History of Boucheron

Frederic Boucheron opened his first store in 1858 in the Galerie de Valois at Palais Royal. In 1893, Frederic Boucheron moved to 26 Place Verdome where the store still stands today. Legend has it that he selected this location, the first on the block, because it was the sunniest corner and he believed diamonds would sparkle more brilliantly. He later opened a store in Moscow which later moved to St. Petersburg in 1911. Louis Boucheron took over the firm at the death of his father in 1902. He was asked to make a tiara for Lady Greville and is known to have set treasured stones for the Maharajah of Patiala. In 1930, Louis Boucheron wass named the Official Curator and Guardian of the Treasure to the Shah of Iran. At his death in 1959, his sons, Fred and Gerard took over the business. In 1962, Fred Boucheron retired and Alain Boucheron became the President and General Manager. In 1988, their first woman’s fragrance was introduced to the world. In 2000, Boucheron was acquired by Gucci and in 2004, Gucci Group was acquired by PPR Company, a multi-national holding company. In 2005, four more lines of jewelry were launched and their first stores in Shanghai and Dubai were opened. Staying up with the times, they started an on-line site in 2007. In 2008, Boucheron celebrated its 150th year anniversary with a year-long celebration. Boucheron is known to have made jewelry for Queen Elizabeth, the Astors, the Vanderbilts, the Rockefellers and more recently for celebrities such as Sarah Berhardt, Eva Longoria, Nicole Kidman and Rachel Weisz. Currently, Boucheron owns thirty-four boutiques world-wide as well as their e-commerce website.