The Place Vendôme diamond house opens the doors of its industry to four brand founders. A six-month journey, from Paris to Surat.
A diamond is born far from the shop window. Before it sits in a solitaire or a rivière, it passes through hands, workshops and borders, a journey that many jewellery designers know only in part. Rubel & Ménasché, the Parisian diamond house founded in 1956 and a longtime partner of the Place Vendôme maisons, unveiled the "R&M Femmes Entrepreneures" programme on 22 May 2026, created to support a new generation of women running their own jewellery brands.
I was fortunate to be invited to meet these entrepreneurs. Four different energies, four visions of jewellery, and one shared wish: to write its future differently.
From Paris to Surat, the Full Diamond Chain
Understanding a stone begins with knowing where it comes from, and the programme takes that as its starting point. From February to July 2026, the participants alternated between workshops, masterclasses, trips and mentoring sessions in Paris, Antwerp and then the cutting factories of Surat, in India.
As part of the Dali Group, Rubel & Ménasché oversees the natural diamond pipeline from rough stone to polished gem. The house thus opens up the inner workings of the trade: sourcing, cutting, quality control, logistics, compliance, regulation. It presents the initiative as a first within the natural diamond ecosystem.
Five Stages, from Origin to Public Voice
The course follows an almost narrative arc. It begins with immersion and traceability, then moves to expertise and craftsmanship around cutting and high jewellery. Next comes the work of building and structuring a brand (production, finance, regulation), then nourishing creativity with experts in trends and CSR, and finally presenting projects and opening new perspectives.
© Esprit Joaillerie
© Esprit Joaillerie
© Esprit Joaillerie
Four Founders, Four Worlds
The first cohort brings together Capucine Huguet (CAPUCINE H.), Claudia Riendeau (TRACIA), Constance Abadie (ARRAROA) and Lola Oladunjoye (LOLA FENHIRST). Their backgrounds and aesthetics differ, but their ambition converges: to champion conscious, transparent jewellery. It is in this diversity of viewpoints that the programme finds its substance.
A Conviction Before a Showcase
For Amélie Noble, who became managing director in March 2025, professional equality is a matter of conviction rather than obligation. Women make up 69% of the house's workforce and hold five of the eight seats on its Executive Committee. She acknowledges that, across the industry, the road remains long, especially for positions of responsibility. Each year, three or four designers will be able to take part, with the support of UFBJOP, Francéclat, the Dali Group, BNP Paribas and Ethiwork.
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Sharing Knowledge to Shed Light
The press release describes a sector that is "culturally discreet". The phrase rings true: jewellery likes the secrecy of the workshop, and the diamond chain remains thinly documented beyond the circle of professionals. By inviting designers to follow every link, Rubel & Ménasché makes knowledge-sharing a lever for transparency. For a young brand, this first-hand understanding shapes concrete choices: which stone, which supplier, which story to tell clients.
The collections, collaborations and ideas born of this journey will not be long in coming. If this first edition is any measure, the programme has fine years ahead of it, and jewellery has new voices to listen to.
