The Bling Ring

As a new wave of bespoke shopping experiences takes things to the next level, Grace O’Neill investigates how the one percent buy jewellery in 2019.

- Grace O’Neill

A private tour of Catherine the Great’s bedroom in Moscow; a vintage speedboat to take you art shopping on a Venetian island; shutting down the Tower of London for a one-on-one afternoon with the Crown Jewels. No, this isn’t the world’s most lavish Lonely Planet guide, but rather a taste of the varied bespoke experiences that Brian Purkis has created for his clients. As the newly appointed high jewellery manager at Bvlgari, Sydney-based Purkis is tasked with giving his clients the most luxurious shopping experience imaginable—a job that sees him fly high-net-worth individuals and their family first class to locales as far-flung as Italy, the UK and Russia. The relationship he builds with these clients is so close that they often consider him part of the family—he has stayed at clients’ homes and attended their children’s weddings, all while helping them secure one-of-a-kind, bespoke Bvlgari pieces, many with price tags well over $1 million.