François Graff talks diamonds, legacy and the jeweller's much-awaited arrival in Auckland
Some openings feel inevitable in hindsight. You don’t realise the city was missing something until it arrives, gleaming under the lights, and suddenly you wonder how it wasn’t always here. The new Graff boutique in Auckland is one of those moments. The London-born jeweller—known for handling some of the most storied diamonds on Earth—has finally made its way to New Zealand.
If you know anything about high jewellery, you know the name. Because Graff is the brand that doesn’t just make jewellery, it deals in myth. The kind of diamonds that have histories as intricate as their settings, stones so rare they’re only whispered about at auctions and still spark bidding wars among collectors who already own more than most museums. But what’s striking about Graff is not just its scale—it’s the way that same meticulous, obsessive craftsmanship runs through everything, from a high jewellery necklace destined for a vault to a fine jewellery bracelet someone might wear every day.
‘Graff is known for bold creativity, dynamic design and the rarest diamonds and gemstones—we create the most fabulous jewels in the world,’ François Graff, the brand’s Chief Executive Officer, tells me. ‘Everything we do is defined by excellence, and it’s this passion for perfection that can be found across every facet of our business.’
This month, Graff unveiled its first-ever boutique in New Zealand—found at 45 Queen Street. Set in partnership with sixth-generation jeweller Partridge, the opening feels almost inevitable when you trace the brand’s expansion over the past decade and a half. More than 70 Graff boutiques now exist across the globe, each one placed with precision in a market the family believes is ready to embrace its vision. ‘This new opening is absolutely a case of the right partners, in the right location, at the right time,’ François explains. Auckland, he notes, is both a luxury and cultural hub, and a gateway to the South Pacific.
That ‘right partner’ is part of the story here. Partridge, with its 160-year history and deep understanding of the local luxury landscape, mirrors Graff’s own legacy in more ways than one. Both are family-owned, generational businesses with reputations built not only on the pieces they create but on the trust they inspire. ‘Collaborating with partners who have an established presence and expertise in the region is essential to the success of entering an important and discerning new market,’ the CEO reflects.
Graff’s position as the leader in diamonds and gemstones of rarity, magnitude and distinction is an enduring family legacy which began when Laurence Graff founded the business in 1960. The company remains a true family business, with generations of the Graff family employing their expertise and experience, reinforcing the House’s standing as the global hallmark of innovation, creativity and craftsmanship that it is today—with a growing global footprint. ‘This is a significant milestone for Graff as we continue our global expansion into new territories,’ François says. ‘Our very first boutique in the region, it will provide an exciting opportunity for our clients, residents of the city and international visitors to experience our jewellery creations first-hand while immersing themselves fully in the exceptional world of Graff.’
Inside the boutique, the concept embraces a fresh aesthetic, exemplifying Graff’s values and ethos through captivating design, flawless luxury and unparalleled artisanship—evident across every facet of the experience. The space is all light, luminosity, and accents of a distinctly Graff green, with creations displayed around a serpentine counter in showcases whose angular outlines evoke the intricate facets of a diamond. A chandelier from lighting design studio Giopato & Coombes casts a soft glow from a shimmering celadon patina ceiling, while an exclusive VIP room—concealed behind sliding doors and dressed in dark green and golden tones—offers absolute privacy for viewing Graff’s most exquisite high jewellery creations.
The selection on offer has been tailored for its New Zealand debut: a 6.35-carat Colombian emerald solitaire ring, a rare 10.28-carat Fancy Intense Yellow radiant-cut diamond, and a 10.13-carat D Flawless emerald-cut diamond headline the high-jewellery offering. Alongside them, pieces from collections like Butterfly, Wild Flower, Tilda’s Bow, Laurence Graff Signature, Spiral, and Classic Graff bring the brand’s design language into the realm of the everyday—if everyday can be defined by diamonds of exceptional clarity and colour. To celebrate the unveiling, several unique pieces recently completed at Graff’s London atelier will also be on display — an unmissable opportunity to view a collection of the most remarkable jewels in the world, curated specially for the launch by the Graff family.
And so this is where Graff’s brilliance lies: in the deceptive simplicity of a solitaire, the kind that looks almost effortless until you realise it has been engineered to within a fraction of a millimetre for the way it catches the light. ‘Our extraordinarily talented design team and master artisans dedicate hundreds of hours to carefully considering how each piece is designed and crafted,’ François explains to me, because of course, I’m curious. The stones remain the stars—never overshadowed by their settings, yet amplified by them in ways that feel both inevitable and surprising.
Graff’s aesthetic is anchored in a paradox: a modernity that pushes technical and creative limits, paired with a deep respect for the traditions of the craft. In a market like New Zealand, where style leans toward the quietly confident, that duality may be the key to its fit. ‘New Zealanders have impeccable taste, and Graff creates the most fabulous jewellery in the world; so, for me, that’s a match made in heaven,’ he says.
There’s something almost disarming about the way François Graff talks about his family’s work. Yes, it’s luxury at its most rarefied, but it’s also a family business making decisions in-house, guided by generations of knowledge. In an industry where heritage often means playing it safe, Graff’s independence allows it to move quickly—to open in new markets, take creative risks, and continually redefine its own standards.
The real question, then, is not whether Auckland is ready for Graff, but how Auckland will wear it. Because that’s the thing about diamonds: they’re not passive. They become part of you, a conversation you have with the world every time you step outside. And if you happen to be standing under the boutique’s lights, staring at a 10-carat stone that seems to hold its own weather system, you might feel what Graff hopes every client feels: not just the weight of rarity, but the thrill of it.
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