Jewelry house “Esprit”
Like most French Protestants who had escaped persecution in the time of Louis XIV, William’s ancestors were highly skilled artisans — blacksmiths, tanners, and watchmakers.
By the middle of the XIX century, the growing company already acquired a large building, and soon expanded, spreading to the next street.
The jewelry house, which was still growing until the 1930s, is now located in the very center of London on New Bond Street.
In the 19th century, Esprit became famous for its pretty wooden caskets with furniture made of pure silver, which soon began to be made of leather, which was much more convenient than a bulky tree.
In 1859, Esprit bought the company in Holburn, which previously supplied travel bags to Queen Victoria, and also trained highly skilled craftsmen. At the famous exhibition in the Crystal Palace in 1851, Esprit was awarded only a positive assessment, but at the World Exhibition in 1852 he received a quality certificate from the Queen personally and won the gold medal for the excellent quality of its products.
In the XX century, “Esprit” began producing jewelry of the highest quality. To date, gold and silverware masters and jewelers of the company have received royal awards, their customers are the queen, the prince of Wales. Esprit supplies a significant portion of royal jewelery, but not always directly.
Since the company is popular with Arab monarchs and other Eastern rulers, the latter often order jewelry in Esprit to become gifts for the queen and other members of the royal family. Among these gifts there are several delightful sapphire sets. At the wedding of Princess Diana of Wales, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia sent a delightful set of diamonds and sapphires from Esprit.
Another outstanding set of the same stones the princess received in 1986 during a visit to the Sultan of Oman. It is possible that sapphires enjoy such great honor among members of the royal family because at one time the young Queen Victoria put on a crown during the coronation, decorated in the center with a magnificent sapphire.
Esprit can be proud of its service – high at all levels: both in the store and in the jewelry workshop on the upper floors of the building on New Bond Street. The secrets of master jewelers are passed down from generation to generation. They provide quality at the highest level, which is not typical for products of wide production, but at the same time they pay close attention to individual customer requirements. Some orders may develop into successful commercial ideas.
