Internationally renowned as the world’s leading producer and retailer of the rarest and most beautiful pearls in the world, Paspaley, a family-owned and managed business spanning three generations, celebrates 90 years of pearling this year.
The brand is the most distinguished vertically integrated pearling operation, encompassing pearl production, wholesale, jewellery design, manufacturing and luxury retail. Paspaley’s success is a result of decades of dedication, invest paley in every area of the business. Every great company can pinpoint a source of inspiration that set it on its course for success. For Paspaley, that inspiration was the late Nicholas Paspaley, MBE.
As a refugee, Nicholas Paspaley, MBE crossed the world’s oceans from a tiny island in arriving on the remote northern coast of Australia where rich pearl beds teemed with life and hidden treasures. The unspoiled oceans of this coast were, and still are, home to the world’s most prized pearl oysters, the giant Pinctada maxima.
It was in 1935 with Nicholas at the helm of his own pearling lugger that a unique pearling heritage was born. Impassioned by the occasional gem-quality natural pearl he unearthed, Nicholas ignited a dream that to this day has been relentlessly pursued by future generations of his family.
In Through the 1950s, demand for mother-of-pearl shell dropped dramatically leaving the pearling industry all but decimated. Faced with adversity, Paspaley embarked on a journey that would revolutionise the world’s pearls. Nick Paspaley pursued his father’s legacy and pioneered pearl cultivating techniques that have shaped the world’s pearling practices into what they are today. Adopting an approach that understands and works in harmony with nature, Paspaley’s groundbreaking techniques and insights have resulted in extraordinary advances in pearl cultivation, affirming its place as the leading source of the finest quality pearls in the world.
Paspaley remains committed to sustaining the pristine and natural waters of Northern Australia. With a ‘leave no footprint’ philosophy, Paspaley has long understood the knowledge that a pearl’s quality and beauty is intrinsically influenced by the waters in which it grows. Leading the world in research and development into the fragile Pinctada Maxima oyster, the Paspaley pioneering tradition is one that will continue for generations to come. For Paspaley, it is the pearl that serves as the inspiration for unique and innovative designs. No two pearls are the same, and it is the abundance of pearl shapes, sizes and colours that serve as constant inspiration to Paspaley’s designers, who are specially selected from around the world for their consummate skill in creating superbly realised jewellery of the highest quality.
