Dmitry Fedorov is the founder of the eponymous jewelry house. His main focus is the creation of Orthodox-inspired premium luxury jewelry of high artistic merit.
Dmitry Fedorov told Rough&Polished about his journey in the jewelry industry, about choosing the ‘Orthodox niche’, the specifics of his jewelry items and whether it’s appropriate to wear ‘luxury’ Orthodox-themed jewelry.
Your jewelry house is considered to be the best manufacturer of Orthodox-inspired jewelry items. How does your jewelry differ from that made by other manufacturers?
I am a jeweler and a designer of almost all our company’s jewelry items. The jewelry made by Dmitry Fedorov JH reflects my vision, my emotions, so our jewelry has its signature features. Also, each of our jewelry items has a meaning, there are no random elements in the Dmitry Fedorov’s jewelry, even the smallest detail symbolizes something. And, of course, our jewelry is of high quality, it is rightfully called ‘highly-artistic’ - this word was awarded to us by our clients.
In the jewelry manufacturing process, we do not use rubber molds for large-scale production of jewelry items. Each jewelry piece is created using high-precision technological equipment, and most of the work is done manually, including assembly, engraving, doing fine work on images, cutting&polishing, and gemstone setting.
In addition to the jewelry piece itself, we pay great attention to packaging - this is an important part of our products. Even at the beginning of my career, I believed that the packaging should be so nice that a person shouldn’t feel embarrassed when giving a jewelry piece packed in it even to a head of a country. And I am proud to say that today, three presidents of different countries, including Russia’s president, have our jewelry items in their possession.
Then, of course, quality service is of importance because providing services to customers and communication with them is also part of the jewelry house, as well as our jewelry items and our exhibition gallery located in the center of Moscow and staffed with qualified managers. All this is part of one large-scale business - my brainchild that is already six years old.
How did you get into the jewelry business?
I was born in Kostroma, the ‘jewelry capital’ of Russia. I could hardly graduate from school because I was a bad student and didn’t want to continue my education; I didn’t really understand which field of work to choose, either. I hadn’t had many options for choosing a profession, so I could become an unskilled worker, do the heavy lifting, serve as a security guard, or be a jeweler.
Becoming a jeweler and creating jewelry items wasn’t really my dream, it’s just that the word ‘jeweler’ sounded nicer than the rest of the jobs ... And at the age of 18, I went to a jewelry factory as an apprentice to a jeweler. It was pretty hard, my fingers were bleeding due to work but nothing came of my efforts, so I gave up on that job, left, then came back again. Later on, after a long break, I returned to the jewelry industry again at the age of 27, it was in Penza. At a small workshop in Penza, I saw the full jewelry manufacturing cycle for the first time, and I liked it, I understood that it was a completely different approach to manufacturing the jewelry. I wanted to develop my skills further. But it so happened that I was fired from this workshop, too. And I made a difficult decision to register myself as an individual entrepreneur and start up my first own business - a jewelry workshop at the central market in Penza. It was a small room (12 sq. meters) where I repaired jewelry pieces and made new ones. This is how my journey as an independent jeweler and individual entrepreneur began.
And how did you come to choose the Orthodox theme for your jewelry items?
I worked for about five years, repairing and making all kinds of jewelry items. I improved my skills as a craftsman, but nothing really changed on the whole. I wanted something more.
And I decided to take a risk! I borrowed a million rubles, bought gold, made jewelry items (rings, earrings, pendants) and put them on display at my workshop. Earlier, people came to my workshop and asked if I had anything in stock, I answered that I had nothing, and they left. And I thought that if I had jewelry items in stock, these people would buy them. But I was very wrong at that time: later on, people came and asked if I had anything in stock? I proudly answered that there were many jewelry items in the display case, they asked if there was anything else and left without buying anything. The year was coming to an end, I needed to pay back the money I borrowed, but I hadn’t sold anything practically. Accordingly, I didn’t have money to pay off my debt.
I arranged that I would pay only the interest and extended the principal debt for another year. But at that moment I realized that I needed to radically change my approach to business. I started reading books on marketing, signed up for sales courses online. And I made two strategically important decisions. The first decision was to rename the workshop and call it by my own name, ‘Dmitry Fedorov’ (earlier, it was called ‘RUBIN’). And the second one was to make the niche narrow and design and manufacture Orthodox jewelry items only.
Why did you decide to make this type of jewelry?
You know, when I manufactured custom-made items like rings or earrings, they were usually made routinely and ‘reflexively’. When сross pendants and icons were ordered, I had to read about the images of saints, about the canons, I even went to the churches to look at the paintings, patterns, to get some inspiration, I took excursions to understand everything correctly. And I had internal sensation, nice feelings from doing this, I did not understand what kind of state it was, but I liked and enjoyed it. Although I was baptized in my childhood, but earlier, I went to the church only on holidays, and rather rarely. Thanks to my work, and by my own choice, I began to develop in this direction, I even went to Jerusalem, to the Holy Land, to those sacred places where all those events took place 2000 years ago to understand whether I was doing everything correctly, according to the canons. That’s how I gradually got involved, today I am a real believer, and I came to God, to my faith in God thanks to my work.
Are you currently engaged in your own business or creating jewelry items, or do you combine both activities?
I worked my way from a craftsman, when I worked alone, took orders myself, made jewelry pieces myself and sent parcels. In 2018, I moved from Penza to Moscow and I consider this year the birth date of the Dmitry Fedorov jewelry house. I did not have any vocational education. As I said, I was a bad student at school and then immediately went to be a jeweler. I didn’t know anything about ‘doing business’ and, accordingly, I did everything by intuition.
Today, the Dmitry Fedorov JH employs over 60 people.
And at the very beginning when I moved to Moscow, I realized that I didn’t have enough knowledge to build a full-fledged company. I realized that I needed to learn how to hire people, manage a team, and much more. I began to attend various courses to study and get a training. Later on, I even studied for a year and a half for an MBA (Master of Business Administration) to receive a business education.
I also realized that I needed to leave the ‘workbench’ and learn to delegate responsibilities. I controlled all stages of the jewelry house’s work and was engaged in the creation of new jewelry designs. And I began building a team. So, my company keeps on growing and developing year after year. Today, we have a large shopping gallery in the center of Moscow (300 sq. meters), our own full-cycle production facility (over 500 sq. meters) fitted with the most up-to-date equipment, and highly qualified specialists. A large number of famous people are among our customers. And people from all over the world have jewelry items by the Dmitry Fedorov jewelry house.
I do not consider myself a businessman - I am more of an entrepreneur and craftsman. Today, I am a brand ambassador, the ‘thought leader’, the designer of jewelry items and I take part in some operational issues. At different stages of my company’s development, I played different roles.
You are a successful entrepreneur. Are there any contradictions between the spiritual nature of your jewelry and accounting, the market, the need to be prudent and pragmatic?
There are no contradictions: I run my business following my conscience. We do a good deed: we give work to our employees, pay them on time, take care of them, try to develop their skills and we benefit people all over the world. We pay all taxes. That is, my conscience is clear. I believe that building a fair large-scale company with a clean, high-quality products is God’s work. And I recommend everyone to work, create and do everything following their conscience, and this will bring happiness to their souls.
What helped you survive in the difficult post-covid times, and now, during the crisis, sanctions, etc.?
I focus on my personal brand, I develop social networks - all this is the driver - ‘the engine’ - that helps me tell people about myself not only in Russia, but also in the world. I believe, personal branding is simply necessary in our time, it gives a colossal competitive advantage.
This is not an easy job, but it has helped me in overcoming all the above difficulties - and without losses; and every year, we have grown approximately twice as much during six years of the jewelry house’s operation. A strong personal brand has helped me survive.
What is the demand for Orthodox jewelry items in real life?
All the jewelry items we manufacture are things that remind people of true values. Even mentally, when I look at a cross, at my bracelet, I think about my faith, about God, about what the driving force is, and I make my choice. You may have noticed when you drive past a church, some people cross themselves, other people smile, because this is a perception of pleasant sensations. This is very useful and really necessary in today’s world.
I would also like to add that I do not have our jewelry items consecrated, it’s my principle. When people ask “Are the jewelry items you manufactured consecrated?” I say “No”. it’s not hard for me to invite a priest to bless everything, read a prayer, which takes 5 to 10 minutes. But I think that a person should go to a church and get their jewelry items consecrated. It’s no need to get an icon, cross and a ring consecrated when you give them as gifts. Just tell a person to take the time to go to the church, because when owners go through this ritual by themselves, they treat the gift differently.
How important is the aesthetic aspect?
I’m a visual person, I need to see a beautiful picture. I have a big goal and mission. We position ourselves as a premium luxury segment. We have very high-end jewelry items, including the items made of gold, diamonds, platinum, and different combinations of metals... I want to leave my mark in the country, in the Orthodox culture and, probably, I can only do this through the jewelry I manufacture. I want our jewelry to be displayed at a museum in the future. Therefore, aesthetic aspects and the visual component are of importance. A jewelry item should please the eye, be passed down from generation to generation, so that after some time, our grandchildren and great-grandchildren could see something of our values while looking at these jewelry pieces, so that this cultural code would be passed down from generation to generation through jewelry art works.
As for Orthodox jewelry items, how appropriate are ‘luxury’ ones and the use of precious metals and diamonds to make these jewelry items that people call ‘expensive and looking rich’?
To continue the previous topic, I would like to say that I could have stopped my development as a craftsman at the very beginning, when I was making fairly inexpensive silver crosses. A very large-scale company offered me to make such jewelry items in large quantities for wholesale and cover their needs for Orthodox jewelry items. But I refused, because, as I’ve already said, I want to leave something behind, create one-of-a-kind jewelry items, combine precious metals and gemstones - only such jewelry items can be displayed at a museum and attract experts’ attention, because almost all the jewelry items at the museums are from the luxury segment of their time.
When there is an opportunity, why not buy high-end jewelry? The main thing is that wealth and luxury should not replace the main thing – faith and respecting the laws of God. People have different incomes, and there is nothing wrong that some people want to develop, earn more and provide themselves with aesthetically beautiful and high-quality jewelry or other items.
Style and original design of religious jewelry items - how do they manifest themselves?
We try to look at the Orthodox jewelry in a new way, from a modern perspective. And we try to create new forms, use the combination of different metals, make beautiful combinations of strings with inserts, chains of new design, see what is fashionable among women and men, too. We study global brands, modern ideas and trends, and do all of this in combination with Orthodox motifs, while preserving all the canons. And the result is stylish, original, beautiful jewelry that attracts attention, brings aesthetic pleasure. The main thing is that the jewelry items have their deep spiritual meaning.
And it is also very important that young people see our jewelry items and buy them because of their good style and beautiful design, and make their first approach to the Faith.
It is important that a religious jewelry item, in addition to its original spiritual meaning, should be aesthetically nice, so that a person would like to wear it. And by all accounts and comments, a large number of people - of various social statuses and with various incomes - consider the jewelry items by the Dmitry Fedorov jewelry house as a desired gift.
Galina Semyonova, Editor in Chief of the Russian Bureau, Rough&Polished
