Di Donna: Keeping the lustre in silver jewellery

by charlene_voisin | August 1, 2013 9:00 am

By Jacquie De Almeida

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John Azadian has a pretty clear vision of what he wants his brand, Di Donna, to be.

Not only must it adhere to the 3 Bs—big, bold, and beautiful—but nothing in the 1000-piece collection should cost a consumer more than $250. The reason?

“I’m very aware of what my price point is, and going above that is not good for business,” Azadian says from his Montreal office.

The business he’s referring to is Di Donna, a brand of rhodium-plated 925 silver jewellery featuring gemstones like amethyst, citrine, and topaz, and operating under the umbrella of its parent company, Designs Unlimited, which Azadian also owns. Its dealer base includes 120 independents in Canada, 20 in the United States, and in the next few months, a concept store in Dubai that looks to target the emirate’s 10 million tourists a year. It’s a long way away from where Azadian started out.

International flair

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Born and raised in a family of jewellers, Azadian picked up his goldsmithing skills at his father’s bench, which happened to be in Beirut, Lebanon, along with a manufacturing facility that’s been in operation since 1946.

After immigrating to Canada in 2001, Azadian set up shop importing and distributing other brands. But by 2006, he saw the potential to capitalize on a niche he felt few were fulfilling, and set about designing his own brand of fine silver jewellery.

Although his background was in manufacturing gold and diamond jewellery, Azadian felt he needed to go in a different direction, focusing instead on design and placing production in the hands of the experts.

“You need a big factory with 200 workers to supply the demand for a silver jewellery brand,” he explains. “We buy dozens of one style. There’s a huge process involved and it can’t be done in Canada. So we outsource production.

“Silver is a metal that can be treated like gold in terms of manufacturing. Yet, being much more affordable, it can be used to create bolder and chunkier, fashion-oriented pieces, and that’s how Di Donna was born.”

The Italian influence runs deep beyond the brand’s name. Azadian learned jewellery design in Florence, and his father previously had an office in Milan. Although he designs 80 per cent of the collection, three freelance designers based in Italy also lend a hand. While coming up with new and interesting ideas that resonate with consumers is certainly a major consideration, Azadian says maintaining continuity in the brand’s design direction is the ultimate goal.

“There is a certain spirit in Di Donna jewellery and I always try to keep that,” he adds. “Over the years, the freelancers have learned well what the Di Donna brand is all about. When they design something, they know exactly what I look for. Di Donna is not about selling beautiful jewellery. It’s about keeping a character.”

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That character is the result of 15 worldwide suppliers, and outsourcing production. A factory in Thailand manufactures 60 per cent of Di Donna, while one in China and another in Italy each produce 20 per cent. Although he is confident in the factories’ production quality, two trips to Thailand and China every year, as well as four to Italy, keep him near the action, particularly when he launches a new collection.

So how does he get the word out? Social media is a must, Azadian says. With just over 7250 ‘likes,'”¨ Di Donna’s Facebook page looks to pique consumer interest by featuring three or four products every week. Although Azadian admits there’s no way of really knowing whether social media actually generates sales, he says it’s an inexpensive way to advertise a brand.

“It creates awareness and demand,” he notes, adding he’s hired a company to manage the page, along with Pinterest and Twitter accounts. “This might translate into sales because it’s direct targeting to the consumer.”

In addition to advertising on Facebook, Azadian is also expanding his brand exposure by selling direct to consumers, both through the fan page and Di Donna’s website. Orders are shipped directly to the buyer when there is no Di Donna dealer in their area. If one exists, the order is sent to the dealer of the buyer’s choice within a 10- to 20-km range of their address, keeping both the store and consumer happy.

“One of the reasons we’ve done this is to give the buyer access to a larger range of products, since items vary between stores,” Azadian says.

True to form

Although traditionally consumers of generic jewellery, Canadians have been leaning more and more toward brands in the last few years. It’s a trend, Azadian says, that may give companies like his an advantage over importers.

“We can better establish the connection between the consumer and product as we are aware of the cycle, starting with the inception of the piece to the final sale,” he notes.

Overall, Azadian says maintaining the brand’s look is paramount to keeping market share.

“There is a DNA in the Di Donna brand that must be consistent, and I always try to keep that,” he says. “I don’t want to make collections that have no continuity.”

Will consumers and retailers tire of a brand that remains true to its design vision and rarely veers from it?

His answer is simply, no. “At all times, we offer more than 300 styles, and add two new collections a year. There’s a huge variety.”

Variety is the spice of life, after all.

Source URL: https://www.jewellerybusiness.com/features/di-donna-keeping-the-lustre-in-silver-jewellery/

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