PHILIPPE Charriol’s daughter, Coralie Charriol Paul, is out to make a name for herself in the jewelry business left behind by her father.
The Charriol founder died in a race car accident in 2019. Since then, Ms. Charriol Paul has ascended to become Charriol International’s Chief Executive Officer and Creative Director. Ms. Charriol Paul was in town on Nov. 3 to host a “sunset soiree” populated with celebrities and influencers at Okada.
She also showed off the new collections she designed, namely the St. Tropez Mariner line, and the brand’s Apple Watch strap.
A YOUNGER CROWDActress Iza Calzado, part of the brand’s #AheadOfHerTime global campaign, was also presented with a bangle named in her honor, the Izadora. Other women who were given such an honor include American poet Amanda Gorman and climate activist Greta Thunberg. The Izadora bangle is executed in rose Gold PVD stainless steel, with a 4mm diameter braided cable which is the brand’s signature.
Meanwhile, the St. Tropez line sees the brand’s cables combined with chains.
Ms. Charriol Paul said that the brand’s new vision is part of her design ethos to follow the younger generation. “This is the crowd I want to cater to. Some of their parents wore Charriol; I want this generation to wear Charriol,” she said. The brand was founded in 1983, and is set to celebrate its 40th year next year. “I want them to fall in love with the designs that I’m designing today.”
“I really try to follow the trends, see what the young people are wearing,” she said about how she steers the brand towards continued relevance. “You’re wearing pearls, I see a lot of men wearing pearls — not that I will do pearls. For me right now, the trends are chains: small, medium, large chains; that’s what you see in the showcase there,” she told BusinessWorld.
LESSONS FROM FATHERMs. Charriol Paul looks back on things she learned from her father. “Never losing hope, and never losing focus. Even though people say ‘that’s not going to work’; and pushing through,” she said. “He was very determined like that.”
Another lesson was: “Always working for the number one spot. You don’t want to be second, or third. He wanted to be number one,” she said.
“I want to be number one too.”
Asked if there’s any pressure in bearing the Charriol name, she acknowledged that there was: “A little bit, yeah. Especially when the founder was such a legend. But you know, he’s gone, and now it’s my chance so we’ll see what I do.”
It will be a balancing act. “It’s a responsibility. I want to honor him, but I also want to be my own person, and bring my own flair to this company. I worked 20 years with him, and now I’m going to look to the future and see how I can move it along to the future, that maybe my children one day will take over — who knows?”
It will take “lots of hard work, and a lot of luck,” she said. — JL Garcia
