Press

Over the past two years, COVID-19 has put the brakes on modern society's rapid sprint and made us reconsider what truly matters in our lives. Health, family, consideration, coexistence, and love... Human history did not reach this point through money and material possessions alone.\n\nCartier, a jewelry and watch brand that started in Paris, France in 1847, has chosen 'women' as this year's key value. The brand even built a 'Women's Pavilion' at the Dubai Expo, which runs until next March, to raise awareness about the importance of gender equality. Why did the brand highlight women, who are everyone's mothers and half of our families, so familiar as our daily lives before COVID? We met with Serra Kim, who has been serving as the first female president of Cartier Korea since 2009, to hear her thoughts. Kim said that 'Serra' is a Korean name given by her grandfather, encouraging her to become a confident woman active on the world stage.\n\nServa Kim, President of Cartier Korea, began her career as a designer in New York and went through major fashion brands including DKNY, Lanvin, and Fendi before leading Cartier Korea since 2009. She is the first female president of Cartier Korea.\n\n**Is gender discrimination still severe?**\n\n"If we broaden our perspective globally, it's clear that there are still many women who do not receive good education and are not treated properly. Specifically, 132 million girls cannot go to school, and 65% of human trafficking victims are women and girls. As a global company, we cannot help but care about these worldwide issues."\n\n**Is women important because you have many female customers?**\n\n"From a business perspective, half of Cartier employees worldwide are women, and half of our leaders are women. As early as the 1930s, our creative director, a key leader, was a woman. It's no exaggeration to say that Cartier has developed through the inspiration of women for over 170 years, whether as customers or employees."\n\nJeanne Toussaint and a wristwatch shaped after the spots of a panther. Created in 1914, this watch was made after the third-generation Cartier manager Louis Cartier was inspired by Toussaint, a woman with a rough demeanor but strong convictions. Subsequently, Toussaint developed the panther collection into a more concrete form, which has since become the symbol of Cartier.\n\nJeanne Toussaint overcame her unfortunate childhood and served as the top design officer overseeing Cartier's designs from 1933 to 1970. A friend of Coco Chanel, she earned the nickname 'Panther,' meaning leopard, because of her sharp, refined, and strong image, which became the representative design motif of Cartier.\n\nCartier's Panther Bracelet was made with a total of 744 diamonds, platinum, emerald, and onyx.\n\nWorks born from Toussaint's hands include the Flamingo Brooch created in 1940 for the Duchess of Windsor, known for a love story of the century, and unique pieces inspired by Indian jewelry.\n\nIn the movie 'Ocean's 8,' there's a scene where top star Daphne (played by Anne Hathaway) wears the Toussaint necklace for the first time. It's a diamond necklace weighing 6 pounds (approximately 2.7 kg).\n\nThe glamorous diamond necklace worth 150 billion won that appears in the movie 'Ocean's 8' is the 'Toussaint,' created by Cartier to honor Jeanne Toussaint.\n\n**How do you evaluate South Korea's level of gender equality?**\n\n"The overall social awareness has evolved tremendously. I have a middle school daughter, and the gender equality awareness of the 10s and 20s generation far surpasses that of older generations. However, for individuals to demonstrate their capabilities and contribute to society, more large and small startups need to be activated. With this in mind, Cartier has partnered with Underdogs, an entrepreneurship education company, to launch the 'UnderWomen Impact Community,' which provides free information, education, and networking opportunities for Korean women in their 20s and 40s to start businesses."\n\nAlthough not widely known in Korea, Cartier has been supporting female entrepreneurship at the headquarters level since 2006. The company runs the 'Cartier Women's Initiative' program every year, and 24 selected recipients receive various tangible and intangible support, including approximately 30 million to 100 million won. Among Koreans, Jo Yeon-jung, CEO, won the Far East Asia regional finals in 2019 with the 'SAY Global' platform, where retirees teach Korean online. President Kim highly praised the competence, noting that "While the number of Korean women's applications is not large compared to numbers, there are many Koreans among the final contestants."\n\n**Some people resent the emphasis on women's rights.**\n\n"That's the core issue. To achieve gender equality, ultimately men and women must speak with one voice. It's really important not just for women to insist, but to create topics and issues that everyone can empathize with as colleagues living together in the world."\n\nThe inscription on the Dubai exhibition hall reads, 'When women thrive, humanity thrives.' The exhibition introduces the achievements of women who have contributed to all of humanity in various fields such as politics, economy, science, culture, and sports, drawing empathy from everyone. A 9-year-old boy named Leonardo who visited the exhibition said, "Equality means that if some people receive many benefits and others don't, people won't be happy," which made adults nod in agreement.\n\nPresident Kim said, "The real purpose is to make visitors think about what they can do to create a better world after touring the exhibition." "What is a better world? It's a society that respects and embraces different opinions from mine, a world where any voice can be shared without hesitation."\n\nCartier Korea became the first luxury jewelry and watch brand to launch an official online mall in Korea in May last year. Previously, in 2008, it became the first in Asia to establish a flagship store, 'Cartier Maison Cheongdam,' responding quickly to the Korean market and consumers.\n\n**It's surprising that you only opened Asia's first flagship store in 2008.**\n\n"...