Damiani's Ode to Italy also passes through his business model
The new collection interprets the country's places, history and culture. The group is preparing to open the new Valenza factory. The president: 'We think of the new generations, not only of profit'.
3' min read
3' min read
There is the snow of the Alps shining in the opals, the sky of Leopardi's Infinity in the blue-violet spinels, the fire of Etna in the rubellites, the colours of the seasons that change on the hills in the alexandrites, the sea of Capri in the corals, the squares of Milan and Rome, the aesthetic balance of the Dolce Stil Novo in the construction of a necklace: 76 pieces make up "Ode to Italy", Damiani's new high jewellery collection, presented in Rome, which after the celebrations of the centenario last year wanted to emphasise its bond with the country.
A creative, manufacturing, entrepreneurial bond, since the Valenza group is the only large company in the sector that remains in the hands of the founding family, which today heads it with the third generation formed by Guido, Giorgio and Silvia Grassi Damiani, themselves linked to the district where Damiani was born and raised.
It is also thanks to them that the district has evolved to become the first in the world for high jewellery, attracting the big global brands that have opened their factories there, sometimes putting small producers at risk. A few weeks ago, Damiani took over one of them, Carraro, and by the end of the year it should open its new factory: "It will house 500 people, about 400 of whom will be engaged in production, to support our growth," explains Guido Grassi Damiani, president of the group that at the end of March closed the 24-25 year with revenues of over 380 million, up 10%, a double figure that many large groups can only dream of in these complicated years.
"And there is still plenty of room to grow," Damiani notes: Asia is in the foreground, with Japan and Korea remaining the main markets and to which Damiani's high jewellery style looks to, for the shapes, shades and sizes of the gems, which are of exceptional quality but not as huge as those loved by the US market, "which is not among our priorities, precisely because it is further away from our formula," he continues. In South America, on the other hand, we are doing very well (the almost 47-carat Paraiba tourmaline of the Marea Rosa necklace, inspired by Sardinian beaches, is a much-loved gem in that area, ndr), but above all we are focusing on the Middle East, where there is a taste for jewellery and a very high spending capacity: we recently opened in Riyadh, we will soon also open in Bahrain, in Doha and in Abu Dhabi, where we will also bring Venini (historic Murano glassworks taken over by the Damiani group in 2016, ndr)".
The shops will be designed according to Damiani's new store concept, elegant yet intimate spaces that highlight Italian craftsmanship, with creations by Venini and leather furnishings by Limonta: "If a luxury shop does not have to be distant, as is all too often the case, then a jewellery shop even less so," says Damiani. "This is why we have designed the shops as welcoming spaces, with an elegant yet relaxed atmosphere, very Italian.
