribution in 25 doors such as Bergdorf Goodman, Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas and Neiman Marcus stores in Dallas, Chicago and Miami.
Sterling silver hollowware accounts for 30 percent of the business, with its candlesticks and compotes in addition to objet d’art, which are sold in 100 doors.
The firm is not planning to increase its wholesale network, but it might open a store in Palm Beach, Fla.
“It’s not about a big flashy store — we don’t want that,” Buccellati said. “We want to be able to have a direct connection [with the consumer]. We can sketch pieces together for a customer, or a customer can bring in a stone and we can set it in the Buccellati way.”
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Andy Frankl, president and chief executive officer of IBEX Construction, which worked on the Manhattan flagship on East 57th Street, said, “It’s a refreshment of their space,” adding that an elaborate wood ceiling will be restored, and the exterior will get a new enamel face and hand-rubbed bronze finish harking back to the company’s Milanese pedigree.
In addition, the firm is reinventing and sourcing vintage pieces its customers have requested. The sale of an estate gold, diamond and ruby bracelet by the firm at a recent Christie’s jewelry auction in New York caused a bidding war.