Savoir-faire

A story of passion and creation

It was in 1950 that Robert Goossens, son of the owner of a foundry located in the Marais, began a small goldsmiths workshop. This brilliant craftsman, animated by an incredible curiosity and ever ready to push the limits of technique, made a lasting impression on his era and the world of couture jewellery. When he met Gabrielle Chanel in 1953, she instantly detected the creative spark in him. Together they invented antique and byzantine jewels, she had great fun confusing matters, upsetting the codes of real and faux: metal work is similar that of precious jewellery making, glass paste and rock crystal imitate real stones. With the man she liked to call her “barbaric Byzantine”, she recreated her fetish symbols: the cross, the lion, the sun, the star and the feather.

In 2005, the Goossens ateliers joined Paraffection, a structure created by CHANEL to preserve the savoir-faire of the Métiers d’Art. As well as collaborating with CHANEL, the brand also made jewellery for many other designers including Cristóbal Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent, Madame Grès, Christian Dior, Hubert de Givenchy, Christian Lacroix.Today it continues to work for numerous fashion houses. The precision of a gesture, the minutia of the workmanship, the accuracy of proportions, the perfection of the object: an appreciation, quite simply, for work done well.