User:Carlotta Conqua (Damiani)/Damiani (jewelry company)

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Damiani S.p.A, parent company of the Damiani Group, is an Italian luxury jewelry company that designs, manufactures, distributes and sells jewelry and luxury watches. Damiani was the first company to introduce Certificates of Authenticity for jewelry pieces showing the details included in the jewelry, for example, the number of carats.

History and Operations
In 1924, Enrico Grassi Damiani, in Valenza, Italy, founded Damiani. Enrico Damini was "influenced by the beauty of Art Deco styles." Enrico quickly became the personal jeweler of affluent and noble Italian families of that time.

Between 1960 and 1990, Damiano, Enrico’s son, continued the family tradition with a strong entrepreneurial spirit and he initiated the internationalization of the company, combining together tradition, innovation, creativity, and design. Thanks to these activities, the Damiani brand products gradually made its way within the high-end jewelry market, both in Italy and abroad. Apart from jewelry and watch collections designed and manufactured over the years, Damiani also boasts an exclusive collection of limited edition jewels and unique Masterpieces, occasionally created or even specially customized.

Starting in the 1980s, the company renewed its advertising methods by using famous actors and actress, as brand ambassadors, such as Isabella Rossellini, Brad Pitt, Nastassja Kinski, Chiara Mastroianni, Milla Jovovich, Jennifer Aniston, and Gwyneth Paltrow.

In 2006, Sophia Loren was a brand ambassador according to public relations manager Wendell Figueroa Ruiz. Also, starting in 2008, Sharon Stone was a brand ambassador.

In 2007, Damiani announced an initial public offering, which would value the company at €150.8 million (USD$215.4 million) (in 2007 exchange rates).

In 2010, Damiani had a net loss of €18.2 million (USD$25.6 million). The company's estimated total sales (in 2010/2011) were €150 million.

In 2010, Birks & Mayors agreed to distribute all Damiani Group's brands, for five years, in the United States. In 2012, Damiani entered into a partnership with MingFung/Hengdeli Group to distribute its watches and jewelry in China. Also, in 2012, Damiani received permission by the Government of India to invest in the Indian jewelry market.

As of November 2012, Damiani had annual revenue of €151.6 million (USD$193.3 million).

In fiscal year ending March 2013, Damiani S.P.A. had sales of €137.82 million (USD$185.75 million) and revenue of €65.033 million for six months ending on September 30, 2013.

Currently, Damiani is run by the third generation of the Damiani family, that has been on the board of directors since 1996, expanding the development process that made the shift from family business to organized corporation possible. The active group is Gabriella Damiani and her three children: Guido Grassi Damiani as Chairman and CEO, Giorgio Grassi Damiani  as Vice President and in charge of product development and design, Silvia Maria Grassi Damiani  as Vice President. Currently, Damiani's major market is in Italy and is sold in other major markets worldwide through subsidiaries and boutiques.

Brands
The main brands of Damiani are:


 * Salvini,
 * Alfiere & St. John,
 * Bliss, (which is distributed, in Japan, by BGioielli Ltd. ) and
 * Calderoni.

Subsidaries
Rocca S.p.A., an Italian jewelry and watch retailer, was purchased by Damiani for €7 million (USD$9.81 million) in 2008 with Giorgio Damiani as CEO.

Damiani USA has responsibily for the North Americian and South American markets. In 2008, Antonio Pavan was CEO. In 2012 to 2013, Thierry Chaunu was CEO of Damiani USA.

Awards and other Noteworthy Events
Over the years, Damiani has received many Italian and international acknowledgements:


 * In 1976, the Diamonds International Award was awarded to Damiani for the design of the jewellery peice "Bocca di Squalo - Shark Mouth": a bracelet in platinum and yellow gold, entirely brightened by a pavè of white and jonquil diamonds, designed by Gabriella Damiani. Damiani is the only company to have won 18 Diamonds International Award, an unbroken record.
 * The Damiani’s Eden bracelet was recognized at the Diamond International Awards in 2000 for its craftsmanship, its elegance and the quality of its gems. The bracelet, the brand’s interpretation of a serpent, features 900 brilliant-cut diamonds for a total of 94.45 carats and required 800 hours of work.


 * In 2005, Damiani won the Haute Couture Design Award.


 * Damiani created the 2009 Harlequin Fantasy Bra, worn by model Marisa Miller during the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. The bra has a 18k gold frame with 2,355 colorless and cognac diamonds, with a focal point of a 16-carat, champagne-color, heart-shape diamond, for a total of nearly 150 carats total weight. The bra was featured in the Victoria’s Secret Christmas Dreams and Fantasies Catalog.


 * Damiani created the "Aro Necklace, which Aro, a leader of the Volturi ruling vampire clan," in the Twilight movie, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2, gives to Bella Swan.


 * Damiani won the 2013 Best Annual Fine Jewelry Award 2013 by Bazaar Jewelry China.

Philanthropy
All Damiani suppliers are part of a restricted circle of selected organizations respecting UN regulations on the certification and origin of conflict-free diamonds.

Among the corporate social responsibility projects supported by Damiani over the years, in 2010, Damiani and Sharon Stone partnered in the international humanitarian project “Clean Water”, to supply potable water to African people and, in connection with it, the Maji collection was created (“Maji” is "water" in Swahili), with rough diamonds in gold and silver setting, co-designed by Sharon Stone. Part of the proceeds went to the Clean Water Project and contributed to the building of 50 water wells, providing potable water to more than 10,000 people.

In November 2013, Damiani raised funds for the Italian Red Cross to support people affected by the storms in Sardinia by donating 20 percent of certain sales in Damiani’s flagship stores in Italy and watch retailer Rocca.

Boutiques
Damiani mainly distributes its products in Italy and abroad through two distribution channels: In the last few years, Damiani has been expanding also across Asia, Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
 * The retail channel, consisting of 35 boutiques.
 * The wholesale channel includes 19 franchised mono-brand boutiques in addition to independent multi-brand jewelers, jewelry chains, department stores, franchises, and distributors.

In 2012, the company became the first jeweler to obtain the authorization to hold a 51% controlling interest in an Indian-based entity, Damiani India.

Lawsuit
Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston filed a $50 million lawsuit against Damiani that began selling imitations of their wedding bands, which were supposedly "one of a kind". The couple claims they had an agreement with Damiani International that the company would never reproduce the wedding bands or the engagement ring (designed by Pitt). Damiani reportedly sold "Brad and Jennifer knockoffs" and sold them on the Internet and in Nevada and California using the couple’s images to sell the product. However, Guido Damiani denied those allegations and said "the rings in question are part of the 'Aside' collection of wedding bands the couple "chose" for their marriage ceremony." The dispute has been settled and Pitt will now design a line of jewelry for the company and Aniston will model it in ads. Their wedding bands were based on an idea of Pitt’s. They were white gold and were engraved with "Jen 2000" (his) and "Brad 2000" (hers). The rings had 10 and 20 diamonds embedded in them respectively. Damiani International states, "Mr. Pitt will design an exclusive jewelry collection for Damiani, and Ms. Aniston will be featured in an international advertising campaign that will run in a number of countries throughout the world, with the exception of North America." The statement was confirmed by Pitt’s publicist. In exchange for Pitt designing an exclusive line for the company and Aniston modeling for the ads, Damiani will stop selling copies of Pitt and Aniston’s wedding rings. In 2004, Pitt appeared at an event in Japan promoting of his movie Troy and discussed "his discovery of the brand in a quest to buy a gift for his wife, Jennifer Aniston." It has been reported that Pitt and friends were collaborating on a clothing line, but Pitt’s camp has denied that rumor.