Five of the 10 fastest-appreciating Rolex models on Bob’s Watches were Datejust 31 or Lady Datejust watches.
Messika and Gigi Hadid Partner Again on a Collection
The second collaboration between the French jeweler and American supermodel will hit stores at the end of the month.

New York—French jewelry brand Messika has once again partnered with American supermodel Gigi Hadid.
Hadid not only models Messika’s new “My Soul” collection, just as she did with the first collaboration, but also helped design it this time around.
“She embodies fashion, and fashion is a big source of inspiration for me,” creative director Valerie Messika told National Jeweler at a press presentation of the new collection during New York Fashion Week.
“When I create my jewelry, the goal is to treat the diamond with a more fashion attitude. When I said to myself, ‘Who embodies fashion today?’ I quickly think about Gigi because she is one of the new, younger generation of modeling who also loves designing. I was looking for someone who designs and loves to create.”
Hadid also represents Messika’s target demographic.
It’s no coincidence that the brand chose to collaborate with an American celebrity upon making a push into the U.S. market, exhibiting at the Couture jewelry trade show and gaining wholesale accounts in the country.
And Hadid’s role as a key figure in the new generation of models Messika references is largely contingent upon her overwhelming social media reach.
“I chose (to continue working with) her because this new generation of modeling has changed the industry a little bit because of (social media),” she said. “She is not only a face for a brand, she also embodies her own style and her own brand. I know I have big success with the younger generation. Sometimes their dream at 18 is to have their first piece of fine jewelry from Messika, so we represent exactly the same target, we speak to the same people.”
The way Hadid mixes her fine jewelry effortlessly with casual wear like jeans and leggings, documented by the paparazzi and on Instagram, exactly embodies the effortless, unfussy styling approach with which Messika designs.
While the first partnership saw them play with the best-selling Move collection, interpreting the motif in a new way in honor of its 10th anniversary, the second started with Hadid’s inspiration.
“With the second collection, we knew more about each other,” Messika said. “This year it was a blank page. We started from what she loves, and she was even more excited about it.”
Hadid created mood boards that she sent to Messika, which the latter described as “sunny” and “more Bohemian,” with hand chains, anklets and body chains indicative of Hadid’s Middle Eastern background.
Messika’s
“My Soul” is the result of that balance between bohemian and sophisticated; it’s comprised of earrings, rings, bracelets, necklaces, and, yes, hand chains.
The initial campaign image shows Hadid outfitted in a milieu of the new pieces, which are delicate enough to be thoroughly layered without appearing over the top.
“What is funny and what is beautiful is that the more you stack the pieces, the cooler it looks,” Messika noted.
Retailing between $1,590 and $7,360, the brand is currently accepting pre-orders. The full collection will be available at stockists, Messika stores and online on Sept. 30.
Messika couldn’t say whether the partnership with Hadid would continue, but she did say she thinks the rising star has a knack for design.
“She told me she used to see her father, Mohamed (a developer), sketching when she was younger and she always admired that. I don’t know what she’s going to do over the years, but I’m sure she will continue to design because she is a very creative person.”
As for the brand, it’s intent on solidifying its U.S. presence. Valerie Messika confirmed to National Jeweler that next year it would open its first two stores in the country: a Miami location in the beginning of 2019 and a Los Angeles store later, likely around September.
Meanwhile, shortly after Messika’s New York Fashion Week presentation and party held with Hadid, TrueFacet announced the launch of its white-label e-commerce service for luxury brands, with Messika.com as its first client.
The service from the pre-owned luxury jewelry and watch site includes all aspects of e-commerce website development, from optimization to shipping and order fulfillment.
TrueFacet said its white-label service was created to assist brands who excel in traditional, high-end manufacturing and want to outsource direct-to-consumer e-commerce.
TrueFacet is specifically focused on developing e-commerce for international brands geared toward the American market and said it focuses on a high-touch retail experience through an online concierge service as well as digital storytelling and content creation.
For Messika.com, it also provides sales processing, financing and payment options, overnight shipping and order fulfillment through its New York headquarters.
The Latest

The Sherwood family and AJS Creations CEO Tejas Shah purchased the jewelry chain back from Palladium Equity Partners.

“The Elizabeth Taylor Collection” uses lab-grown diamonds and gemstones in contemporary designs inspired by the icon.

Experience gemstones with greater precision and comfort than ever before.

JSA and Jewelers Mutual shared advice on spotting suspicious behavior, combatting cell phone jammers, and staying safe at home.


The fancy light blue diamond is estimated to fetch up to $2.6 million at Elmwood’s next week.

Submit your pieces for a chance to win in this year's competition.

KIRAJewels.one gives retailers access to more than 500 SKUs of lab-grown diamond rings, earrings, necklaces, and bracelets.

This holiday season, look to pieces that will help to fill out customers’ everyday diamond jewelry wardrobe, experts say.

The Natural Diamond Council is now The Diamond Collective and has announced a new strategy under CEO Amber Pepper.

Paul’s Jewelers sells coffee, chocolate, and cookies from a custom gold-wrapped trailer parked outside the store starting at 7 a.m.

Part of its brand relaunch, the marketing around the campaign includes a contest involving a jacket set with 550 diamonds.

The curation, opening soon at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, honors the jeweler’s heritage through a distinctly American lens.

The jewelry giant has partnered with the famed makeup artist to create a colorful new collection of charms and rings.

The association will mark the milestone at its convention next month.

The jeweler donated school supplies to Memphis, Tennessee, students during the event combining basketball and mentorship.

A federal judge denied Pandora’s motion to dismiss Foundrae’s claim for copyright infringement of its medallions.

People aren’t thinking rationally when they are buying luxury products, and we shouldn’t be selling them that way, Peter Smith writes.

The Baltimore Business Journal recognized the entrepreneur for her leadership in business and the jewelry industry.

The facility is located within SEEPZ and is GCAL by Sarine’s second location in India, joining its existing grading lab in Surat.

The four-day show is slated for Nov. 19-22 at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York City’s Chelsea neighborhood.

Offered at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, the one-of-a-kind white gold watch now holds the title of most valuable Cartier wristwatch sold at auction.

Bernstein-Gulla has been working in the jewelry industry for 40 years, most recently as chief engagement officer for Hill & Co.

The relocated Glendale store, now at The Americana at Brand, was designed to be a contemporary “timepiece haven” inspired by luxury resorts.

The top lot of the auction house’s Hong Kong jewelry sale was an Art Deco Mauboussin necklace with ruby beads, which sold for $2 million.

Retailers and manufacturers headed to the Capitol this week to discuss tariff exemptions for diamonds and gemstones, among other issues.























