Inside Asprey

07 July 2014 | Esther Ligthart | Brands & Designers

Inside Asprey turns out to be a fascinating documentary about life in the shop today. And it is wonderful to see how freely people speak and how the human aspect of this life is shown. When you watch the documentary, which I would highly recommend, you get a much better idea of what the jewelry world is all about.

Part of the staff of Aprey, watching the documentary will let you get to know them a little better

The world of jewelry makers

Yes, it is a world of beautiful things. But it is also this world of craftsmen that work very hard on pieces that they will never own. Now of course, somebody who works in the Ferrari garage will probably also never own the real deal. It is not something that you need to feel sorry for at all, but just to show how many people and how many processes there are, before the display in the window, or when you watch the beautiful picture in a magazine.

Asprey jeweler Stuart has a big role in the documentary Asprey Inside

Production of Asprey is still in the same building

Asprey makes her jewelry and silverware still in her own shop. Pretty amazing. And as I ran a jewelry shop in Italy before and know something about clients and the selling process, it was fun and lovely to see how staff had their own little inside jokes. Their own expectations ( a sale under 10.000 pound is always a bit of a disappointment) They are not beings snobs at all. They are anxious to deliver the sales expected from the company and they do their very best to engage with their clientele.

The Daisy collection Asprey

The struggles

Asprey is no longer a company with a private owner. It has had some difficult times. In 2000, it was taken over by the entrepreneurs who transformed Tommy Hilfiger. They wanted to give the company a modern look and feel and hired Norman Foster to revamp the store. The store is indeed incredibly beautiful but nevertheless still struggled and was taken over by a US private equity firm.

This collection is also part of the Inside Asprey documentary. And it was just fascinating to see that not everything a famous company does turns into immidiate success, anyone struggling should watch also how it is just never easy to convince clients. You need more than a name. And you need capable people that know how to build relationships with clients. On all levels.

Arabian ladies and Asprey

Asprey shows us what a struggle it is to bring a company with her heritage in a past where elite British bought Asprey silverware and later on, jewelry to the modern and very competitive world today where they rely now on their old name. Women from the Middle East come to London in their holiday season and they still love to spend on famous old brands. They care about jewelry brands. They love Asprey also as it is easy to recognize for others and so status confirming.

The Chaos collection plays a role in Inside Asprey. It gives also a pretty good idea of all the work and craftsmanship involved in a piece of jewelry

Who is mr Asprey?

Getting a collection right. The pressure to achieve and deliver. We all see it passing by in this lovely documentary. The only thing I really missed was the heart of the company. Who is *mr or mrs* Asprey today. What is the vision of the company for the future. Is the sleek interior the only way to update an image? Should you want more people inside the store today by providing a much more affordable line, just to get that name on people’s lips again?

The store itself

Should Asprey become more fashionable?

One of the reasons that companies like Asprey struggle is that they are not fashionable at all. They are for such an elite that it becomes impossible and therefor largely ignored by the people who care for fashion and for trends and brands. Louis Vuitton is also impossible to buy for most of us. But they do come up with fashion items that if you and I want it badly enough, can afford. And they are back in fashion.

Ok, yes no one needs these really, but they are so lovely

How to make a company like this hot again, without giving up on their very high standards, will be a challenge. But maybe not impossible. Focusing on their rich history but making a larger group of people want a slice of the Asprey pie can bring more profit to this proud name with its very British heritage.

55.000 pound for this sexy looking gorilla. You will know that Samual H. Jackson has one in his dressing room too!

Samuel H.Jackson loves Asprey

Working with jewelry has its moments. It is a fascinating clientele that enters the world of Bond Street jewelers. We see Samual. H. Jackson and Saudi Arabian princess and other rich people who lead a very different life than most of us do. But it is all about people. Their hopes and desires. Their reality and frustration. I think I would like to say that watching this documentary gave me the feeling that Asprey was just as a vehicle in this documentary to show us how similar we all are in the end.

One of the clients is getting a sweet little snake ring from her mother in the documentary. It looks so wonderful and sweet on her

Beauty

And in the meantime, we should all enjoy, whether you can afford it or not, the beauty that people with amazing skills in their heads and hands, can produce. As Beauty is found in so many things in life and it enriches us to look at it. Not for the sake of status or whatever, but for the pure beauty itself.

* front page shows mrs Tatcher with her famous black Asprey bag. Her bag was so well known all over the world.

I love wonderful architecture, this store is made so interesting, old walls and brand new state of the art stairs...loads of space to wander around. And that lamp!....Inside Asprey