Grazia : Quality, consistency, and accessibility: celebrating apm monaco’s 40th anniversary | June 30, 2022

GRAZIA: QUALITY, CONSISTENCY, AND ACCESSIBILITY: CELEBRATING APM MONACO’S 40TH ANNIVERSARY

QUALITY, CONSISTENCY, AND ACCESSIBILITY: CELEBRATING APM MONACO’S 40TH ANNIVERSARY

APM Monaco is a family-run jewelry brand that creates high-quality pieces at accessible price points, with new collections inspired monthly

Creative expression is an essential part of a fulfilling, Eudaimoniac life. Studies show that individuals who follow their personal inspiration and lean into their creativity – through art, fashion, business, relationships, etc – achieve this sense of meaning and find long-term happiness.

Throughout history, jewelry has been a popular source of wearable inspiration. Jewelry designers can express themselves through the creation of wearable art, and jewelry consumers can express themselves by wearing these pieces on their bodies, in creative ways. However, due to clever marketing by establishment luxury jewelry brands, jewelry is often associated with extreme wealth, luxury, and special occasions. The inaccessibility of and common societal understanding of jewelry prevents it from being used as a democratized source of inspiration or creative expression and instead relegates it to a mere status symbol.

Changing this narrative is APM Monaco, a family-run jewelry brand intent on honoring their passion for jewelry by creating high-quality pieces at accessible price points, with new collections inspired monthly.

APM Monaco is a market-disrupting and vertically integrated jewelry brand intent on opening up access to high-quality and creatively designed jewelry. Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, APM Monaco is a family-owned brand that is proud of its establishment manufacturing past as well as its ability to disrupt the traditional marketplace with quality stones, creative designs, consistent releases, and accessible prices.

APM Monaco was founded in the 1980s by Ariane Prette and her son Philippe. Since its inception, APM Monaco has been providing manufacturing resources to the classic luxury jewelry brands in France and Europe. As CEO, Philippe and his wife Kika Prette, the Chief Creative Officer, launched the APM Monaco retail brand together 10 years.

As all great entrepreneurs do, Kika solved a problem that she was frustrated with in her own life. The husband and wife team recognized that, unlike fashion which has many submarkets at different price points, jewelry only has a thriving high-end market, in addition to street jewelry. Further, the Prettes were also frustrated by the industry standard that luxury brands set, re-using the same flagship designs for decades and continually marketing them until every consumer feels the need to purchase the expensive piece. In order to serve a hole in the market, Philippe and Kika decided to flip the industry on its head.

This is precisely why the CCO decided to start the APM Monaco retail brand giving jewelry enthusiasts access to high-end, beautiful jewelry in a wide variety of styles that they can purchase at a higher frequency and therefore use for their creative expression.

APM Monaco is uniquely fit to disrupt the jewelry market and provide value to consumers in this way due to its manufacturing history in the industry. First, using their existing infrastructure and experience, APM Monaco creates its high-quality jewelry using the same manufacturing process that brought them success manufacturing jewelry out of gold, diamond, and other precious stones for the established brands. However, they can produce a greater variety of new and creative designs – all at a lower price point – because they use the same trusted manufacturing process but with more accessible components like silver and zirconia stones.

The effects of this philosophy are far-reaching. APM Monaco is one of the only companies in the industry with the infrastructure to produce a wide variety of styles and designs while keeping prices low, giving consumers the ability to find the best piece that suits them. Providing true value to consumers, since APM Monaco is vertically integrated and therefore has a low overstock, they can consistently keep their prices low and do not need to engage in gimmicky discounted sales a few times a year.

To this point, APM Monaco has released a new collection every month throughout the retail brand’s 10-year life. Not only does APM Monaco release a new collection with 40 to 50 new pieces every month, but each collection comes with unique content, videos, and musical playlists creatively displaying the mood and inspiration for the collection.

Paying tribute to the Cannes Film Festival taking place in May, APM’s FESTIVAL Collection is geared more towards red carpet events and bigger statement pieces. Displaying the quintessential versatility that APM is known for, the June collection will be more targeted toward smaller pieces meant to be mixed and matched, perfect for everyday summer living. Linked by their commitment to quality, the APM team prides themselves on their ability to creatively design new collections for every person and every situation. Additionally, APM Monaco’s MÉTÉORITES Collection and its personalized bracelets, necklaces, and plates are brand favorites.

For the 40th Anniversary, APM Monaco is proud to announce the Yummy Collection commemorating this achievement. The Yummy Collection, spearheaded by Kika, is a beautiful and fun collection that is also an homage to the brand’s first hallmark, a teddy bear. The Yummy Collection will consist of “Yummy Bears,” micro-setted in a variety of colors meant to represent care, love, and kindness. While the collection is designed to spark warm feelings of childhood, the collection is made up of high-quality teddy bears in various colors and outfits fit for any occasion. These bears can be easily clipped or attached to necklaces, earrings, bracelets, or any other type of jewelry. In addition to the Yummy Collection, the APM Monaco brand plans to double down on unisex jewelry options.

Jewelry enthusiasts can visit APM Monaco’s website or visit one of APM Monaco’s 430 stores around the world to receive high-end service and a luxury sales experience without breaking the bank. Consistent with their commitment to providing quality products at affordable prices, APM Monaco offers a Wonderland Program where customers receive a 2-year warranty and a lifetime repair fee of only 20 euros. Further, because all of the materials used in their jewelry are recyclable, APM Monaco has a policy that allows Wonderland Program consumers to trade in their old APM Monaco jewelry and be credited with 15% of the original value of the recycled jewel redeemable at up to 15% of the value of the next in-store purchase.

With plans to further expand its presence in the United States, we look forward to following APM Monaco and Kika Prette’s plans for the brand moving forward.