Mr. Tamjid, I will not ask you about the financial crisis and its impact on Damas ...
Very good. And I do not want to talk about the crisis. Being in the UAE, I do not feel any crisis. He probably touched many countries, starting in America and Europe, but he did not show himself here. I see no reason to say every day that they refute the numbers I receive from our stores. Our sales volume grew by 30% compared to the previous year, 2007. And if everyone around the chorus will talk about a decrease in business activity, in my numbers I see only an increase. And since Damas is an open joint stock company, all our annual reports can be seen in public sources.
That's nice, let's talk about jewelry ...
Let's. For example, in Dubai, a specific market has developed, which depends on the local community, tourism and trade. Tourists coming to the UAE are people whose income is above average. They don’t come to us who paid $ 2000 for an all-inclusive package and brought water and sandwiches with them so as not to spend a single extra cent on food. In the Emirates, a completely different class of tourists is wealthy, confident people who enjoy excellent weather, fine restaurants and varied shopping. And, despite the crisis, even tourists from America come here and spend money. Including luxury jewelry. And it is important for us that in Damas such jewelry is always available.
You are a jeweler and create your jewelry based on the cultural traditions of the Emirates and Arabia. The only Bedouin burga mask made of white gold with diamonds, awarded by De Beers in 2000, which is worth it. Have you ever wanted to create a collection of modern versions of traditional Bedouin jewelry?
First, let me shake your hand. You are the only journalist who asks me a similar question and takes the right tone in the conversation, understanding the importance of the Damas mission in the Emirates. Usually everyone asks about which Italian, Spanish and other brands our group represents. Yes, we have a great many of them, but no one knows or feels the true heart of Damas. Today, we are the only jewelers in Arabia who opened archives and picked up jewelry samples that are 100 and 200 years old, because the East is famous for its rich jewelry heritage dating back thousands of years of history. Gold and jewelry are part of our culture. When getting married, the bride must have a large number of decorations, otherwise the family of the groom simply will not accept her, the mother and sister of each Arab should also have many decorations. Jewelry has always been a currency, they helped people survive in difficult times, therefore, in the countries of the East, and of course, Arabia, they love to adorn themselves with gold, silver and precious stones. And what we do today - we do not invent a bicycle.
We study the ideas of ancient masters and learn from their experience. Of course, we cannot recreate the ancient jewelry completely, because before the bracelet could weigh up to half a kilogram. Today it is very expensive, and a young girl simply will not put on herself such a thing. But there are secrets in these jewelry that help us give new products a modern look. In addition, such a purchase does not hit the budget very painfully.
Of course, times are changing, the fashion for jewelry comes and goes, but we at Damas try to adhere to the cultural traditions of Arabia. And I can talk about this, because I occupy the chair of Damas Development Director in the region, and I know for sure what many customers come to us for.
Jewelry at Damas is bought by people from different countries. Are they also loyal to tradition?
In the West, people have a different attitude to jewelry. For centuries, the owners of jewelry in Europe were only reigning persons, nobility, merchants.
Ordinary people could not even think that sometime in their life a golden necklace or ring would appear. This is historically developed, and therefore, in my opinion, in Western countries there are no such traditions of jewelry architecture, there are no such beautiful ornaments as in the East. And here I already speak not only about Arabia, but also about India, China, Japan. This is an endless well of inspiration from which we still have to draw ideas from for many more years. Therefore, when I took part in the De Beers contest at the turn of the century and received the Millenium Award for the burga mask you mentioned (a traditional Bedouin female copper mask covering the eyebrows and lips; a version of white gold and diamonds was presented for the competition - approx. ), it became such a sensation that no one expected. The award ceremony was held in the Louvre in the presence of more than 2.5 thousand guests. The competition was attended by 350 jewelers from 60 jewelry companies of the world, because it is a very prestigious award given by De Beers for half a century. And my work right from the stage was announced the best jewelry of all that Nicholas Oppenheimer, president of De Beers, saw during his career. And it was not my skill as a jeweler artisan who surprised everyone, but the Arabian traditions, rooted back centuries. The same thing happened in 2004, although there were many people who did not believe in our clear victory in 2000, and said that it was just a case. The award ceremony took place this time in Venice. The organizing committee of the competition - DTS, a partner of De Beers - usually allows jewelers to put up two jewelry for the award, maybe one will win, or maybe neither one nor the other. We, as in 2000, presented only one piece of jewelry, and as a result the same scenario was repeated. Our jewelry has received the award as the best and most beautiful in the world. I hope that in 2008 we will triple our success, as the De Beers awards are presented once every four years.
What will happen this time?
It will be a decoration dedicated to an Arab man and an Arab woman. The saga of two. In one decoration. How will it look like? I won’t tell you about all the details, since it’s better to look at the decoration than to talk about it. But it will be a necklace, which will be based on the Ukal, traditional for men of the Arabian Peninsula (a black twisted cord that holds a gutra on the head of an Arab - a traditional shawl). And here a woman, you ask. Ukal is a symbol of male power, his pride. If the ukal suddenly falls off his head, it is like dishonor for an Arab. In addition, the decree symbolizes the devotion of an Arab man to his family, his wife. That is, again, if there is no pointing on the man’s head, then he loses his wife’s respect. That is the whole point. And my new necklace will consist of several rings intertwined with each other, symbolizing the strength of family ties, respect for each other husband and wife, their loyalty to Arab traditions.
What is the reason for such success and such grandiose victories of Damas at prestigious international competitions?
The reason for the banal is simple. If you think that jewelry is a commodity, then you are not a jeweler and you will never become one. If it seems to you that you can "seat" a diamond weighing five carats in a gold ring weighing 30 grams and that’s all, then you can hardly be called a jeweler. If the matter is only in price, then it is not necessary to give your mother, wife or daughter a ring or necklace, just give her a thousand or two thousand dollars, and it’s all over. Today your jewelry should tell the customer a story. It should be a message, a song, a poem, inspiration ...
What else do you draw your inspiration from?
From nature, from everything that surrounds me. Now we will look together at one tree standing outside the window. You will see in it, perhaps, the thickness of the trunk and branches, the state of the crown. And I will see how a leaf plays in the wind, how a sunbeam refracts on its surface, what stones can be used in decoration to convey all shades of green, and so on and so forth. Every flower, every interesting element of decor on buildings, every unusual combination of light and shadow, makes me come up with new and new options for jewelry. Jewelry is an art, and the value of jewelry cannot be appreciated by the cost of materials - gold or precious stones. The meaning is precisely what is invested in the decoration, it is the transfer of emotions, feelings, thoughts of the artist. And it is very important to remember that jewelry is worn around the neck, or arms, or in the ears. They are not hung on the wall and are not placed on the table. They touch the skin of their owner, so they should be alive, filled with meaning, feeling. I was once asked by the BBC correspondents: “How much does jewelry add to women's beauty?”, To which I replied that “it's quite the opposite, this woman adds beauty to jewelry. Take the best jewelry in the world and put it on the table, it’s nothing will not mean, but put it on the most ugly woman (such, however, does not happen), and the jewelry will come to life. " That is the secret.
We know that Damas has its own patented diamond cut ....
Oh, this is a separate and amazing story. Again, one day it occurred to me to try to make a rectangular diamond so that it would shine no worse than a round one. In fact, the so-called "emerald" faceting in the form of a rectangle is used when working with emeralds and other gems to convey the depth of their color, rather than the luster, as is the case with diamonds. The most beautiful form of a diamond, which allows revealing all its brilliance, is the "rose" cut. It was. Before the Damas signature cut. In general, when I decided to try to cut a diamond in the shape of a rectangle, I turned to the Russian cutters from the Smolensk company Crystal. These are the best cutters in the world, and Damas has been working with them for many years. Do you know why Russians are the best stone cutters? Because during the Soviet Union, all the raw materials belonged to the state, and the best diamond was cut out of whole diamond, regardless of the fact that 60 percent could go to waste. Today, it all belongs to private owners, and they try to cut as many stones as possible from one rough diamond, while the quality of each of them suffers. So, having filled your hand back in the Soviet years, your Russian cutters know how to see stones through. In a word, I came to the Crystal plant, the chief engineer came to me and, after listening to my idea, I immediately said that this was impossible. Well, and then, apparently, something caught him in my words. And a whole series of experiments began. First, a cut was made with 32 faces, the diamond turned dull and did not shine as desired. The experiments took more than 3 years. As a result, we patented a rectangular Damas cut diamond with 77 facets, which gives 30% more shine than round stones, according to De Beers estimates.
Wow! The whole world knows the classification formula for diamonds from De Beers - 4C (Color, Clarity, Carat & Cut), that is, color, clarity, carat weight and cut. But if your initiatives go further, perhaps the gentlemen from De Beers will have to introduce some fifth point in order to adequately evaluate your stones.
I think it will. Maybe they will begin to evaluate the level of gloss or something else, because, thanks to our cutting, the stone becomes out of the ordinary.
You said that you draw inspiration from local traditions and culture, and what does Damas give in return to the local community?
We live and work in the UAE, we must not only sell our jewelry throughout the Middle East and the world, making a profit, we must share with the community in which we live. Damas Group is engaged in large-scale charitable activities. We support centers for people with disabilities, athletes and young talents who often simply don’t have enough money to go to competitions or contests. We patronize local schools and are key sponsors of many initiatives of the Government of Dubai. It is very important. Two local girls came to me recently who brought their jewelry designs, we made samples from them, and I invited the girls to our jewelry design courses. We teach interested people the design of modern jewelry, gemology, many other disciplines. Talented people, as well as poor, sick, weak people, must be helped, they need the support of those who are stronger. Damas is a strong company focused on creation, so we are always ready to support those who want to achieve something in life. By the way, this is also a good old local tradition - to hospitably meet any person who has come to your house, listen to him and be sure to help, if necessary. The Emirates is our common home, and if we all begin to help each other, regardless of nationalities and religions, then completely different times will come, and the world will also be different. I personally believe in it.
Thank you Mr. Tamjid. I hope that we are still lucky to see our world mutated.
Mandatory, and see you soon.
