Van Cleef & Arpels was founded in 1906 and has been a leading jeweler worldwide ever since. Many designs turned out to be timeless. The genesis of Van Cleef & Arpels was sparked by the marriage of Alfred Van Cleef (son of a stone cutter) and Estelle Arpels (daughter of a precious stone dealer) in 1896.
VCA soon opened its doors at 22, Place Vendôme, not far from Lalique and the Ritz Hotel. They saw the potential market for high-quality hand craftsmanship combined with the use of precious materials that designers like Faberge and Lalique presented at the Paris exhibition. This provided the initial impetus for the firm’s direction.
In addition to the Place Vendôme flagship address, salons were opened outside of Paris in Nice (1910), Cannes (1921), Monte Carlo (1935), New York (1939), and Palm Beach (1940). Throughout the 1920’s and 1930’s, the family’s second generation assumed leadership positions.
VCA made numerous contributions to the history of jewelry design. In 1930, of a new type of accessory: the minaudière. The minaudière is a type of vanity case. Constructed from gold or silver, it takes the form of a box. The minaudière was wildly popular for decades with women carrying them in custom-made fabric pouches.
In 1933, VCA patented a technique of gemstone setting called invisible setting (serti invisible). The setting is named for its appearance. When gems are invisibly set, it appears as if nothing is holding them in place: no prongs, bars, or bezels are visible.
Van Cleef won over a clientele that included royalty from several continents (the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco, King Farouk and the Court of Egypt, the Court of Iran), Hollywood film stars (Gloria Swanson, Marlene Dietrich, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Lauren among others) and industrial magnates as well as financiers (the Mellons, the Kennedys, the Vanderbilts, Florence Gould, Onassis). The firm was and is still known for creating opulent, impeccably designed and constructed pieces. Today VCA is owned by Compagnie Financière Richemont SA, a Swiss company that deals in high-end luxury goods.