Thought you folks might like to read this. It's an obit from the NY Times for Salvador Assael, a pearl trader and investor, who took what were long considered "junk black pearls" and brought them to the attention of the fashion world.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/13/business/13assael.html?ref=obituaries
An excerpt:
[White pearls'] dominance remained unchallenged until the 1970s, when Mr. Assael almost single-handedly popularized cultured Tahitian black pearls through a combination of business savvy, sheer force of personality and, according to Mr. Blooms book, an almost preternatural knack for being in the right place at the right time.
What Assael did thats so interesting is to turn what had been considered junk pearls into designer pearls that for a moment in history, women who were wealthy had to have, Mr. Bloom said in a telephone interview. A strand could easily sell for over a hundred thousand dollars. Individual pearls could sell for ten thousand dollars apiece.
Take a look at the photo of Mr. Assael selecting pearls.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/13/business/13assael.html?ref=obituaries
An excerpt:
[White pearls'] dominance remained unchallenged until the 1970s, when Mr. Assael almost single-handedly popularized cultured Tahitian black pearls through a combination of business savvy, sheer force of personality and, according to Mr. Blooms book, an almost preternatural knack for being in the right place at the right time.
What Assael did thats so interesting is to turn what had been considered junk pearls into designer pearls that for a moment in history, women who were wealthy had to have, Mr. Bloom said in a telephone interview. A strand could easily sell for over a hundred thousand dollars. Individual pearls could sell for ten thousand dollars apiece.
Take a look at the photo of Mr. Assael selecting pearls.
