Fabergé case study goes global on top case method business site

Professor John Thompson and Dr John Day have examined the true story behind the world famous brand, including the multi-million pound efforts to re-establish it

THE name of the jeweller Fabergé has a ring of opulence and echoes of history, including the fate of the Czars.  Is has found its way into popular culture, with a James Bond exploit revolving around an auction for a magnificent objet d’art.  But the true story of the designer and his descendants is even more intriguing, culminating in a multi-million pound attempt to re-establish the Fabergé brand as one of the most desirable in the world.  It has also presented a priceless research opportunity to two business experts at the University of Huddersfield.

John Thompson, who is Emeritus Professor of Entrepreneurship, and Senior Lecturer Dr John Day have joined forces to investigate the Fabergé saga and have now compiled a series of case studies tracking the history, the reincarnation and the potential of the iconic brand.

Their material has been issued online by the The Case Centre, a globally important resource for business education, monitored by at least 50,000 academics.  Professor Thompson has been a prolific compiler of business case studies and University of Huddersfield students are now being presented with material for analysis from the Fabergé story as investigated by him and John Day.

The brand has a complex history, but after a period in which it became the property of multi-national cosmetics firms and linked to Brut aftershave it is now wholly owned by the venture capital company Pallinghurst, which re-launched Fabergé as a high-end jewellery range in 2009, having purchased rights to the name from Unilever for £38 million.  They faced a serious challenge.  No Fabergé jewellery had been produced for 90 years; yet major rivals from the mid-19^th Century, such as Cartier, had always been active.

Pallinghurst established a Heritage Council to ensure the legacy of Peter Carl Fabergé, who lived from 1846-1920, and created arguably the most sought-after jewellery in the world, was not overlooked with the new collections.  In compiling their case studies, Professor Thompson and John Day have been granted access to company material and have carried out multiple interviews with key members of the Council – who include Sarah and Tatiana Fabergé, both great-granddaughters of Peter Carl, and John Andrew, author and aficionado - as well as Sean Gilbertson, a director of Pallinghurst.

The most famous pieces created by Peter Carl are the one-off Imperial Easter Eggs produced for the ruling family in Russia and which are massively sought-after, but rarely available.  Britain’s Royal Family has one of the most important collections of Fabergé pieces, including three Imperial Eggs.

The story turned out to have multiple strands.  The 1917 Russian Revolution – during which the Czar and his family were slain – ended Fabergé’s original business, but he had established a London outlet, run by his son Nicholas, who afterwards became a fashion photographer. 

Nicholas’s illegitimate son Theo – the father of Sarah – did not discover that he was a Fabergé until the 1970s, when he was in his fifties.  But his latent genius for design and craftsmanship then led to the establishment of a new business marketing his creations, including enamelled eggs, under brand name the St Petersburg Collection.  This continues after his death but is not linked to Pallinghurst in any way.

It was an encounter with the entrepreneur behind St Petersburg that alerted Professor Thompson to the research potential of the saga and he subsequently approached Sarah Fabergé.  It was then that it became clear that, linked to another business it owns, Gemfields, Pallinghurst has ambitions to create a ‘mine and market’ business model for precious gemstones (emeralds, rubies and sapphires) to rival that of De Beers with diamonds.

Professor Thompson explained that as business researchers, the principal focus for him and John Day has been the past 10 years and Pallinghurst’s relaunch of Fabergé.  “Our intention is to draw attention to the restoration of the brand.  The new products are absolutely fabulous, but naturally they are different; wrist watches are now a major feature.  But we couldn’t ignore the fascinating history,” he added.

The new material compiled by the University of Huddersfield researchers has been included in their detailed case studies.  But there is scope for additional articles and maybe a book.

“There are already histories of Fabergé that have a strong focus on the eggs, but really they are product history rather than business history, concentrating on the art.  But there is a business story in this that nobody else has yet told,” said Professor Thompson.  “And it is still emerging.”