The maison Chaumet was founded in 1780 by Marc-Etienne Nitot and is specialised in

jewellery and watchmaking. It is part of the LVMH group and we will go over the whole
history of the Maison from its founding to today.
Chaumet’s flagship store is located at 12 Place Vendôme and we wanted to introduce
Chaumet through 12 key dates/periods, in order to retrace the Maison’s history from its
creation to now.

Obviously, we have to start by 1780, the year Marc-Etienne Nitot started his Maison. He
used to be the apprentice of Marie-Antoinette’s jeweller and mastered his craft by his side
before starting his own business.

From 1804 to 1815, Chaumet was the Empire’s jeweller, as Napoléon wanted to convey the
image of a luxurious and powerful France, as the absolute center of luxury and fashion.
Therefore, during that period, Nitot crafted not only Napoléon’s sword which was used
during his coronation (sacre) but also the Pope’s tiara. After his work on the items was
celebrated, he became the court’s jeweller and the empress’ personal jeweller. Her name
was Joséphine and the heritage from this period has left a mark on the brand as one of their
collections is named Joséphine, and another one is inspired by her passion for botanics.
Nitot’s son took his succession and under his direction the brand was the first one to take its
quarters on the Place Vendôme, at number 15, where you can now find the Ritz.

1820-1850 : after the Empire collapsed, Nitot’s successors weren’t his sons but two
brothers, the Fosssins, and after them two other brothers, the Morels. During that period
the brand reivented itself through different inspirations. When monarchy was reinstated,
the Maison aspired to reach a wider more international clientele and got back to its royal
and imperial reputation.

1879-1914 : In 1883, Joseph Chaumet took over as director of the maison and stayed in this
position until 1928. The brand took its name ever since. He was a true visionary and placed
the Maison at the Forefront of the Belle Epoque. At that time, aigrettes and tiaras were a
strong status symbol, and under his direction and creativity Chaumet became masters of
this high jewellery product. In 1907 the Maison moved to 1é Place Vendôme, in their hôtel
particulier, and this became their iconic address.

1890-1920 : Through the development of transport means, Chaumet’s clients became more
and more international, with people coming from everywhere in the world to have a
Chaumet piece. The Maison one again showed its craftsmanship by creating elaborate
pieces for some indian Maharajas.

1910-1940 : Chaumet showed their creativity during this decade and after WW1 by
following the Art Déco movement and showed once again their trailblazer mindset in the
high jewellery sector. They started using different shapes in their products, different gems
(precious and semi-precious) as well as platinum. The Maison has truly mastered the spirit
of Les Années Folles through their creative and inspiring productions.

1930s: During this decade Chaumet kept its style and craftsmanship while instilling some
modernity in order to retain their avant-garde spirit.
1950-1980: This was a new era for luxury products, with Collections becoming a centre
piece of a brand’s reputation and image. Therefore, Chaumet launched their first Collections
diversified their activity adding watchmaking to their line of products. Great creators and
jewellers such as Pierre Sterlé and René Morin have perpetuated the Maison’s style and
reinvented it. In the 70s, Chaumet disrupted the codes and once more placed itself at the
forefront of innovation by launching a new style of stores: the Arcade. And in 1977, the
brand’s longest active collection saw the light of day: Liens.

In 1999, Chaumet was bought out by the LVMH Group, and joined the conglomerate which
allowed the Maison to sustain its growth in the long run.

2010s: During the past decade, the Maison launched its key collections: Joséphine in 2010
and Bee My Love in 2011. Both these collections as we said before are here as a reminder of
the Maison’s imperial history with Empress Joséphine.

Between 2017 and 2019, Chaumet exported itself around the world and showed off their
amazing and extensive collection at different venues all around the globe. It was a way for
the Maison to showcase their centuries old craft to a wider public than ever before. They
have showed invaluable centuries old items they have picked from the Chaumet collection,
and from private collectors. One particularly prominent event was the show in the
Forbidden City of Beijing in 2017.

In 2020, the Maison celebrated its 240th anniversary by unveiling its newly redesigned
flagship hôtel particulier at 12 Vendôme, where they have set up a store, several salons
dedicated to the Chaumet collection, as well as their Atelier for their High Jewellery
products.

Their current collections include the previously presented Liens, Joséphine and Bee My
Love, as well as Torsades, Jardin and Insolence. For their Haute Joaillerie line, all of the
aforementioned collections have their more developed version. But they also have several
other collections: Perspectives, Ciel, Maharani, Souveraine and Soir de Fête.
All the products released celebrate the Maison’s savoir-faire and showcase their creativity
and avant-gardisme.

As for the Maison’s strategy followgin the pandemic, they are now increasingly reliant on
collecting clients’ data and keeping a close contact with them through newletters and a
bespoke user experience. Chaumet has outshone other brands by setting upp an app on
which the user can try on the products using a VR and 3D modelling technology. This has
allowed the clients to associate online shopping with a visual experience, which is always
critical fir such high-end products. The Maison doesn’t have an online shop however, as it
always strives to provide its clients with a personal experience, but it offers a different
alternative to this, as you can shop through the phone, with a dedicated phone number
which connects you to a Chaumet Sales Advisor.
Chaumet has always been a pioneer in the world of luxury, and their online marketing has
always been quite well developed, which is why they haven’t met issues when promoting
their products through their social media.
The consumers showing an increased demand for customised products, Chaumet has
launched a new collection: les Acrostiches (I’ll explain the concept no need to write down a
script for this).
During the pandemic, in order to breathe in interactivity between the brand and its
customers, Chaumet has used a Wechat miniprogram for its Chinese clients to present
limited edition, more accessible products. They implemented a teleshopping concept in
order to create an immersive and particular shopping experience.

Since Chinese customers account for 50% of hard luxury purchases around the world, the
pandemic has hurt the sector quite a bit, however with travelling now possible, brands have
noticed a rebound in sales, with tourists flushed with cash and eager to get back to their
pre-pandemic buying habits, always looking for a taste of “life before covid”.

The Maison is always trying to find new ways to strengthen its presence online, and
launched Perspectives, their Haute Joaillerie collection through an online show, which was
dubbed by Vogue “the slickest remote show to date”, while also staying in touch with clients
through regular online meetups between clients and Chaumet representatives.

Lastly, one of the brand’s latest show of innovation that shows their will to ascertain an
strong online presence, as well as to target a younger audience, was the launch of their
podcast “Conversations Virtuoses” which aim to present and celebrate the brand’s
expertise, spirit and universe through talks with experts of the luxury sector, clients,
creators, designers, and not only celebrates the Maison, but also sheds a new light on the
often unknown sector that is Haute Joaillerie.