Established in 1837, Tiffany & Co is renowned for fine jewelry, particularly engagement rings and the iconic Tiffany blue box. Founded by Charles Tiffany in New York City, the company gained fame in 1878 when Tiffany purchased a large yellow diamond, cutting it and naming it the Tiffany Diamond. Tiffany helped establish the luxury brand by marketing to wealthy clients and royalty. The company has expanded internationally with over 100 stores worldwide while maintaining a commitment to responsible and sustainable business practices in mining diamonds and protecting coral reefs.

1. Est. 1837Tiffany & Co

2. How did it start? Founded in New York City in 1837 by Charles Lewis Tiffany.1878 Charles Lewis Tiffany purchased a 287 carat fancy yellow diamond, It was cut to 128.54 carats and named the Tiffany diamond. When purchasing this large diamond he helped to put Tiffany’s on the map as the jewelry store of the elite. He then went on to introduce the Tiffany setting diamond engagement ring that nearly every woman drools over and many The New York Press went on to call Mr. Tiffany the king of diamonds

3. Location, Location, Location First store front was at 259 Broadway in NYCIt moved to its well known location on the corner of 57th and fifth Avenue in 1940. They purchased this location for ten million dollars. It was the largest and most significant such transaction in New York at the time. It was designed by Cross and Cross, who also designed the Church of Notre Dame of Columbia University and the General Electric building of NY.

4. The Notorious Little Blue BoxHe marketed his products to wealth and royalty and when given as gifts were recognized as the best diamond available by the classic blue box. As reported by the NY Sun in 1906 “Tiffany has one thing in stock that you cannot buy of him for as much money as your may offer, he will only give it to you, And that is one of his little blue boxes.”

5. Who’s Wearing It? Elizabeth Taylor – Received a Jean Schlumberger dolphin clip from her husband Richard BurtonJacqueline Kennedy made Schlumberger’s designs her signature Audrey Hepburn – star of “Breakfast at Tiffanys” wore Tiffany Jewels

6. Responsibility to the future Tiffany & Company are the only jewelry store in the U.S. that 100% of their diamonds are 100% traceable back to their original source. Tiffany is committed to doing its part to address the crises of global warming by focusing on energy conservation, they have pledged to reduce U.S. GHG emissions by 10 percent per square foot by 2011.Started a campaign to help protect Coral called “Too precious to wear”. They do not sell Coral because it is considered an animal and unsustainable coral harvesting can damage critically important marine ecosystems.

7. Stocks Their stock went public on the NYSE in 1987TIF on the New York Stock Exchange closed at $65.00 on April 15 and is continuing to riseThey were up by 1.84 %. Net Profit margin 11.94%

8. International?They have 114 stores internationally and 70 stores domestically. International sales accounted to 41% of total sales in the fiscal year of 2008. They account their lost profits to the lost sales in Japan due to the earthquake and tsunami.

9. Timing is everythingTiffany & Company have also decided to enter a joint venture with a watch company and in the next 10 years they hope to have a corner on the watch market also.