There are few shops that require an appointment to enter, but such is the case with fine jewelry maker Harry Winston, which has brought its pride to Beijing.
Located in the city's traditional luxury center, the Peninsula Palace Hotel, the boutique is not big, but it is decorated like a Western palace. Products are displayed as art pieces, and there are no countertops - only couches and coffee tables.
When customers arrive, they are seated comfortably while sales staff talks with them, learning their preferences, then bring items for a closer look.
The jeweler held an exhibition at the Forbidden City as long ago as 1996, but it took 11 tears to make its debut in China.
"It is just the right timing to come here. We are not a late comer," says Thomas O'Neill, CEO of Harry Winston.
O'Neill has over 25 years experience in the luxury industry. He has strong interests in Chinese history and culture after living in Beijing in 1979 and 1980.
Many other international jewelry brands rushed headlong to China a few years ago, but the Harry Winston operation thought it not wise to come in on the first wave because the market was not considered mature enough.
Now Chinese customers are surrounded by international brands, and have become sophisticated enough to tell the difference between them.
"It is better we believe to wait until people have the advantage of comparing. Now Chinese customers are becoming more and more clever, more and more conscious about appreciating luxury," O'Neill says.
The CEO says exclusive jewelry has always been part of the Chinese culture. "China is the first country to adore women with jewelry. Chinese people love and know how to appreciate real beauty," he says.
The reason Harry Winston favors Beijing over other Chinese cities is its long cultural heritage. Beijing is the capital of China, the center of the country's culture.
Beijing may be similar to London, because both are commercial as well as political capitals, while Shanghai is a modern, vibrant and a financial center with changing attitudes and fashions. Consumers in Beijing are fashionable, but focus on value. People in Shanghai are perhaps more fashionable and also place value on design, O'Neill notes.
The CEO says the company will first have to identify its core customers through creative marketing campaigns.
He notes that Harry Winston will open a store in Shanghai soon. "Sooner than later, depending on when we identify the right location. It is in my mind, and also in our strategic plan," he says.
There are also some other places in China that Harry Winston will consider, such as Hong Kong. The company's goal is to have three to four boutiques in China, but does not plan to open too many outlets, otherwise it believes it could dilute its brand.
The are 60 locations in the world in which Harry Winston might be interested, but it only plans to open 40 stores in the end, O'Neill says.
Harry Winston has seen in recent years that the fine jewelry business is growing rapidly.
In March, 2004 the company had only five stores worldwide. The Beijing store is now its 15th outlet. The company plans to open two to three stores a year until it reaches a total of 40.
But "if China continues to develop as fast as it is developing now, the number might change", O'Neill says.
More wealth has been generated in the past 15 years than in the previous 150 years, including in China. Reports say that there are 100,000 people who have over $30 million, not including the value of their homes. The number of those who have $1 million in addition to their homes is 11 million, which shows how big the market is, O'Neill says.
The company claims that it is different from other international jewelers. The lowest price at Harry Winston is $3,200, while for other international jewelry brands the price might be $50 to $100.
When it comes to commissioned or custom-made jewelry, the average price might place be around $100,000 at other jewlers. At Harry Winston the price is over $300,000.
"We are dealing with customers on the very top of the pyramid. And that is why Harry Winston is truly luxury."
"For me accessible luxury does not make sense. It means inexpensive things of high profile. We are expensive things of high profile," the CEO says. "For me, luxury means rare and inaccessible. So Harry Winston will never lower the price."
The heritage of Harry Winston is based on three elements - the highest quality diamonds, design and adaptation of beautiful gems into beautiful jewelry and innovation.
The company thinks a diamond looks best in its most natural state, so it tries to use the least metal so stone reflects light to the fullest. Diamond jewelry before was usually made of single stones of one dimension and usually round cut. Harry Winston discovered other shapes, such as the emerald cut, pear cut and marquise cut.
Perhaps a measure of the firm's exclusivity is its involvement with the Hope Diamond, one of the most valuable stones every found
New York jeweler Harry Winston acquired the legendary diamond in 1949. After a nine-year tour to display it around the United States, he donated to the Smithsonian Institution, where it is on display today.
