Minimalist yet bold, edgy yet eye-catching, contemporary
yet classy – these are all characteristics that define
Messika. It’s founder Valerie Messika has democratised
diamonds and also made them ‘cool’ for young women
who prefer wearing jewellery that is not over-the-top but
at the same time stylish. From Cardi B to Beyoncé and
Lady Gaga, powerful women tend to go for Messika’s
creations and Diamond World catches up with Valerie to
understand the underlying feminist ethos that makes her
brand the most-coveted
Edgy, contemporary and minimalistic
are some of the adjectives that aptly
describe Parisian jewellery brand
Messika. Born into the trade, founder Valerie
Messika knew that she was meant for the
sparkling world of diamonds from a very
young age. Her father, Andre Messika, a well
known French diamond trader introduced
her to this precious stone, giving her an
invaluable predisposition to the art. With
her keen eye for detail and modern design aesthetic, Valerie was able to build a
coveted brand that rules the runways
and the red carpets.
An inevitable foray
into diamonds
Valerie’s childhood was rich with
memories of her father’s passion for
diamonds. She learned the ABC’s or
more aptly 4C’s of the trade, thanks
to her family’s vast knowledge about
the industry. Armed with a degree in
communication, she proceeded to join
the marketing and communication
division of Chanel Jewellery. However,
she soon realized that her role as a
marketing executive did not align with
her career ambitions. She then spent
five years under her father’s guidance
where she learnt the tricks of the
trade. “In the same way that we choose
our future partner with the heart, we
choose a diamond for the emotion
that it creates in us” was her father’s
timeless advice that has been her
guiding light through this journey.
While working alongside her
father, Valerie couldn’t help but feel
like something was missing. She
longed for a creative outlet where
she could set her imagination free
and give a tangible conclusion to the
ideas running in her head. Turning
to jewellery designing was the clear
next step. “I started to create my
own diamond jewellery pieces. At
the beginning, it was just for myself.
Some of my girlfriends liked my
first creations a lot and insisted that
I create more jewellery for them
as well. This is how the journey
began,” says Valerie. With the gentle
encouragement and support of her
peers, she was ready to launch her own
line: Messika.
With an indisputable love for the
Queen of gemtones, most of Messika’s
jewellery is crafted using the finest
of diamonds. The brand tries to
keep the identity of the stone intact
and aims to showcase its stunning
brilliance through imaginative designs.
Valerie allows her ideas to flow until
she creates something substantial.
Expanding on this she says, “I
deliberately start all my creations
with a blank page as opposed to the
prestigious houses of Place Vendôme
that have centuries of rich archives
of distinct styles.” She admits that
this jump into the void has helped
her search the depths of her creativity
without boundaries.
Messika’s journey into the creation
of a luxury brand has had its own
share of roadblocks. Due to the
subjective nature of creativity, it
becomes challenging for the designer to accurately transcribe her ideas into
action and procure the result she had
originally envisioned. One of the USPs
of the brand is its exceptional designs
and in order to bring these quirky and
unconventional ideas to life, special
cut diamonds such as emerald, pear,
and triangle are required. These
stones are not easily available and
are sourced from different parts of the
world.
The millennial generation has a
very different perception of diamonds
as opposed to previous generations.
Valerie reveals, “In 2013 when I
founded Messika, there was a real fear
and apprehension around diamonds
and most women only really wore the
stone for their engagement ring or for
very traditional evening wear.” A lot
of women also thought of it as a stone
to wear when they were ‘older’, as
they had this notion that it aged them.
“I really wanted to change this idea
around diamonds and break down any
sort of age or style barriers that had
been put up for centuries.”
The brand has made impressive
strides in a short span of time. With
her pieces being worn by famous
celebrities to the opening of the
brand’s flagship store in Paris,
Valerie shares, “One of my greatest
accomplishments was the birth of my
2 daughters. My second daughter was
born the same day of the opening of my
first boutique: it was a big achievement
for the brand and the beginning of a
new step. After nearly ten years of success and the opening of more than
250 stores in 50 countries; we had to
have our own flagship boutique. This
opening marked a huge step for our
House.”
On Messika’s future, Valerie
comments, “Everything is going so
fast for Messika. I feel like I am
living in a dream! I hope Messika
will continue to evolve, we are still a
young brand and there are so many
things to do. For the future I know for
sure that I want to keep working on
my High Jewelry collections. And my
ultimate dream would be to create a
beautiful jewellery watch. I’m a big fan
of watches and I would love to add a
Messika Joaillerie diamond watch to
my collection.”