Twenty-five years have passed since he quit his job as a banker and founded Tateossian. He now employs 70 people and has five stores in his hometown of London and one in his native Armenia. "I don't earn as much as my former banker colleagues, but I don't have to worry about hair loss (laughs), and I'm happy with my life."

Robert Tateossian

Born in Kuwait, she graduated from the Wharton School and worked in investment banking before becoming a jewelry designer in November 1990. She launched her own brand, "Tateossian," which initially specialized in cufflinks, but later expanded to include bracelets and rings.

Robert Tateossian graduated from the prestigious Wharton School, which has been ranked number one in MBA rankings for 10 consecutive years, and landed a job at an investment bank in London. Despite this seemingly smooth start that everyone would envy, at some point, a feeling akin to anxiety began to sprout within him. He wondered if he was truly content to remain in a position where he was being employed by others.
One day, when the usual restless thoughts began to surface in Robert's mind, his attention was drawn to the cufflinks on his sleeve, which he had been touching without really thinking about them.

"Cufflinks are the only playful thing a man working in the City of London is allowed to do. Yet, all the ones on display were so boring. I thought maybe even an amateur like me could do something interesting."

Robert already owned a house and a car, and had no family to protect. "Nothing could hold me back in my twenties," he laughs, and immediately began visiting trade shows. That's where he encountered a globe manufacturer.

"I wondered if we could make this globe smaller. I was really excited about my idea. The manufacturer's representative scoffed, but when I said I'd buy 500 of them, his eyes lit up (laughs)."

Thus, a globe that rotates inside a bearing and cufflinks with a clock motif were completed. They bore no resemblance whatsoever to conventional cufflinks.

Treasures from the toy box on the cuffs

Looking at Tateossian's collection reminds me of the toy box I cherished as a child.

"For our 25th anniversary, we created an iconic globe in gunmetal and a design inspired by a Japanese Taiko Bridge. Oh, and among the newer pieces, I'm really fond of the Swarovski crystal turtle with moving arms and legs, and the 30,000-year-old meteorite that fell in Sweden. Men, no matter how old they get, always love mechanical things and the unknown."

Beyond the original concept and perspective, what's truly astonishing is how they've transformed the treasures of a toy box into items worthy of a gentleman's attire. Of course, this is partly due to the lavish use of rare gemstones, but it's ultimately thanks to their uncompromising craftsmanship.


"Since we're trying to create something completely new, finding a company willing to take on the project is a real challenge. But we've taken it one step at a time, and now we have 10 factories cooperating with us. We've been working with each of them for well over 10 years. Even so, developing new products is not easy. It still often takes more than a year."

Even now, with seven in-house designers, he still comes up with the initial ideas himself and oversees the process until the very end.

"We have trained people who can be entrusted with each section, but it's my company after all. I'm also in charge of standing at the trunk shows. Traveling the world directly provides me with design inspiration."

Cufflinks are a finishing item that expresses individuality, instantly making you look like a gentleman even without a tie. My feeling that it's okay to be a little more free was not wrong—for just a moment, a blush appeared on Robert's cheeks, which had always been reserved.

Text: Takegawa Keiji
Photo: Hishinuma Isao

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