In 1883, Georges Mauboussin took over the direction of a modest jewelry house in Paris. Mauboussin had a vision for growth, luxury and innovation. He restructured the tasks, controlling all the stages of manufacture and reorganizing the shop’s layout.
Mauboussin placed the lapidary and diamond workshops at the top of the building. This is where gems were cut, engraved and polished. He positioned the designers, jewelers, polishers and setters on the second floor. The sales and exhibition room lived on the ground floor. In his design, no shop windows opened directly onto the street, which incited curious pedestrians as they walked by and a sense of confidentiality when making their purchases.
Under Georges’ ownership, Mauboussin House became a leader at gem exhibitions. The jewelry shop was most known for its collection of diamonds, rubies and emeralds. Mauboussin presented 235 pieces of jewelry at its first exhibition in 1928. The centerpiece of the show was the 24-carat emerald of Josephine offered by Bonaparte. Georges Mauboussin was named “Knight of the Legion of Honor” after his rise in prestige from these international exhibitions.
In 1946, the Mauboussin House joined the greatest names by moving to 20 Place Vendôme, next to world renowned jewelry houses such as Cartier, Boucheron, Van Cleef & Arpels and Chaumet.
In the 1990’s and 2000’s, the company experienced some financial difficulties and production was relocated to Asia.
The cut in production cost allowed the House of Mauboussin to offer discounted jewelry, particularly engagement rings, which contributed to the brand’s recovery. As a result, Mauboussin’s revenue rose from 12.5 million euros in 2003 to 25 million euros in 2006.
Since 1883, Georges Mauboussin has never ceased to surprise the jewelry industry by his ability to always bounce back, until he is reborn from the ashes.
The leader in luxury jewelry is now accessible to everyone and the brand has survived without changing the jewelry reputation it has earned over the last 100 years!
