Photo-Report: Chopard Online Boutique Launch Party

Over the last few years we have watched as, one by one, the luxury brands have moved their business online, allowing customers to purchase products they like without even stepping out of the house. Geneva Watch and Jewellery House Chopard is no exception. Since opening their online boutique in America their sales have soared in this area and you can now buy their jewellery in the UK.

Chopard’s new website, chopard.com, was launched on 16th July, a landmark which the company recognised with a small event at the London members club Annabel’s. You can experience the launch yourself just as I did by checking out my photo report.

Chopard chose the Fairmined gold Palme Verte collection as the cocktail event’s headline act; the support of the jewellery brand means that this precious metal is sourced in a way that exploits neither the workforce nor the environment. You can read more about the Palme Verte collection Palme Verte, and if any of the pieces – a ring, bracelet, necklace and earrings, all with the Palme d’Or motif – take your fancy, you can buy them now on chopard.co.uk, where they are exclusively available for a month.

This exclusive offer applies to another piece, available only online: a men’s watch, the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Jacky Ickx Edition. This design was first released last year to celebrate the partnership between Chopard and Porsche, and the Jacky Ickx model is a recent edition, named in honour of the successful racing driver.

But now, let us return to the event. Among an intimate crowd of guests were jewellery and fashion bloggers and members of the online press, all eagerly discussing and photographing the various pieces of jewellery and watches. The whole thing was accompanied by an improbably tasty array of canapés and cocktails. I particularly liked the tables beautifully decked out with trays containing marshmallows printed with pictures of Chopard’s watches and jewellery.

In the midst of the revelrly, DJ Zara Martin paused the music to allow Jean-Baptiste Maillard, UK Managing Director, to say a few words. He emphasised the importance of the online market and invited the assembled to use iPads to explore the site and the available collections. On top of the collections on show at the event you can also buy jewellery and watches from Happy Diamonds, Imperiale, Classic Racing, L.U.C. and even a couple of haute couture pieces. Happy shopping!