The unveiling of 17 new bee and honeycomb-themed jewels at Chaumet's Place Vendôme boutique reveals a new strategy for this best-selling line of jewels. The strong growth of the bee category has prompted the company to rename the collection, and the former Bee My Love is now called Bee de Chaumet. We spoke to Chaumet CEO Charles Leung about what the future holds for the humble bee chez Chaumet.
TJE: So tell me about this change and where it will take Chaumet?
CL: For 200 years, the bee has been in our design vocabulary and archives. We made bee jewels for Napoleon as it was his emblem, and since then, the bee and honeycomb motifs have been a very strong symbol for the house. We will continue to make bee jewels, but now the name has changed to Bee de Chaumet as have the designs.
In 2001, we launched Bee My Love as a small capsule collection and an alternative to the traditional wedding band. We called it ' Bee My Love ' to make sure people understood that these were wedding bands. It attracted younger customers looking for less traditional bridal jewels.
The bee was so popular that our designers were always proposing different ideas beyond wedding bands. So we started making necklaces, bracelets, and earrings, and they became quite successful. People started coming to us for this kind of jewellery without the intention of getting married. What has changed over the years is that we saw the proportion of bridal jewels in this collection diminishing.
Marie-Etienne Nitot, our founder, always described Chaumet as a 'naturalistic' jeweller, so I asked myself, what does that mean for us now? We are still inspired by Nature, with figurative and naturalistic designs, so I thought about using the bee to raise awareness of its fragility and preciousness. So, we decided to concentrate on the bee and less on the love element, and this was the big change.
TJE: Do you think Bee de Chaumet is for a younger consumer or a particular geographical market?
CL: We expect Bee de Chaumet to be appreciated by all markets and by everybody regardless of age and intention because the bee and Nature are simple yet universal messages. We will use different precious metals, depending on the market. For example, we are bringing back a lot of yellow gold as we have noticed that there is a strong interest in this metal in Europe and the Middle East. We offer white gold and more unisex-looking pieces for Asia.
TJE: Are there any markets in particular that you are looking to expand?
CL: There are growth opportunities everywhere. In the past two years, we have seen strong growth in the Middle East, Japan, and Korea, where we have two very strong K-Pop ambassadors. For the past 40 to 50 years, Japan has been an important market for us, as have Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. However, these markets are small in terms of population, whereas South Korea and China are huge but are coming up.
TJE: What about your presence in China?
CL: We have nearly 30 stores, and in fact, I took Chaumet to China in 2006 when I was in charge of the brand's development for Asia Pacific. China is still essential to us because of its large population.
TJE: What about the United States?
CL: We haven't been back since the 1950s and don't have any presence there today, but given the size of the population and the wealth, it could be an good market for us.
TJE: How important is high jewellery for Chaumet?
CL: High jewellery is essential to our house. Beyond being a substantial business for us, the image it projects and its narrative power are key. High jewellery shows what we are capable of and is the best way to discuss our style and craftsmanship. A high jewellery collection can get 50% of all our press exposure for the year because it's so fascinating, and people love the stories behind high jewellery. Interestingly, in this year's era of AI and automation, we are more and more fascinated by handmade things.
TJE: What do you think is the greatest challenge for Chaumet in the coming years?
CL: I'm very impatient, and I have a lot of ideas, but I must sort out priorities. These include the US market, and we are also working in India. It's a good moment for fine jewellery. Chaumet has been doing well in this sector, and the higher-end pieces will grow even faster.
We are very happy with Bee de Chaumet because both men and women of all ages are buying it for everyday wear, and this year, we are dedicating a lot of effort to Bee de Chaumet.
