160-year-old jewellery brand arrives in KL

Storied past: Gubelin’s boutique in Starhill. The business was started in 1854 by the Gubelin family.

Jewellery is sold in just about every shopping centre and customers are inundated with the latest offers and heavily discounted prices for some items. One jewellery brand that is determined to stand above the rest is Gubelin. Its masterpieces are no doubt priced exorbitantly, but it serves the needs of its niche selection of customers.

According to the luxury Swiss brand, its name is a guarantee of the highest level of expertise in the procurement of high quality and rare gemstones and diamonds. The business that was started in 1854 by the Gubelin family features a wide range of selected gems and signature jewellery collections. It has a presence in Switzerland’s premier locations.

In conjunction with Asia’s luxury watch and jewellery showcase “A journey through Time V1”, Gubelin opened a store in Starhill Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, its first retail presence in Asia.

“We decided on Malaysia because there is an increasing trend in Asia for luxury goods and we’re confident that we’ll benefit from this trend. “Actually, we also had the opportunity to open our first Asian store in Hong Kong, but the opportunity in Malaysia came first and we’ve always thought about penetrating this part of Asia first,” explained Gubelin chief executive officer and board member Raphael Gubelin.

Raphael, the sixth generation of the Gubelin family in the business, promised to adhere to the brand’s long-term strategy, and not allow it to be distracted by short-term objectives.

Gubelin: All gems have to pass through the high set of standards by the Gubelin Gem lab.

“Our overall business growth objective is to achieve an even higher quality in the support we provide to our customers and key partners. “What we want to achieve in the long term is not for the customer to draw attention to any inadequacies, but for our team to proactively address potential improvements with the customer before problems even occur,” explains Gubelin.

Although its KL boutique is compact, it embodies exclusivity and a generous display of its sparkling jewellery. Even if one cannot afford a piece, it is breath taking to admire each item’s intricate details and craftsmanship.

The brand prides itself on its unique service and has produced inimitable and unique jewellery while sourcing for special gemstones and providing gemstone valuations and reports. Every piece of jewellery is meticulously crafted with gems which are analysed for authenticity and quality.

“All gems have to pass through the high set of standards by the Gubelin Gem lab before being made and used for its jewellery. Our research and development team use one of the most sophisticated equipment that deploys lasers to analyse every minute chemical component of the gemstone,” explained Gubelin, adding that it can cost up to USD$600,000 (RM1.8mil) for each machine. The company now has more than 200 employees who are able to provide advise and assistance on jewellery selection.

-thestar online.