Preeshini Naidoo Anirudh and Thiviam Naidoo are a formidable team. This mom and daughter jewellery designers agree that diamonds are a girl’s and will stay a girl’s best friend.
Thiviam opened their jewellery store 35 years ago, so Preeshini literally grew up amongst all the precious stones, silver and gold. Preeshini opened her jewellery shop eight years ago. Taking mom’s experience and her daughter’s modern day feel this duo is designing beautiful ageless jewellery. Being a mom and businesswoman is not easy.
“When you have a jewellery store one has to be hands on, any business requires numerous hours of dedication to see it flourish. The hours you work are unlimited, which makes life a juggling act. Being a mom is not easy; I needed proper care for my children when I was at the shop. My mom took care of them during the day and this contributed greatly towards my children. I also took them to the shop after school. This is how they learnt about the business as they grew up in the store,” Thiviam said.
Preesh agrees,”It’s not always easy balancing being a mom, wife, daughter and businesswoman. You do feel like you are not giving your best at times. I do evaluate my goals and plans as I go so I do not lose focus on what’s important to me. My mom and I have always been close, she was always there to lend a hand and give solid advice. She is a calm and collected person.”
The strides Preeshini made in the last five years even though they have been open for eight years are very important strides.
“I was the new kid on the block even with a family backing of 30 years at the time. I had to face many challenges but I was not going to give up. It’s a very tight business market in eMalahleni, it makes me happy to know that every day I manage to win over a client with our services and our personality to put the client first. My greatest joy is making new long term clients that are more then just clients.”
For this mom and daughter inspiration comes from everything.
“We forget how much is around us. We have manufactured items that have been inspired by our clients’ travels, memories and international trends.”
We asked them about some trends for 2019.
Silver or gold?
Silver and white gold have always been very popular but in the last year or so rose gold has been very trendy.
Thiviam’s clients still lean towards yellow gold and white gold whereas Preeshini’s clients lean more towards white gold and rose gold
Diamonds or other precious stones?
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend but it’s not in everyone’s budget, we do our best to source the best price & quality in diamonds. We do work on the exchange rate so it does have an impact on the price. Morganite has become increasing popular as it has a slight peach or pink tint in colour. Morganite is a semi precious stone and does need to be cared for carefully. New but not so new is Moissanite we have been suppliers for the last 15 year. Clients do need all the information to make an informed decision. A man made diamond has its own qualities to give the client a diamond look but at a fraction of the price.
Their personal favourites:
Thiviam: The solitaire is back. I always said that yellow gold is still a better metal to white gold, less maintenance. White gold needs to be rhodium plated every six months. Silver is very soft metal, so one tends to damage the claws more and cubic zirconia falls out easily.
Preeshini: My choice is definitely yellow gold. Diamonds are a must for engagement ring, but it also depends on your budget and preference.
