"From heaven to hell and back again, life is a funny thing. beauty can come from the most strangest of places even the most disgusting places." RIP Lee Alexander McQueen. This blog is dedicated to you, your art, your beauty, and your influence. Long live McQueen!

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Giles & Brother

By: Sophia Varga

Last week I was fortunate enough to interview Anya Deweerdt, the sales director for Giles & Brother jewelry, based in Manhattan. Started in 2001 by brother and sister business partners Philip and Courtney Crangi, the line has amassed quite a following. There are two different lines, one being Giles & Brother, their costume jewelry line, and Philip Crangi jewelry, their steel and gold collection.

Giles & Brother operates as a small family run entity and Miss Deweerdt is a long time employee, making her familiar with the inner workings of the company. While sales director is her official title, she wears many hats and is a key component in keeping the wheels spinning. During our sit down, she was incredibly informative about the background of the owners and gave me an in depth look at the brand.

This is the Crangis’ first foray into the business of accessories. They launched a joint furniture restoration venture before moving into jewelry. Over the years, Philip has collaborated with different designers such as Vera Wang and Philip Lim on special projects and runway shows.

There is no overwhelming aesthetic and the brand’s pieces can easily compliment any style from bohemian to preppy modern. The customers they market to run the spectrum and don’t seem to fit any one demographic, making marketing more generic in that they don’t have to appeal to a small and distinct audience. The press seems to love the brand and magazine credits are a key tool in terms of driving traffic to their website. While they have many celebrity fans, the brand treasures those relationships and won’t name names. Rihanna has been photographed in their pieces and the line is featured in the current issue of Harper’s Bazaar.

Slowly they are branching out into more social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter and each has a Giles & Brother address. Besides their own New York City address, the lines are sold in specialty stores in the US, Japan and Europe including Bergdorf Goodman, Opening Ceremony, Neiman Marcus and Net-A-Porter.com.

Anya’s favorite piece in the Spring collection, though she loves them all, is the Cortina cuff and new hook wrap bracelet, pictures of which are below. Both are gorgeous and feminine pieces for one’s Spring wardrobe.
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Judging from the strong pieces that are featured in their collections and the people behind it, Giles & Brother jewelry will most definitely reign supreme in their industry for years to come.