- Bulgari
Infobox Company
company_name = Bulgari S.A.
company_
company_type = Public (ISE|IT0001119087|BUL)
company_slogan =
foundation = 1884
location =Rome ,Italy
key_people = Paolo Bulgari (Chairman), Nicola Bulgari (Vice-Chairman), Francesco Trapani (CEO)
num_employees =
industry =Jewelry , Luxury Goods
products =
homepage = [http://www.bulgari.com/ www.bulgari.com]
revenue =
net_income =Bulgari (ISE|IT0001119087|BUL) is an Italian jeweler and
luxury goods retailer . The name is usually written "BVLGARI" in ancient Roman style, and comes from the founder, Greek Sotirios Boulgaris (1857-1932). Although the company made a name for itself with jewelry, today it is a recognized luxury brand that markets several product lines includingwatch es,handbag s, fragrances,accessories , andhotels .Early history
Sotirios Boulgaris (Sotirio Bulgari, Σωτήριος Βούλγαρης) began his career as a jeweller in his home village
Paramythia (Epirus,Greece ), where his first store is still to be seen. In 1877 he left Greece for Corfu and then Naples. In 1881 he finally moved toRome , where in 1884 he founded his company and opened his first shop in via Sistina.The current flagship store in via dei Condotti was opened in 1905 by Bulgari with the help of his two sons, Constantino (1889-1973) and Giorgio (1890-1966). The store quickly became a place where the world's rich and famous came for the unique, high quality jewelry designs combining Greek and Roman art.
During the
Second World War , Costantino Bulgari and his wife, Laura Bulgari, hid three Jewish women in their own Roman home. They were strangers to them; the Bulgaris opened their doors out of outrage for the raid of the Roman ghetto in October 1943. For their generous action, on 31 December, 2003, they were awarded the title ofRighteous among the Nations atYad Vashem inJerusalem . [Israel Gutman, Bracha Rivlin e Liliana Picciotto, "I giusti d'Italia: i non ebrei che salvarono gli ebrei, 1943-45" (Mondadori: Milano 2006), pp.75-76.]International expansion
Bulgari opened its first international locations in
New York City ,Paris ,Geneva andMonte Carlo in the 1970s. For many years the company maintained a showroom in New York'sThe Pierre Hotel . Today Bulgari has more than 230 retail locations worldwide.In 1984 Sotirios' grandsons Paolo and Nicola Bulgari were named Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the company and nephew Francesco Trapani was named CEO. Trapani's goal to diversify the company was started in the early 1990s with the release of the Bulgari perfume line. Under his tenure the company has established itself as a luxury goods brand recognized throughout the world.
In 1995 the company was listed on the
Borsa Italiana . The company has seen 150% revenue growth between 1997 and 2003. Currently outside investors hold about 45% of the company's stock.In 2001, Bulgari, along with
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company founded Bulgari Hotels and Resorts. Bulgari opened its first hotel inMilan in 2004, and a second inBali in 2006.Bulgari is the supplier of luxury goods used in guest suites and public areas aboad the ships of the Italian cruise companySilversea .Designs
Bulgari jewelry design is distinctive and often imitated (and counterfeited). In the 1970s, many of the more expensive Bulgari pieces (such as necklaces, bracelets and earrings) were characterized by instantly recognizable, bold, almost brutal designs combining large and weighty gold links with black-surfaced steel. Genuine Bulgari items usually have a unique serial number that is registered with the company. North American Bulgari boutiques are found in
Beverly Hills ,Bal Harbour ,Boston , Chevy Chase,Chicago , Costa Mesa,Dallas ,Honolulu ,Houston ,New York , Las Vegas, Orlando,Palm Beach ,San Francisco , andWaikiki . A 16th location has been confirmed to open inScottsdale, Arizona in 2008. [cite web|url=http://www.fashionsquare.com/redevelopment/fashionsquare/Retailer.asp|title=Scottsdale Fashion Square ]The environmental group WWF rated a number of luxury brands for sustainable practices, in a report called Deeper Luxury. [cite web|url=http://www.wwf.org.uk/deeperluxury/report.html|title=WWF Deeper Luxury|publisher=
World Wide Fund for Nature |date=November 2007|accessdate=2008-04-07] Bulgari came ninth out of the top 10 publicly-traded luxury companies.Wristwatches
The company's Swiss subsidiary, Bulgari Time S.A., is responsible for Bulgari watch production. It was founded in
1980 and is headquartered in Neuchatel. Bulgari Time SA employs about 500 people.Today, Bulgari watches make up approximately 29% of the company's total turnover. Bulgari has started developing its own calibers and parts, including highly complicated mechanisms and basic calibers. The Bulgari watch collection comprises the following lines: Bulgari-Bulgari, Assioma, Rettangolo, Ergon, and Diagono.
At BaselWorld
2006 Bulgari unveiled the complicated Assioma Multi Complication watch, equipped withtourbillon ,perpetual calendar and secondtime zone . [cite web|url=http://watches.infoniac.com/index.php?page=post&id=56|title=Bulgari Watch Production review]References
External links
* [http://www.bulgari.com/splash.php Bulgari - Official Site]
* [http://www.bulgarihotels.com/ Bulgari - Hotels and Resorts]
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