how a family-owned manhattan Jeweler has provided high-end designs and luxury timepieces for nearly four decades

By Jessica Jones-Gorman • Photos BY Amessé Photography

Leon Adams’ family ran a thriving New York City antique business for years when a coveted space became available in the historic Waldorf Astoria Hotel. The entrepreneurs then decided to launch a high-end jewelry boutique.

“It was 1977, I had just graduated from college, and there was this location that my father believed would be a wonderful spot for a jewelry store,” noted Adams. “I basically went in cold, went to the Gemological Institute of America, had some very good teachers and learned the diamond business inside and out.”

The store was named Cellini, an homage to Benvenuto Cellini, an Italian Renaissance goldsmith, and the owners elected to focus on luxury.

“At the time, 14-karat jewelry was prominent in the city and the nation, so we decided to go one level above,” Adams said. “We sold only 18-karat and platinum, and used only the best stones from fine manufacturers in Italy and France.”

The shop’s prime location allowed Adams to cater to an international clientele— wealthy business travelers and tourists staying at the high-end hotel were tempted by showcases filled with timepieces from haute horlogerie brands like Audemars Piguet and jewelry designs with one-of-a-kind gemstones
and design.

“Our clients only wanted the best, so that is exactly what we stocked,” Adams said. “I learned about colored diamonds from some of the best dealers in the industry and introduced the beautiful stones to our store. In the early 1980s we were selling things people had never even heard of, including blue, pink, and yellow diamonds. We featured stones exported from different parts of the world—emeralds from Colombia and sapphires from Sri Lanka and Burma—and that made our store attractive to these international customers.”

There were fine watches too. Cellini distinguished itself as one of the few places in the country where enthusiasts could experience, in person, an impressive array of Swiss watches from renowned manufacturers like Vacheron Constantin and Jaeger-LeCoultre. The business came of age in the early ’80s as a modern watchmaking renaissance began to unfold. As the popularity of fine design took off, the company kept pace by opening a second boutique in 1987, taking its place among the legendary luxury brands lining Madison Avenue.

“We wanted to carry a range of fine watches in close proximity to the city’s other timepiece retailers,” Adams said. “The Madison Avenue store has been a perfect fit.”

Adams’ collection of hard-to-find pieces struck a chord with a growing group of American collectors who were rediscovering the art of mechanical watchmaking. And as Cellini’s reputation grew through the years, so did its collection, which was the first in America to include brands like A. Lange & Söhne, Audemars Piguet, Ludovic Ballouard, Maîtres du Temps, and Roger Dubuis. As proof of the company’s influential standing in the watchmaking world, Cartier recently selected it to be one of only two U.S. dealers authorized to carry Cartier’s Fine Watchmaking Collection.

A veteran of countless watch fairs in Basel and Geneva, Adams has seen trends come and go, deepening his perspective and sharpening his ability to quickly separate the timely from the timeless. That keen eye, fueled by a genuine excitement for the art of horology, is why watch collectors trust Cellini.

“We’re constantly looking for new and innovative makers, but we’re extremely selective about who we represent,” he explained. “Finding a brand that produces unique watches isn’t enough; the watches and the watch company must be built to last. Quality is foremost in everything we do.”

The business’s boutiques are also home to an eclectic collection of jewelry. The store’s selection ranges from Carrera y Carrera’s timeless expressions of Old World artisanship to Sutra’s exotic and colorful designs, along with imaginative artists like Wendy Yue. At the heart of the collection is Cellini’s signature jewelry. These handmade pieces provide a fitting showcase for the highest-quality gemstones, everything from diamonds in all shapes, sizes, and colors to exotic jewels like the extremely rare black opal.

And of course the boutique stays abreast of all of the industry’s constantly evolving trends.

Women are buying items that they can easily accessorize, Adams explained, and due to the economic climate, it’s become less fashionable to show off big, flashy pieces. That’s why the focus of the business
has shifted to smaller, quality pieces that have staying power.

“For men, the focus is on wrist watches because men no longer buy jewelry and they haven’t for quite a number of years,” he said. “Most men own a number of timepieces and cufflinks but they’re not wearing chains, medallions, and rings like they used to. Here, we carry in excess of 20 high-end luxury timepiece brands ranging in price from $800,000 on down.”

The jeweler still carries an extensive collection of fine stones and specializes in fancy colored diamonds, too. Its glass cabinets gleam with imaginatively designed and crafted creations organized by gemstone.
Diamonds of all colors populate one island, while nearby, a rich assortment of gems and pearls assembled through the years from sources around the world—are used to create showpieces that feature everything from Burmese rubies and Kashmir sapphires to South Sea pearls and alexandrite, the exceedingly rare Russian gem the color of which changes in natural light. Among the store’s latest additions is a one-of-a-kind bracelet made with oval-shaped abalone shells. The natural contours of the shell’s colorful iridescent nacre are accentuated by flowing lines of blackened 18-karat gold set with a combination of diamonds, multi-color sapphires, pink tourmalines, and tsavorites.

“Jewelry trends are different than those of 20 years ago,” Adams said. “Today, people are more conservative in their purchasing; there is less disposable income, so most people buy jewelry they can wear as opposed to something to take out of a safe three times a year. We want people to know that if they are in the market for something beautiful and unique, they’ll will find it here.”

Cellini Jewelers
Hotel Waldorf-Astoria
301 Park Avenue at 50th Street / 212.751.9824
509 Madison Avenue / 212.888.0505 / cellinijewelers.com