Having Jessica Chastain, Sharon Stone and Sophia Loren as brand ambassadors would be an achievement for any major luxury conglomerate. For Damiani – the jewellery house that still describes itself as a “small family-run company” – it is little short of spectacular.
For Guido Damiani, the fourth-generation president of the Italian maison founded by his grandfather in 1924, celebrity has never been the point. “We are not a company that chooses ambassadors from a menu,” he says.
This philosophy explains how Chastain came into the Damiani orbit. Her interest was not initially jewellery, but glass – Venetian glass to be precise. She wanted to visit Venini, the glassmaker from Murano, owned by the Damiani Group.
There she met Silvia Damiani, president of Venini and vice president of the Damiani group. The friendship that followed has evolved into a more formal partnership. “She likes our jewellery,” Guido says. “And we like her because, besides being a beautiful woman and very talented, she is very humble.”
That humility, he notes, is not always a given. When Chastain visited Dubai recently to open Damiani’s newly refurbished boutique in Dubai Mall, she stayed long after the formalities were over, greeting guests and posing for photos. “That’s not common,” he says with a laugh. “Usually, people take two or three pictures and leave. But we don’t work with that kind of person. It doesn’t fit our family.”
The idea of family runs through every aspect of the business. Ambassadorships, Guido insists, cannot be just transactional. “We need to like each other. If it’s just a question of money, it’s not going to work because we are not a big company with a huge budget.”
It is why Loren, who represented Damiani in the 2000s, remains part of the family after the campaign ended. Now 91, the Italian actress still turns to the house when the occasion calls for something special. “Last year, she called my brother and said: ‘I’ll send you the picture of my dress – what jewellery do you suggest?’” Guido says with a smile.
And it’s the same with Stone. Their official collaboration may have ended more than a decade ago, but they still keep in touch. “We still send flowers for her birthday. If I’m in Los Angeles, she invites me for coffee.”
Damiani was founded in Valenza, Italy’s historic goldsmith district, by Enrico Grassi Damiani, a master gold worker whose reputation for skill and taste gained a following among Italy’s elite. His son, Damiano, expanded the business in the 1960s, and Guido took the helm in 1996. Since then, he has been guiding a careful expansion towards an international luxury group.
Yet, for all its growth, the company remains anchored in savoir faire. “Since my grandfather’s time, we have been supplying some of the biggest brands. We cannot name them of course, but if a customer wants something they cannot do, they come to us as we have the know-how. We have been doing this for three generations.” This depth of expertise, he believes, is what allows the brand to survive in an increasingly consolidated luxury market. “If you’re too small, it’s dangerous. You have to grow, but in the right way.”
Part of that strategy has been expanding its presence in the Middle East. Dubai, in particular, has become central. “We’ve been here a long time, but now we’re really developing the region,” says Guido. The brand has reopened its Dubai Mall boutique and expanded into Kuwait City, Doha, Bahrain and Riyadh, with Abu Dhabi to follow. The appetite, he says, is unmistakable. “The Middle East is becoming one of our most important markets.”
Timing, it seems, is on Damiani’s side. According to the Henley & Partners Wealth Migration Report, about 10,000 millionaires relocated to the UAE last year alone. “We’re happy to help them spend their money,” Guido says with a laugh.
Dubai is more than work, however – it’s also home. Guido has relocated his family to the UAE, drawn by its international mix and quality of life. “I love Italy, but it’s not as global,” he says. “Here, my children grow up with friends from all over the world. That’s very important to me.”
With the UAE named the world’s safest nation for the second time, safety is also key. “My children go out alone. Even my daughter. You can’t imagine that in Europe. It’s just impossible.” The lifestyle, too, is an important draw. “Usually, if you live by the sea, you don’t have a real city behind it. For example, we also have a house in Portofino. It’s beautiful, but it’s a village.”
Back to business, Damiani takes the sourcing of its jewels seriously, eschewing conflict stones and blood diamonds, reports of which rocked the industry a few decades ago. Since taking the helm, Guido has visited mines around the world and currently serves as president of the Ethics Committee of Assogemme, overseeing standards for coloured gemstones.
Lab-grown diamonds, however, leave him unmoved. “I don’t like them,” he says. “They are sold as green, but they’re not. The energy required to make them is enormous. And calling them ‘diamonds’ confuses the customer.” For him, jewellery is an emotional purchase. “You don’t need jewellery. You buy it for love, or celebration. So why give something fake?”
With Damiani recently celebrating its centenary, thoughts are naturally turning to succession, and Guido has already begun introducing his children to the business, bringing them to factories, trade shows and store visits around the world. “Its important,” he says. “Already, they are growing up with the right mentality.”
For now, Guido remains at the helm, balancing tradition with expansion. After our chat, it was announced that the Damiani Group had purchased Swiss watchhouse Baume & Mercier.
As he guides the group to the next stage of its future, it shows that in a world of huge conglomerates and marketing budgets, family still counts for something.
