News In keeping with its pioneering tradition, Cartier opened its first store in Azerbaijan on 19 March this year.
Situated at number 2, 28 May Street in Baku, this new address was given an exceptional launch attended by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliev, accompanied by his wife, as well as Bernard Fornas, Chairman and CEO of Cartier International, and actress Monica Bellucci, who flew in specially to cut the red silk ribbon.
Created by architect and designer Bruno Moinard, this store expresses the jeweller’s identity through a range of choice materials: light and dark oak, chandeliers by Baccarat and symmetry of appointments, with exquisite lounges in the French style emphasising light, harmony and comfort through a selection of carefully selected furnishings and illustrations depicting Cartier’s history.
The space is dedicated entirely to the company’s products, with an exhaustive presentation of jewellery, watch and accessory collections which, following the opening of a store at GUM in Moscow last year, confirms Cartier’s intention to strengthen its presence in the CIS as indeed throughout the world, where the firm has nearly 257 outlets in 60 countries.
An event of some stature, the launch of the Baku store was followed by a private reception at the National Philharmonic Theatre where the jeweller gave an exclusive showing of original pieces from its Caresse d'orchidées collection. The exhibition was followed by a performance by French singer Patricia Kaas, attended by a selected panel of guests. Our photo shows, from left to right, Zulfya Ragimova, Manager of the Cartier store in Baku, Bernard Fornas, Chairman and CEO of Cartier International, Monica Bellucci and François Le Troquer, General Manager of Cartier Russia and CIS.
The history of Cartier stores in the CIS began in 1996 with the opening of its first point of sale in Moscow, on the Kuznyetsky Most. It was not until 2003 that a subsidiary charged with developing the brand in Russia and other CIS countries became established in the Russian capital. The year 2003 was also marked by the inauguration of a luxury jewellery store in Moscow, on the Stoleshnikov Pereulok, and by the opening of the first Cartier store outside Moscow, in Ekaterinburg.
In 2007, Cartier opened its third Muscovite store in the prestigious GUM shopping centre on Red Square. A fourth store will be opening its doors early next summer, in Vremena Goda, a new luxury shopping centre in Moscow. Other Cartier stores will soon be established outside the capital, in Rostov next autumn and in St Petersburg in the foreseeable future.
This sphere of influence extends also beyond the borders of Russia, with store openings in 2004 in Kiev (Ukraine), in 2005 in Almaty (Kazakhstan), last December in Baku (Azerbaijan) and, lastly, in March this year in Tbilisi (Georgia).
In addition to this wide network of stores, Cartier has also teamed up with selected retailers in 22 cities in Russia and the CIS: Moscow, Ekaterinburg, Rostov, Krasnodar, Saratov, St Petersburg, Vladivostok, Kazan, Samara, Novosibirsk, Ufa, Sotchi, Nizhny Novgorod, Perm, Voronezh, Omsk, Kiev, Donetsk, Odessa, Minsk, Erevan and Almaty.
April 15, 2008
