FoundRae opens first international store in London

New York-based fine Jewellery brand FoundRae, known for its symbolic and spiritual designs, has opened its first international flagship store on Mount Street in London.

In a statement, FoundRae said that it chose Mount Street in Mayfair as the store’s location due to the “quintessential” feel of the shopping street, which has retail roots dating back to the 1700s, with the store sitting next door to a Milanese patisserie Marchesi 1824 established 200 years ago, as well as Sautter Cigars, and Allens of Mayfair, a butcher established in 1887, mixing tradition and modernity, which it states are the same attributes found in its “modern heirloom” jewellery.

Located in a Victorian building with “historic charm,” the London flagship has been “uniquely designed in consideration of the location,” explains the brand, complete with its own signature seal, a double cherry, on the doorway, chosen due to the wild cherry being native to all parts of the UK.

Beth Hutchens, founder and creative director of FoundRae, said: “I see symbols as tools of self-discovery and self-expression; a means of accessing and expressing abstract ideas and deeply held values. Symbols give us the power to grasp larger ideas that otherwise can be evasive.

“With our new Mount Street location, the symbols will be the very first thing you see as you are walking by. Even through the front glass, you can see the large hand-painted cards that we create to describe each symbol embedded in the ceiling panels and then on the windowpanes leading to the interior garden.”

The symbol of the double cherry also inspired the expressive, bright, cherry red colourway inside, while the architecture of the store resembles a personal library, lined with shelves that house the chain wall, reminiscent of an antique bookshop, with FoundRae jewellery showcased alongside rows of books.

Commenting on the interior design, Hutchens added: “Ever since we launched, I’ve utilised books as part of our aesthetic. I see our collection as a form of storytelling. And as for our stores, I like the idea that libraries feel comfortable and welcoming and that visitors can get lost in a sea of inspiration.

“I also see the role of a library as sharing, preserving and protecting history, which is a great metaphor of what the FoundRae collection does: We illuminate the personal stories people create, we empower them to be authors of their own story, and the pieces we create preserve that history.”

The shop also includes FoundRae’s on-site studio with a bench-jeweller and hand-engraver, as well as rooms dedicated to the Vertu Collection of home goods. The London store also features an exclusive medallion, only available in person at the Mount Street store, featuring cherries articulated in cabochon-cut garnets and pavé diamonds.