In their contribution to the community, Arab women play a positive and impactful role.
“In line with this belief, we aim to support and honor women in different fields who have managed to achieve notable successes,” says Ayman Al-Haffar, executive general manager of L’azurde.
One such woman is Raha Moharrak, the first Saudi woman to conquer Mount Everest, he told Arab News in an interview while answering a question on the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) program.
Referring to L’azurde’s selection of the famous Saudi designer Al-Anood Bader and her Lady Fozaza brand to design a new range of jewelry, he said Al-Anood is a designer who has managed to succeed in the field of fashion and design, and has been recognized for it at both local and international levels.
“We believe that through collaboration of our strengths, we have been able to create a genuinely unique collection that goes beyond the beauty of design and expands into creating a statement to support and motivate women in achieving their ambitions.”
These are highlights of the interview:
Q: Saudi Arabia is the largest jewelry manufacturer in the Middle East using annually 4.5 million oz of gold. What is the gold and jewelry trend in Saudi Arabia?
A: Gold consumption in the Kingdom is 55 tons as per the latest study of World Gold Council (WGC).
Q: L’azurde has opened one of the largest jewelry manufacturing plants in Saudi Arabia. What is the capacity of this plant and how many models it produces?
A: Full capacity of our plant in the Kingdom is 30 tons and we are developing 5,000 models annually.
Q: How many flagship stores L’azurde has since its establishment in 1980?
A: While L’azurde has been operating and manufacturing since 1980, our own retail stores, as you see them today, have come up in the recent past.
In total, we currently have 15 stores across four countries with the intention of reaching 50 stores in the coming couple of years.
Our stores are available across the main cities of Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Cairo, Abu Dhabi, Al-Ain and Kuwait.
You will find us in some of the top malls in the country as well as the main gold souks.
Our retail business exclusively holds L’azurde Diamonds offering a wide range of diamond products across different segments and catering to different consumer needs.
Q: What is L’azurde’s expansion strategy in the region?
A: L’azurde will soon open the latest shop in Al-Nakheel Mall in Riyadh revealing for the first time our new store concept.
Our expansion plan covers all major cities in the Kingdom, the rest of the GCC and Egypt to be closer to our customers.
The size of our retail network will double very soon.
Q: L’azurde introduced its Laylaty and Farahi collections recently. How is the response for these collections?
A: L’azurde has always been known for being the leader in the wedding sets segment, and with the new collections launched we expect to gain even more share of this important segment. As always, we try to introduce the latest trends in jewelry and this case was no exception.
With the growing demand on 18K gold sets for weddings, L’azurde introduced a new range of products with magnificent designs and craftsmanship that only make this special night even more memorable. The demand on Laylaty has exceeded our expectations and we are continuously launching more products to meet the market needs.
We have also managed to create a complete range of diamond jewelry through our Farahi collection.
This spectacular collection redefines the parameters of wedding jewelry and offers a unique set of products using different precious stones such as ruby, emerald, sapphire as well as pearls.
The collection offers the beauty of designs created by award-winning designers as well as the purity and quality of diamonds that are certified by the L’azurde name and quality standards.
Q: How is L’azurde’s collaboration with Lebanese star Elissa working?
A: Our new collaboration with Elissa started toward the end of 2014 and since then we have carried out a number of projects with the glamorous superstar.
We have already produced one TV commercial with Elissa that was shot in Croatia and Paris in addition to a photo shoot with our new brand ambassador show casing some of the latest designs in our collections.
So far, the performance of this collaboration has proved very successful where we have clearly seen the level of engagement with the L’azurde fans and Elissa fans increasing as a result of our collaboration.
The L’azurde TVC on YouTube alone has been viewed more than two million times in a period of almost two months, a record number for any brand, with very positive feedback from consumers and fans. More material from this collaboration will be disclosed in the course of the year.
Q: What is L’azurde’s diamond exchange policy?
A: L’azurde exchange policy is a guarantee for every customer that the value of their item is protected with time.
The exchange policy is simple.
Within the first two weeks, the exchange is free.
After the two-week period, a percentage of usage is deducted based on the age of the item.
For example, the customer can exchange any product up to one year, after a deduction of just 20 percent of the original value.
Q: L’azurde has selected the famous Saudi designer Al-Anood Bader and her brand Lady Fozaza to design a new range of jewelry. How will L’Azurde benefit from this partnership?
A: Al-Anood is a Saudi designer who has managed to succeed in the field of fashion and design and has been recognized for it at both local and international levels.
Al-Anood’s passion and dedication for her work coupled with her bold and distinct designs attracted us as we felt we shared a lot when it came to our work values.
L’azurde strives to continuously bring new and unique designs to the jewelry industry and create new fashion trends.
We believe that through collaboration of our strengths, we have been able to create a genuinely unique collection that goes beyond the beauty of design alone and expands into creating a statement to support and motivate women in achieving their ambitions, hence the theme of our collection Dream Collection.
Through this partnership, we have managed to offer the exclusivity of Lady Fozaza products to a wider audience through the strength and reach of the L’azurde brand.
Q: What is L’azurde’s CSR program?
A: At L’azurde, we believe in the role of Arab women in contributing to the community in a positive and impactful way.
In line with this belief, we aim to support and honor women in different fields who have managed to achieve notable successes, such as Raha Moharrak, the first Saudi woman to conquer Mount Everest.
You will also be seeing more initiatives by L’azurde in 2015 to expand this effort in our ambition to give it a greater reach.
