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One of the most dazzling names in diamond jewellery has opened its doors in Bahrain for the first time in a royal fanfare of celebration attended by VIPs and the country’s fashion conscious elite.
Camera flashguns illuminated the surroundings and shoppers gazed longingly at the glitz and glamour on display at Moda Mall as De Beers Diamond Jewellers unveiled its first luxurious boutique in the kingdom.
De Beers, regarded by many jewellery lovers as the ultimate destination for pure and clear-cut rocks, boasts collections of bands, bangles, bracelets, watches, rings, cuff links and necklaces.
François Delage, its chief executive officer, said: “We are delighted to be present in the Bahrain market. “Our customers are couples buying engagement rings and the perfect jewellery for their wedding, women treating themselves to a beautifully-created design and diamond collectors.
“Our store here demonstrates the growing demand for De Beers Diamond Jewellery globally.
We are delighted to share our exceptional passion and expertise in diamond selection, craftsmanship and design with a discerning clientele in this exciting, fastgrowing market.”
The brand has a worldwide presence with stores located in Old Bond Street in London, Fifth Avenue in New York, Printemps and Galeries Lafayette in Paris, Shin Kong Place in Beijing, The Landmark in Hong Kong and Ginza in Tokyo.
The boutique in Bahrain will be operated by The AJM Kooheji Group. “We look forward to working with The AJM Kooheji Group. Their expertise in luxury retail in Bahrain makes them the perfect partners for De Beers,” Mr Delage added.
During Monday’s event, visitors were mesmerized by the sparkling diamond necklaces and rings on display in the lobby as part of De Beers ‘The Art of Diamond Jewellery’ campaign.
The guest of honour, Shaikha Thajba bint Salman Al Khalifa, was given a tour of the store and a chance to experience De Beers striking designs, including the eye-catching Princess Lea necklace.
The necklace features single drops or cascades of pear-shaped diamonds, hung within a waterfall of diamonds. It is composed entirely of D colour, internally flawless diamonds, and experts describe it as a modern masterpiece. It took 1,200 hours of highly-skilled artisanship to create, the company says.
Housewife Rocio Sthapper, 35, from Jasra, was excited about the opening and is hoping to convince her husband to take her on a shopping spree to the store in the near future.
She said: “De Beers is fantastic and I am very happy to see such an amazing business open in Bahrain.
The brand is known worldwide and I believe every woman deserves a diamond from De Beers! I hope my husband buys one for me and, if not, perhaps I will pick one up for myself!”
And 24-year-old Moda Mall team member, Laila Mohamed Dashti, was also taken aback by the beauty of some of the designs on display. She said: “The jewellery is phenomenal. They have the most pure diamonds and you can tell that from their cut.”
De Beers, established in 1888, is the world’s leading rough diamond company boasting expertise in the exploration, mining and marketing of diamonds. Together with its joint venture partners, De Beers operates in more than 20 countries across six continents employing more than 16,000 people, and is the world’s largest diamond producer with mining operations across Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Canada.
Mohammed Kooheji, director of The AJM Kooheji Group, added: “We are delighted to be representing
De Beers Diamond Jewellers in Bahrain. With over 120 years of diamond expertise De Beers is the quintessential diamond jewellery brand and we believe the quality of their exceptional diamonds and the natural allure of their designs will fit very well with the people of Bahrain.”
