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STORY KEE HUA CHEE
Every diamond and emerald stands on its own for Gerhard Schreiner, while untreated rubies and unheated sapphires are large enough to arouse any jaded soul.
FEW have heard of Gerhard Schreiner but he is in the same league as Harry Winston, Graff, Mousaieff and Buccellati. For insurance reasons, he is unable to show me the piece de resistance he has brought to Singapore – a magnificent ruby necklace, earrings and bracelet suite worth SGD30 million. Strangely, the second priciest set of yellow diamonds is on display. Later I discover someone had booked the ruby set and did not wish the gems to be defiled by some hack’s grubby fingers.
It has only been 3 years since Gerhard Schreiner decided to market his own brand after his name. For over three decades, he had supplied big rocks to some of the world’s most famous names. Now he feels it is time the world knows his ‘Neo Haute Joaillerie’, French for ‘New High Jewellery’, which appears inconsistent with his Munich background.
Schreiner Fine Jewellery offers around 3,500 pieces that comprise the Neo Haute Joaillerie. The necklaces, earrings, rings, bracelets and brooches are laden with big, precious stones which can be admired a hundred steps away.
Schreiner’s forte is sumptuous suites worthy of coronations. A suite of necklace, earrings and ring commands premium prices since the owner does not have to pull her hair trying to find matching items. He even offers jewelled watches coated with so many precious stones one can barely tell time.
“Karl Lagerfeld swears by the habit of wearing at least one ring on each finger,” notes Schreiner. “Jewels are no longer a privilege of the ruling class.” Gerhard is a bit of a maverick though he looks austere. But scratch the veneer and he displays a sense of humour.
After all, the way he entered the world of jewellery is the stuff of legend.
Born in Gratz, Austria, he comes from a well off family involved in the wine business. His father expected him to join the family’s company but he knew it was not for him. At age 17, he left home to work in a Colombian emerald mine. The teenager did not know what to expect so it was a shock when he had to descend 3,000m into the bowels of the earth to mine the gem. “It was very tough, very dangerous,” he recalls.
Lady luck smiled on the lad. The owner’s son became his best friend and the owner treated him like one of the family. After six months of hard labour, he was hauled out of the mines by the owner, much to his relief. His new job was assessing and evaluating the emeralds, a job he took to like duck to water. “I was lucky to find my forte so soon. I knew jewellery would be my life.”
After one and a half years, his idyllic world soon came crashing. At dinner, his best friend, the son of the mine’s owner, was shot dead in front of him. Eventually he was adopted by the family but after a year he decided to return to Europe. “Colombia then was too dangerous. I did not want to be kidnapped for ransom and cause heartache for my second father.”
He worked as a salesman for three months in Munich, but it was not exactly his dream job. In 1992 he went to Valenza, Italy and founded his atelier with three workers. His first collection consisted of three white diamond rings. Today, his factory employs 300 staff, excluding 18 in Milan and 6 in Munich. 87 agents buy from him and distribute to some 1,500 retailers.
He is not married but “has been with the same woman for 18 years and we have a dog.” He maintains close ties with his Colombian father who supplies him with the finest quality emeralds. Lest you fear his jewels cannot be your thing, he hastens to add they start from 500 euros for a diamond cross. Fancy that, even I can afford a Schreiner.
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