With the most recent opening of Kuwait’s first flagship Charriol boutique in partnering up with Trafalgar, the Charrol family is taking the brand’s luxurious ethos to new heights. Daugher of the renowned Philippe Charriol, Coralie is currently Vice President and Creative Director for jewelry and leather goods at the Swiss luxury house created by her father in 1983. Long-loved by fans across the region, the new Charriol boutique promises more luxury and iconic designs for customers in Kuwait.

We sit down with the father and daughter duo at the stunning Charriol boutique at The Avenues to learn more about the brand’s evolution, its timeless legacy, and how a family business can be both challenging and fun!

Coralie, working for the family business is sometimes tricky. How do you creatively work with your father?

Philippe: She’s been working with me for many years and her experience is fantastic, and I taught her everything that I could. I simply let Coralie create. The same applies to my son, who manages the visual aspect of our brand.

Coralie: [laughs] After 16 years, I can say that I am the most experienced person there aside from my dad and one other person! On a more serious note, however, we are one of the last remaining family businesses in the luxury watch and jewelry industry, and there is a standard that people hold us to. Come Baselworld time, everyone is expecting something new, yet truly Charriol.

We could disagree, but we share information much more generously as a family that works together. Our meals always revolve around our personal lives and the business. Through technology, we are also constantly connected, with my brother based in Los Angeles, me in New York, and my father in Monaco.

Can you recount your earliest memory of working with your father?

Coralie: I was fifteen-years-old, and I modelled the handbags at a show in St. Tropez. I also remember my father’s fax machine as a child, and I always avoided his office because he would make me send out his faxes to help him with his correspondence.

Coralie, you take on various roles at Charriol, from Vice President, Creative Director to Brand Ambassador—which of these do you consider is your favorite role?

Coralie: I started with PR in 2000, and I also traveled to Asia, living in the region to learn more about the market. From there, I worked with our in house designers to deliver on all of the consumer trends and tastes that I picked up on,  and then I became involved with the range of handbags. My responsibilities grew with my experience, and I definitely love where I am now!

Philippe: Coralie was also born in Hawaii, and we spent many years living between Hong Kong, Paris, London and New York, she is truly an international citizen who is suited for all of these different roles at Charriol.

What makes this new Kuwait boutique a destination for all Charriol lovers?

Coralie: The arrival of our iconic bags range that is inspired by our classic Charriol, timeless look. The range is current from colors, charms to the placement of our logo. The collection is on trend, with the distinct design of the Charriol hardware handle. All bags are made in Italy, to ensure the use of the best quality of leather and the highest standard of manufacturing.

Philippe:  The boutique arrives as a one-stop destination for the latest and greatest Charriol creations, from bags, watches to perfumes. However, you can still find select ranges of jewelry and watches across different Trafalgar stores.

Coralie, what inspires your creative direction for any given collection?

I always keep Charriol’s DNA in mind—our strong corporate color, the iconic Celtic Cable design and our French heritage. That’s always a part of every collection as that is what people expect. Reinventing it every season is a fun challenge, and I am inspired by my travels, movies, TV, magazines and so much more. Perhaps two brilliant examples include our Celtic bracelets that were launched in 1986. These were reimagined using different stones and colors to give them a modern and updated look with the use of technology. The Forever collection is also truly special to me, as that is the first time that a bangle inspired the design of a time piece for Charriol.

What are some of your personal and professional goals?

Coralie: As a mother of three, handling my three children at home and making sure everyone’s happy is on the personal front. Work wise, we are growing our online business for worldwide development, and an all-new gold line that is exclusive to our website.

Philippe: We are also working on different liscensees, from perfume to eyewear, and I consider this as a natural progression for the brand to diversify its offerings. We are also looking to enter new markets such as Iran, India and Nigeria. On the personal front, I’d like to keep my passion for race driving alive despite my recent accident, and I am planning on doing so by racing in Portugal this November!

The Charriol boutique is located at 2nd Avenue, The Avenues. and is open from 10 a.m to 10 p.m. For more information, visit www.charriol.com, call 2259 7477 and follow @Trafalgar and @CharriolME on Instagram.