The prestigious French high jewellery house opens the doors to its new Collin’s St. boutique. Being that the renowned Van Cleef & Arpel’s brand was incepted in 1906, it’s been a long wait for an Australian boutique.
The Melbourne space houses the most precious of the brand’s pieces across a 160 square meter floor. The two-level, Art Deco-inspired boutique is the first in Australia, and the result of more than three years spent scouring the country for the perfect location. The maison now sits shoulder to shoulder with Cartier, Georg Jensen and Paspaley near the base of 101 Collins Street, with a second flagship store to open in Sydney on Castlereagh Street in January.

“It’s a long process and we wanted to make sure we did it right,” says Catherine Reiner, Van Cleef’s president of Asia Pacific. “[Australia] was empty space on the map where we were not yet present … and we heard there was a strong potential for developing a local clientele.”

The new store is reminiscent of a European drawing room, with chandeliers, plush carpets, and handmade French wallpaper housing a series of polished glass boxes displaying dizzyingly precious jewels, including an iconic ‘zip’ necklace exclusive to the store. Even brand new, the pieces have the mystique and quality of an heirloom.

One of the most impressive pieces in store is the Midnight Planétarium Poetic Complication watch, which reduces the solar system to the wrist with a miniature representation of six planets revolving around the sun. Earth, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are set in motion thanks to a self-winding mechanical movement with 396 separate parts.

“[Men] appreciate our craftsmanship, and they can very much relate to the attention to details, the hard work put behind a piece,” explains Reiner. “It’s very important that a man purchasing a piece of jewellery for his wife or girlfriend or mother or daughter appreciates the style and design and understands the values around that.”

Using centuries-old craftsmanship and the best precious stones and metals, Van Cleef & Arpels has a highly distinctive, almost whimsical style celebrating poetry and art.

Reimer celebrated the launch of the Australian first by welcoming 60 VIP guests to sip Billecart-Salmon in the store before being whisked in a fleet of black limousines to Prahran’s heritage Woodland House for an intimate four course dinner.

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