New domestic players are still coming to the Russian jewellery business. As it was reported by the “Kommersant” Daily, by the end of this year, Finstar belonging to Ritzio Entertainment Group may buy out Yuvelux, a retail and wholesale jewellery company, which happened to be the personal business of Boris Feigin, Member of the Finstar Board of Directors. Before this deal, Yuvelux will strengthen its retail division buying out 51% of the Walter network accounting for more than 50 stores selling inexpensive adornments (including 13 of them located in Moscow). The amount of the possible transaction has not been disclosed. In the end of this year, the Finstar Board of Directors will consider buying Yuvelux, told Boris Feigin. If the decision will be positive, the budget of this project for 2008 will be $30 million.
According to the “Vedomosti” Daily, Vitaly Nikulin, the former CEO of Nezabudka, a trade network currently on the brink of bankruptcy, has decided to go into non-food retail trade. The “Vedomosty” reported that he had headed the Zoloto Mira Company affiliated with Mizar, a large Chelyabinsk-based holding (owning 120 “Fionit” jewellery stores in Chelyabinsk, Moscow, Saint-Petersburg and Nizhni Novgorod; the Chelyabinsk Jewellery Plant working under the “Elitcapital” trademark; a pawnshop network, etc.).
The information about Mr. Nikulin’s appointment was confirmed by the network employees. Mr. Nikulin himself specified that he was working with the company from this June. According to him, the “Fionit” Network will be restructured and it will change its brand. “The new trademark name is currently being registered at the Rospatent Agency and so far is not disclosed. The corporate style has been worked out and re-branding will start in a month,” Mr. Nikulin says. In five years, the network should expand to have 500 stores with an average area of 50 square meters located in the Urals and in the Central Federal Circle. The market segment will remain the same: low and medium price items (worth 450-600 roubles per one gram of gold). According to Mr. Nikulin, during the first year, his company is going to invest $18-20 million from the funds provided by stockholders.
Moscow witnessed the presentation of a corporate jewellery boutique belonging to APL Diamond. This boutique of the Yakutia largest diamond-cutting factory opened as early as August in the very heart of the Russian capital – at the “Nickolski Passage” Trade Mall in Red Square.
The guests were shown an exclusive exposition of polished diamonds produced by APL Diamond. The corporate diamonds “Blazing Ice” with “The Heart and the Arrow” effect turned out to be a special discovery for those present. As Maxim Syromyatnikov, Sales Director of the Moscow Branch of APL Diamond, says, “The problem is that now everybody wants only brand name diamonds and people are not so much attracted by ordinary diamonds because the difference is so great.”
At the presentation, the APL Diamond management officially declared that Tatyana Navka, an Olympic champion figure skater and a star of the “Ice Age” Show, would be the face of the APL Diamond new jewellery collection. The collection including corporate diamonds will be called “My Blazing Ice”. Precisely delineated classic items with ideal diamonds will go for sale this November and they will be advertised in popular glossy magazines and first of all in the “Cosmopolitan” and “Elle”.
Moscow is living through a peculiar boom of “opening second boutiques”. Thus, Stephen Webster deemed their single boutique a too little affair, the “Domovoi” Magazine reports. Therefore, they decided to open another one, since the Gothic fantasies of this maker are worn with pleasure not only by Madonna, Cameron Diaz and Christina Aguilera, but also by more and more Moscow worshipers of this trademark. At their new boutique in Patriarshie Prudy, one may find some collections of Libertine watches, a collection of men’s cuff links, as well as Top Kat, Twister, Russian Roulette, Goldmine and Fashion Rocks adornments (remember that the latter was recently created for De Beers Diamond Jewellers).
Van Cleef & Arpels opened their second boutique in the city. The snug interior of the new Moscow store in all shades of grey was styled by famous British designer Anouska Hempel. Currently, the trademark, which is famous due to its history, jeweler craftsmanship and exquisite beauty of its adornments worshipped by Sharon Stone, Uma Thurman, Gwen Stefani, Scarlett Johansson, Sofia Coppola and others, commands 58 boutiques scattered around the globe.
The second Moscow boutique of Hermes, a French fashion house, was opened at GUM Trade Mall. Its architecture and inner settings were modeled by RDAI, a Paris based agency, responsible for styling Hermes stores all over the world. All the fashion lines of this house are displayed on 250 square meters of the store, including men’s and ladies’ ware, shoes, leathers, kerchiefs, ties, hats, jewelry, riding outfits and appurtenances, perfumes, home accessories, etc.
Multi-brand stores are also opened in Moscow. Bosco di Ciliegi launched a watch and jewelry boutique under the title of “Sublime” in the very center of the city, in Red Square, at GUM Shopping Mall. The store settled on 250 square meters features precious works of many worthy trademarks, the “Domovoi” Magazine reports. It parades collections from Shean Lean and Vhernier, Salvini, Rosatto, Dodo, Carrera у Carrera, Antonini, Roberto Coin, Nanis, Luca Carati, Valente and Bliss, for which Paris Hilton was recently named to be its face. As for watches, you may choose here from Vacheron Constantin, Jager le Coultre, Ulysse Nardin, Rado, Maurice Lacroix, Tag Heuer, Corum, Jaquet Droz, and the manufactory Glashutte for those utterly choosy.
Russian nation-wide jewellery networks continue their expansion to regional markets. This year, Nizhni Novgorod welcomed 15 jewellery stores, their areas ranging from 40 to 100 square meters. Eleven of them are owned by nation-wide networks. The last four appeared almost simultaneously at the new trade center “Fantastica”: “Yashma Zoloto” (Moscow), Moscow Jewellery Plant Store, “585” (Saint Petersburg) and “Zoloto Yakutii” (Yakutsk). Moscow networks are building up their presence and these are their fifth stores in Nizhni Novgorod, while the two others came to this market for the first time.
This year was marked by an outburst of “jewellery crankery”. Gold and gems were used to make ice cream, bathing suits and saucepans, while diamonds were employed to encrust hearing aids and leather shorts. According to experts, the reason behind this is associated with that influence, which is caused by economic instability on consumers. Long before the U.S. mortgage crisis, on the background of growing oil prices analysts pointed to the erosion of the middle class in developed nations (which happen to be the major consumers of luxury goods). Despite this, the wealthy strata of society are not limited in consumption; on the contrary, their spendings for luxury goods increase.
The trend marked by analysts is also confirmed by Peter Aloisson, the founder and main designer of Austrian Company Yellow Jacket, selling mobile phones embellished with diamonds: “According to my observations, people with “old money” earned through hard labour of several generations rarely pay any attention to such luxury items. They have other ways to be pleased. However, these days there are quite a few young people, who can say, “This year I have earned one hundred million dollars, so why not go and please myself and my girl buying some expensive and unusual thing?” Quick money goes quick! Generally, it seems to me that the middle class as such is disappearing. The poor all over the world are getting poorer and the wealthy wealthier, broadening the gap between these two groups.”
