It was mother of Reina Sofía, who, with a small atelier in a flat in Palma, began this business adventure in 1957. Since 2005, and with her daughter at the helm, the jewelry firm has launched collections inspired by traditional culture and the landscape.

Balearic Islands of which the mother of King Felipe VI is a faithful client,  encouraged by Queen Letizia.

Quite the opposite. It fills me with pride and I am very grateful for being able to make collections and pieces that attract your attention.

How was that first contact between Isabel Guarch and the Queen Emerita?

Well, the relationship really started because Mrs. Letizia read a report in a local newspaper in Mallorca talking about my first collection inspired by the Cross of Calatrava. The then princess became interested in her and from Marivent asked us if we could send some pieces to the palace for them to see. The person in charge of carrying them explained a little about the history, the design, and apparently he liked it. A few days later when Doña Sofía returned from a trip, this intermediary between the Royal House and us returned to show him more pieces, and there the germ of a relationship that lasts a long time was born.

In fact, it is common to see Doña Sofía wear one of those pendants from her first collection …

And it has several versions of it, in gold and silver, and also pieces from later collections. What has attracted Dona Sofía to my firm is that all my pieces always have a story to tell, and she she is a lover of tradition. Behind every design there are many hours of research. For example, in the case of the Calatrava cross, it is a piece of jewelry that has been part of Mallorcan culture since the 17th century, when knights and religious brotherhoods wore it. Later that legacy was passed on to women and its use was extended, not only as a complement, but also as a hallmark in traditional houses. What I did was modernize and update it, mixing it with different materials so that it could be worn in a more casual way. In addition, the Calatrava cross has a key element for Doña Sofía and that is that the ends of the points are a fleur-del-lis, a detail that is part of the shield of the Bourbon dynasty.

Does she usually come in person to purchase any of your pieces?

She comes to see us at the atelier in the center of Palma and I attend to her personally. That’s why I know what pieces you have ours in your jewelry box.

As which?

Well, the brooch of the rose window of the cathedral of Palma, the bracelet of symbols, the pieces of green jade inspired by the pine that grows in the Balearic Islands, the earrings and necklaces in the shape of a starfish that pay tribute to the Mediterranean, a pendant that It evokes the compass rose and also the royal collection with silver coins used on the island in the 12th century.

How is she in the deal?

She is a lovely woman who is very clear about what he wants. He always tells me: «show me the ones you design, eh? I can find the other in another place ».

The story of Isabel Guarch jewelry is an adventure started by her mother, Isabel, who was not a conventional woman …

My mother started working when she was young as an accountant in a jewelry store in Palma. She was a very restless woman and she combined her work with her studies in languages ​​and gemology. At that time many American aircraft carriers arrived in Mallorca and when they came to buy in the store, since only she knew English, she was responsible for translating and attending to them, and in the end she ended up becoming the manager. She also had an exquisite taste and a very good plant, and that was what the client liked, who allowed herself to be advised and trusted her. The truth is that he could have stayed there the rest of his life, but he had always wanted to undertake, so he decided to take the step and set up a kind of atelier to serve customers in a much more personalized way. So much so that the exhibition and sale of jewels were in the living room of the house, on the fourteenth floor of an apartment overlooking the bay. People loved to come because it was like a semi-secret place, an oasis in the middle of the urban routine of the city.

What did you learn from your mother? Because I understand that, first of all, you were not even considering being a jewelry designer …

I was a very shy person and it was very difficult for me to relate to people who were not from my closest environment and I did not see myself capable of carrying out this advisory task. But it was a matter of time and maturity. When I was 23 years old, I told my mother that I wanted to join the business and she drew me the roadmap of my training: gemology studies, specialization in diamond, a design course at the BJO school in Paris … and that was how this world he conquered me. Also having my mother by my side helped me learn those details that are always left out of the study plans. I quickly learned that, in this trade, being honest is the most important thing and what builds customer loyalty. We are not simple jewelery sellers, we are consultants.

Your mother was your great supporter and the person who believed in you the most. So much so that you have taken his last name to continue with the business …

I did it out of respect for his work and in gratitude for everything he did for my brother and me. She even told me that she had surpassed her, but the credit, really, was hers. Achieving what he accomplished five decades ago was not within everyone’s reach.

You have managed to keep the firm standing and launch at least two collections a year. We intuit how easy it has not been …

Everything is the result of teamwork. I always look at the present. The immediate thing is the collection that we will release in spring in collaboration with the La Caixa Foundation and that will be inspired by the Gran Hotel and the modernist style.

Still excited when you put out a new collection?

What really excites me the most is to think that my designs pass from mothers to daughters and that, when I am not there, something of me and my history remains in those pieces.

Categorized in:

People

Tagged in:

,