Diamond Doyens

Millennials are reinvigorating the luxury market, with sales of diamonds soaring among 18 to 35-year-olds. But who are the people shaping the industry now?

- Laura Antonia Jordan

The Innovator

Valérie Messika, founder, CEO and creative director of Messika

VALÉRIE MESSIKA, the glossy Parisian founder of fine jewellery house Messika, doesn’t do a chauffeur-driven commute. Rather, her preferred mode of travel is to hitch a ride on the back of a motorbike whenever she can. ‘I don’t want to waste time in traffic,’ she says with a matter-of-fact smile.

That constant drive to be on the go has helped her propel Messika, which she founded in 2005, to its position as one of the most formidable forces in the fine jewellery world. Last year, the house turned over €100m – two years ahead of forecasts – and today it is stocked in over 400 locations worldwide. There are plans to open boutiques in London, Doha, LA and more over the next 12 months.

Valérie has diamonds in her DNA. Her father, André Messika, is one of France’s most successful diamond merchants. ‘He has a diamond addiction!’ she laughs. ‘When I was younger, I understood very quickly that if I wanted to capture the attention of my father, it was easier if I was in his world.’ So, while the rest of us were dressing up and messing around with dolls, Valérie was playing with diamonds, which were ‘everywhere’.

When she decided to follow her dad into the diamond industry in her early twenties, Valérie already knew she didn’t want to produce heavy pieces – big rocks that were weighed down with formality and status. ‘I found the diamond industry quite boring and diamonds so dramatic,’ she says, lamenting the idea that, ‘You had to wear or buy them for a “big” occasion.’