My Venice Diary with Pandora
To be very honest with you, the only thing I really knew about Pandora is the fact that they have lots of great charms and they make the perfect gifts. Over the past few weeks, I have definitely learnt a lot about the brand as well as grown some love. Over a month ago, I was asked to join the brand on a special trip to Venice for their Fall 2015 launch. Even though this press trip was only 2 days, the journey Pandora took us on made me fall in love with their work. Originally a Danish company, Pandora produces their jewellery in Thailand and is available in more than 90 countries and 9,900 retail stores (US is their largest market, naturally.) The brand’s mission is simple – high quality jewellery in affordable prices.
During my trip, I got to do the typical Venice ‘To do’s’ including the Gondola ride, Bellini’s at Harry’s Bar and have good Italian food. As part of the schedule, we started our 2nd day in the city over traditional Italian food at Hotel Cipriani before a full day of presentations. Seniors at the brand including Global PR Director, Vita Cluasen, Vice president of Global Marketing, Helene Abel, and CCO of Group Design, Stephen Fairchild spoke more in depth about the brand and it’s vision before Stephen took us through the brand new Fall collection. Inspirations for the season included Majestic feathers and Magnificent kingdom – the feathers, snowflakes and bows for next season were just beautiful – the perfect christmas gifts. We were then able to see the pieces up close (sadly, I wasn’t allowed to take any shots!) before getting a Craftmanship & CSR session by the Group CSR Vice President, Claus Teilmann Peterson. This was incredibly interesting because Pandora really focus on getting the best work ethics and atmosphere for the thousands of workers that produce Pandora. The night ended with a lovely dinner at the JW Marriott, which is based on a private island.
The next morning, we were taken to Murano Island (a must see for anyone visiting Venice) to get introduced to the Essence collection, as well as see the way they make the glass (Murano is famous for that). The Essence collection is one of my favourites by Pandora – you can create a charm bracelet using beads that mean things to you – whether they are qualities in you, or qualities you want to have. Example: patience, passion, optimism
Thank you Pandora for such an incredible trip, enjoy my photo diary….
PS We stayed at the Hotel Danieli during my stay, where they shot the Tourist with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp.