Chinese Conglomerate Completes Acquisition Of Buccellati

Gangsu Gangtai Holding has completed its acquisition of Italian high jewelry house Buccellati. 

The Chinese conglomerate has acquired an 85% stake in the luxury jeweler, internationally known for its time-honored hand-crafted techniques developed in Italy. The transaction price was based on an equity value of €230 million ($271 million) for 100% of the company.

Gangtai says it plans to both sustain its presence in existing markets—namely Italy, Europe and North America—and to develop in the new markets—such as China, Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe—with a five-year investment of €200 million ($236 million) that will fund 88 new Buccellati boutiques.

The deal was first announced in December 2016 and the closing was completed Tuesday at a press conference in Milan. In attendance was Xu Jiangang, founder and chairman of Gangatai Group, Andrea Buccellati, who will maintain his position as creative director, and Gianluca Brozzetti, who will continue as honorary chairman and CEO.

Buccellati, founded in Milan in 1919, is one of the most prestigious jewelers in Italy. It was family owned until 2013 when Clessidra, an Italian investment holding company, acquired a 67 percent stake of the company, with the remaining 33 percent retained by the founding family. 

With the new agreement Clessidra and the Buccellati family will retain the remaining 15 percent stake in the company. In addition, all jewelry making will remain at Buccellati’s headquarters. 

“Our will is to maintain Buccellati’s identity while enhancing all of the elements which make it one of the best known brands worldwide in the fine jewelry sector, including its craftsmanship, design and originality, which are the heritage of Italian jewelry,” Xu Jiangang said. 

“It is the will of the new shareholder,” Andrea Buccellati added, “to preserve the company’s uniqueness, especially its excellence, craftsmanship and quality. In this respect, Gangtai Group’s recommendation to keep the production in Italy represents a solid commitment.”

Gangtai Group is a privately held conglomerate in the consumer, culture, finance and health industries with a capitalization of approximately $3.5 billion and revenues of more than 1.4 billion. Its subsidiary, Gangsu Gangtai Holding (Group) Co. Ltd, is one of largest gold jewelry distributers and a leading internet jewelry retailer in China with more than 1.200 employees, and is focused on growing its presence in international luxury. 

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Chinese Conglomerate Acquires 85% Stake in Buccellati

The Buccellati New York flagship store on Madison Avenue

Clessidra, an Italian private equity firm, and the Buccellati family said Friday that it sold an 85 percent share in Buccellati to Chinese conglomerate, Gangtai Group. 

Clessidra and the Buccellati family will retain a 15 percent stake in Italian high jewelry house. The company is reportedly valued at approximately $282 million. A source close to the deal would not confirm or deny the figure. However, the person did say that revenue in 2015 was approximately $42.8 million, making its valuation 6.6 times its annual revenue.

The new majority owners plan to expand into China and other Asian markets, according to multiple sources. As part of the deal the Buccellati family will retain creative control of the company.

Buccellati, founded in Milan in 1919, is one of the most prestigious jewelers in Italy, known for creating pieces using time-honored hand-crafted techniques. The company has an international presence, particularly in Europe and the United States with branded stores and distribution agreements.

Buccellati was 100 percent family owned until 2013 when Clessidra acquired a 67 percent stake, with the remaining 33 percent retained by the founding family. A year later the company announced a rebranding effort aimed at attracting younger customers. The company named Lucrezia Buccellati, 25-years-old at the time, as its first woman designer and the youngest person to hold that title. Her father, Andrea Buccellati, became president and creative director, later adding the title of chairman. In 2015, the company opened a five-story flagship store in Madison Avenue in New York as well as stores in Paris and Palm Beach.

The Buccellati creative team, Andrea Buccellati and his daughter, Lucrezia

Clessidra, in a statement, noted that since 2013, the family made significant investments to expand its distribution network, support the product offering and strengthen the management structure. Now it says Buccellati is ready to expand into China.

“We are particularly satisfied with the agreement reached with Gangtai Group,” Marco Carotenuto, managing director of Clessidra, said in a statement. “We have strongly supported Buccellati in the last three years achieving a 60 percent growth in revenues since acquisition. We believe that the company is now ready for a new growth cycle that Gangtai Group will support, considering also its experience in the jewelry market and its strong presence in China.”

Gangtai Group—which specializes in the consumer, culture, finance and health industries—has experience in the China jewelry market. Its subsidiary, Gangsu Gangtai Holding (Group) Co. Ltd, is one of largest gold jewelry distributers and a leading internet jewelry retailer in China, and is focused on growing its presence in international luxury, according to the statement. 

Andrea Buccellati will retain his role as creative director and honorary chairman of Buccellati. Gianluca Brozzetti will retain his role as CEO of Buccellati. Other members of the Buccellati family will also retain their involvement in the business, according to the statement.

“Our family founded this company almost 100 years ago and will continue to be fully involved to support its development, the creative mastery and production craftsmanship that enabled the establishment of a unique and recognizable style in jewelry and silverware,” Andrea Buccellati said. "We welcome the commitment of Gangtai Group to invest significant resources to further develop the Buccellati brand and platform.”

Buccellati one-of-kind gold earrings inspired by Odilon Redon's La Chute de Phaéton

Closing of the transaction is expected by the second quarter of 2017 and is subject to Chinese government approval. 

The deal team at Clessidra included Manuel Catalano, managing director, Marco Carotenuto, managing director, and Giulio Torregrossa, investment director. The sellers were advised by Mediobanca, Unicredit and Partners CPA as financial advisors and by law firms Gattai Minoli Agostinelli & Partners and Pedersoli e Associati for the legal aspects. The purchaser was advised by law firm Simmons & Simmons for the legal aspects. 

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Randal J. Soto To Be Buccellati’s Next North American CEO

Buccellati Group has named Randal “Randy” J. Soto to be its next CEO North America of Buccellati Inc., effective September 1. He will report to Gianluca Brozzetti, Buccellati Inc. executive VP and Group CEO.

Soto previously served in top management roles for Tiffany & Co., Market VP Southwest Region, Harry Winston, VP of US Retail, and David Yurman. 

“We are confident that Randal’s extensive experience and client knowledge will greatly contribute to further develop Buccellati’s business in North America, which has been and remains one of the most important markets for our brand,” Brozzetti said in a statement.

Soto will replace the popular Alberto Milani, who resigned in early July, after 13 years of service with the high jewelry house. In a statement, Buccellati said Milani “contributed greatly to the expansion of our business in North America and the recent opening of our flagship stores on Madison Avenue and Bal Harbour.” 

Milani will remain as advisor to the Board of Buccellati Inc., managing special projects.

“We are thankful for Alberto’s vision and commitment to the development of Buccellati in the U.S.”, said Andrea Buccellati, president of Buccellati Group and chairman of Buccellati Inc. 

Buccellati, based in Milan, is one of the world’s most renowned high jewelry houses, celebrated for its craftsmanship, design, rare colorful gems, and one-of-a-kind pieces. 

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Buccellati Unveils Salon in West Palm Beach

By Gretchen Friedrich
Jewelry News Network Social Media Manager

Favoloso is the Italian word for fabulous. It is certainly an appropriate adjective for describing all things Buccellati. From the world’s most expensive tech accessories, to the extensive history of craftsmanship, Buccellati brings a signature level of quality and creativity in all its pieces.

That attention to detail is conveyed in the new location in the Neiman Marcus store in West Palm Beach, Fla., unveiled Wednesday. The salon’s design and appointments are a reflection of the new global identity by Buccellati worldwide, unveiled in March in its new New York boutique. The salon features its signature Alcantara beige throughout the space, complimented by rich wood display cases and neutral furnishings. 

In 2014, the design house launched a rebranding effort while simultaneously bringing on its first female designer, Lucrezia Buccellati. She continues the family tradition of two generations working as the design center of the luxury jewelry house. She and her father, Andrea, are combining traditional Buccellati craftsmanship with modern design. 

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Buccellati Patriarch, Gianmaria Buccellati, Dies At Age 86

Gianmaria Buccellati

The man most credited for turning a family owned jewelry business into the international luxury brand, Buccellati, has died, according to family members and reports.

Gianmaria Buccellati died Saturday at the age of 86, according to a report in the Italian publication, Arts Life.

The Buccellati family confirmed the death in a brief announcement—written by Andrea Buccellati, one of Gianmaria’s three children and Buccellati president and creative director—sent from the brand’s US office Monday via e-mail. It reads as follows:

“With my deepest sorrow and together with my brother and sister and their families, and my father’s wife Rosie, I would like to inform you that Gianmaria – Honorary President of the Group – passed away last night.

“We want to remember him with affection for his great entrepreneurial spirit and the creative genius that made him famous in the whole world.”

Buccellati’s roots go back to 1919 when Mario Buccellati (Gianmaria’s father) opened a store on Largo Santa Margherita in Milan, Italy. However, it was Gianmaria’s vision that brought the company to international fame, opening stores in Paris on Place Vendome, London, Moscow, Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Hong Kong, Milan via Monte Napoleone, Costa Smeralda, Capri, Elba, Beverly Hills in Rodeo Drive, Aspen and Sydney. The company already had a New York boutique founded by his father.

In a 2012 interview in Elite Traveler Gianmaria explained the international growth:

“After my father’s death in 1965, my three brothers and I founded MABUTI S.r.l to carry on the family tradition but as the brand grew two of our brothers chose to stay in Italy to pursue less hectic lifestyles. Eventually my brother Luca and I broke off to pursue our worldwide vision, creating Buccellati in the process.”

Gianmaria also served as creative director of the brand, which he officially relinquished to Andrea last year. It is tradition that a family member creates all of Buccellati’s designs.

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Buccellati Unveils 5-Piece Jewelry Collection Inspired By Master Artists

Gold ring inspired by The Spider's Web by Mikhail Larionov (pictured below) 

Buccellati unveiled a jewelry collection Thursday inspired by the individual works of five master artists from the impressionist and post-impressionist periods. The five one-of-a-kind pieces designed by, Andrea Buccellati, president and creative director, and his 25-year-old daughter, Lucrezia Buccellati, the first woman to be a designer for Buccellati and its youngest family member to be given the title, are based masterpieces from Claude Monet, Pierre Bonnard, Winslow Homer, Mikhail Larionov and Odilon Redon. 

Gold bracelet inspired by Winslow Homer's Light Blue Sea at Prout's Neck (pictured below)

It will be shown in an exhibition format during the grand opening of its flagship at 714 Madison Avenue Thursday March 12. Entitled “Timeless Blue,” the evening will support the restoration foundation, Save Venice. The new pieces will be displayed with the painting that provided the inspiration.

Gold earrings inspired by Claude Monet's Tempête sur les cotes de Belle-Ile (pictured below)

Andrea explained the color blue is very important to Buccellati.

“The blue color reflects the historical roots of Buccellati and has nothing to do with the blue period of Impressionism,” he said. “With the new rebranding of the company we have wanted to preserve many of the historical concepts of Buccellati, and the blue color is one of them.”

Gold earrings inspired by Odilon Redon's  La Chute de Phaéton (pictured below)

Andrea said even though the jewelry created for the flagship opening event had international influences, it wasn’t an attempt to create a more international image.

“Lucrezia and I were particularly inspired by the impressionist and post-impressionist time periods. We had at our disposal, some different masters and works of art to choose from. Specifically, Lucrezia was inspired by the works of art of Winslow Homer and Odilon Redon,” he said. 

Pendant necklace inspired by Pierre Bonnard's  Deux Vases de fleurs (pictured below)

“My inspiration to create jewels has never had geographic boundaries,” he added. “Lucrezia’s inspiration comes more from different cultures and traditions from around the world. Being based in New York helps, as it is a city with a mixture of people from all different parts of the world.”

The creative team, Andrea Buccellati and his daughter, Lucrezia

The new five-story retail store was the former home of French jeweler, Mauboussin. Andrea said this space represents a new design conceived and developed with architectural firm, Vudafieri Saverino Partners. It is defined by wood floors, plush white and cream-colored furnishings and neutral colors highlighted by modern artistic touches. 

Inside the new Buccellati New York flagship

“The New York flagship perfectly represents the new concept of Buccellati and thanks to the dimensions of the New York space, we will have the possibility to express it at its best,” Andrea said. “We have succeeded in maintaining the concept of Buccellati’s traditional style combined with a more modern sobriety and elegance. I think this new essential look will emphasize the unique and incomparable style of our creations, and they will finally stand out with all their beauty.”

Andrea explained that its previous space on Madison Avenue was a temporary solution while the new five-story space will be its permanent home in New York.

“After the move of our townhouse at 57th Street, due to a new real estate project, we wanted to find a new place to reside on Madison Avenue,” he said. “It was hard to immediately find the right place for Buccellati, the place we felt we deserved. Therefore we found a temporary solution at 810 Madison Avenue in order to wait until something more exciting could be found.”

In 2014, the Mauboussin space opened up and Andrea said it had the size to properly show its pieces and the elegance that reflects the brand. 

The facade of the new Buccellati flagship on Madison Avenue

“This new space is the best we could have imagined for ourselves on Madison Avenue,” he said. “We are among all the important jewelers of the world present on Madison and we could not miss being there. It matches the prestige of our brand…. This move marks the expansion of the brand here in the U.S. as well as the evolution of the brand further into the 21st Century.”

Andrea explained the first floor will be dedicated to jewelry, watches and some silver pieces. The second floor will host silverware and its new collection of bridal rings, released a year ago as a new category for the jeweler. 

“The bridal world is an important segment in jewelry, and it will give us the possibility to offer our clients a wider range of choices mostly focused on young couples,” he said. “At the same time, these young couples will have the chance to admire the silver pieces for table and home decoration, which have always been crucial as bridal presents.”

The third floor will be dedicated to vintage products and historical items of the high jewelry house; and serve as a place to privately meet with clients. 

The fourth floor is for exhibitions of special collections, while the fifth floor will be dedicated to the “Buccellati Club,” a place to host friends and clients for a drink, breakfast or dinner. 

“The dimensions of the boutique, the entire space will be exploited in the best way to express all our savoir-faire and the world of Buccellati,” Andrea said.

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Buccellati Unveils $485,000 iPad Case at Baselworld 2014

As I noted in February, Buccellati is undergoing an image update. The Italian luxury jeweler revealed this new look at Baselworld 2014 by unveiling products for a 21st Century consumer while maintaining the traditional craftsmanship that is the hallmark of the company’s identity. It was one of the few companies that used the recently concluded watch and jewelry show to make bold product statements. 

The Italian haute jeweler unveiled its first ever engagement ring collection, a bespoke timepiece program and introduced its new logo at Baselworld 2014. The company also plans to relocate its Madison Avenue store.

The new releases were led by what the company calls the “world’s most expensive” iPad and iPhone cases. The one-of-a-kind pieces are being sold for $485,000 and $208,000, respectively. These are the first products designed exclusively by Lucrezia Buccellati, the fourth generation designer of the family operated company. 

Gold iPhone case

While expensive and made with precious materials, these are not blinged-out tech adornments that are more commonplace in the high-end marketplace. Instead, these are new products for a new generation that reflect the techniques, traditions and refinement of the Buccellati brand. 

The gold cases feature Rigato etching, one of the company’s best known metal techniques in which parallel lines are cut onto the surface of the metal to obtain a sheen effect. Atop the gold are sunburst designs made of white gold and diamonds. Lucrezia said she was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings of the sun. 

The new, sleeker Buccellati name logo is placed discretely on the covers as it also appears on the company’s redesigned website, which it quietly launched recently. 

These are the first cases that the company will produce for phones and tablets and perhaps other tech products under the Unica collection name. 

Buccellati one-diamond engagement ring using the company's Rigato metal technique.

The engagement ring collection, known as Romanza, is a first for the company. Again, it is an attempt to bring the traditional design and craftsmanship of the jeweler to a newer, younger audience. 

Three-diamond engagement ring using the Buccellati Oranto technique.

The pieces were co-designed by Lucrezia and her father, Andrea, who is the company’s head designer. The lead designer has always been a member of the Buccellati family. There are one-diamond and three-diamond rings that employ many of Buccellati’s best known techniques, including Rigato; and the signature Ornato patterns, which are decorations based on nature forms, such as animals, leaves and flowers. 

The most interesting rings to me are based on Buccellati’s famously delicate honeycomb patterns (pictured above), which resemble the netting of a bride’s tulle veil. It is a labor-intensive and time-consuming process in which an artisan uses a fine blade to saw pentagon-shaped holes in the gold. These rings already existed. Buccellati added diamonds in traditional bridal one-stone and three-stone settings to create the engagement rings. 

The Romanza engagement ring collection starts at $10,000. 

The company is using technology with its old-world jewelry techniques to allow men and women to create their own timepieces. Alberto Milani, CEO of Buccellati Americas, explained at Baselworld that this isn’t watchmaking in a traditional sense, but as interpreted by Buccellati. 

The day and night watch features two dials and two movements that can be worn for casual and formal events. 

For example, in traditional watchmaking the movement often dictates much of the design of the watch, so the outer design in a large sense is dictated by what’s inside. The Buccellati formula is to have their clients work with company artisans to design the watch from the outside, including case shape and size, dial designs and types of precious materials used. Then decide on the movement. To provide a great deal of flexibility, Buccellati is working with five Swiss movement manufacturers in order to create watches with any number of complications. 

The combination of the designs and movements for the service, known as Autore, provides its clients with a menu of options to build a bespoke watch. The process takes approximately six months. Not only the does the client receive the watch but it also receives the tools, which were specially made by Buccellati to build the watch. The cost starts at $160,000.

Finally, it’s pretty much decided that the luxury jeweler will relocate its New York boutique, according to several sources. It will move from 810 Madison Avenue a few blocks south to a four-story building on 714 Madison Avenue. That space is currently the home of French arts jeweler, Mauboussin. 

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Luxury Jeweler Buccellati Begins A New Chapter

Sketches of Buccellati's new solitaire engagement ring, which will be unveiled in March.

The Italian high jewelry house, Buccellati, is undergoing a rebranding effort in an attempt to present a more contemporary image. It includes the company’s first-ever engagement ring line; a high-tech, high-jewelry introduction; a redesigned logo; and something new in the watch category that is “top secret.” 

The focal point of this change is the promotion of its youngest family member, Lucrezia Buccellati. The 24-year-old recently began working as the company’s fourth-generation designer. She will be sharing the design duties with her father, Andrea, in creating new jewelry collections. She explains that it’s a tradition in the fiercely independent family firm that two generations of the family create the designs. Her promotion came about when her grandfather, Gianmaria, in his mid-80s, recently announced his retirement.

“Now it’s my dad and me, before it was my grandfather and father. Always two generations in the design part. That’s how it works,” she recently said inside Buccellati’s cream-colored boutique on Madison Avenue in New York. “I step now in his chair. It’s a continuation of the generation. I think it’s a big challenge, there’s a little bit of pressure. You never know if it’s going to work, you’re young and it’s your first step in this world. It’s wonderful that there is somebody next to you to help you out like my father.”

In another sign of changing times at Buccellati, Lucrezia is the brand’s first female designer. She thinks this will influence future designs.

“I think that females have a different point of view than men,” she said. “Men think of an ideal woman. A female definitely thinks of a woman as someone more attached to fashion and art and what’s going on in the world around her.”

The family members were tight-lipped when discussing the new products, as they prepare for a March unveiling, but they did provide some details. 

The engagement jewelry collection is the first Buccellati line Lucrezia co-designed with her father. She said the rings are based on a more contemporary version of rings already available in the company's "honeycomb" pattern, perhaps the best-known of all of the jewelry-making techniques used by the company. It is appropriate because the pattern is similar to the Tulle netting technique for fabric often used for veils. In order to create the honeycomb shape, an artisan uses a labor-intensive and time-consuming technique of sawing pentagon-shaped holes with a fine blade.

The fine, net-like patterns will be enhanced with a center stone, which is what their clients want, according to Maria Cristina Buccellati, another member of the firm and Lucrezia’s aunt.

“The way we are used to seeing the solitaire is fine, but we wanted to add a touch of Buccellati so we created a round center stone with more workmanship,” Maria Cristina said. “We realized that a lot of people say they like this as an engagement ring but it doesn’t have a center stone so we designed a special collection with this kind of workmanship with this style and with a center stone.”

The high-tech introduction will be a one-of-a-kind iPad and iPhone cover. This was Lucrezia’s solo project. She said it will be “the most expensive and exclusive iPhone and iPad cover in the world.” It will include diamonds and signature gold engraving techniques. However, she promises it will be more refined and elegant than similar blinged-out products that are available. Leonardo DiVinci is the inspiration behind the design.

The company will also unveil a redesigned logo, as early as March, as part of year-long effort to make the brand appear more contemporary and attract a younger clientele. 

The one thing that won’t change is the craftsmanship behind Buccellati’s 18k jewelry. The company works exclusively with a stable of nearly 300 artisans throughout Italy who are skilled in a specific technique of making jewelry. Most are family shops, like Buccellati, that hand down their craft to the next generation. Because of this, the company only produces one-of-a-kind or extremely limited-editions of their pieces. It produces approximately 4,000 pieces per year, which includes its handmade silver objects (which the company also is known for) and watches.

For example, to create a one-of-a-kind collection using a particular kind of antique filigree technique (which involves delicate beading or threading of precious metal), the company had to go to Sardinia to find a family firm who still did this kind of work.

These are family firms that share the same value for craftsmanship as Buccellati, Lucrezia said.

“We know them all (personally) and we know their families,” she said. “You grow together. We learn from them and they learn from us. Our treasure for us is not the jewelry. Our treasure is our artisans."

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Buccellati Appoints New CEO

The Buccellati 18k “Star Collection,” necklace and earrings made of more than 1,700 white and yellow diamonds and 20 pieces of Imperial jade.

Italian luxury jewelry brand, Buccellati, has named Thierry Andretta as its new CEO, according to reports.

Andretta, was most recently CEO of the French couture house, Lanvin, where he doubled sales to more than 236 million euros during his four-year tenure. Prior to Lanvin, he worked in senior positions at Ungaro, Céline, Moschino and Gucci Group.

Monday's announcement came less than four months after Italian private equity fund, Clessidra, took a majority stake in Buccellati, Reuters reports.

Buccellati is known for its signature lace rings and necklaces (many one of a kind) worn by monarchs and movie stars. Some of its pieces sell for more than $1 million. Members of its founding family still design many of its pieces. The company also is known for not routinely lending its jewelry to actresses on the red carpets at high-profile events such as the Cannes film festival or the Oscar ceremony.

Andretta told  Reuters the brand will develop its watch business as well as its presence worldwide, particularly in new markets such as the Middle East and Russia.

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Graff, Blancpain among Top-Rated Luxury Brands

Heart-shaped diamond necklace by Graff.

The Luxury Institute released its 2011 Luxury Brand Status Index survey of wealthy U.S. consumers. Watches, jewelry and automobiles (selling for at least $100,000) were rated on a one-to-ten scale by consumers who earn at least $200,000 a year. The top three brands in each category follows: