Our commitments

What the maison takes upon itself, and how it verifies it.

Provenance

The maison deals directly with the producers, and chooses its pearls in the places where they are born, before they reach the major international centres: Akoya in Japan, Freshwater in China, white South Sea in Australia, Tahitian pearls in French Polynesia. The selection is carried out by MIMÍ itself, on site, gem by gem.

The names of the producers remain confidential. It is the condition that protects a relationship built over forty years of working together, and that gives the maison access to the finest harvests.

Nomenclature

The Broggian family contributed to the development of the CIBJO Blue Books, the international standards that establish how a pearl is to be named and described. What those standards require to be declared, the maison declares.

The integrity of the gem

Native colour, intact nacre, original bond with the nucleus, light of its own. These are four commitments, and each concerns one of the treatments known to the pearl market that the maison keeps out of its selection. The details can be read in The chemistry of a pearl.

The metals

For the gold and silver components the maison uses recycled metal exclusively. The Italian suppliers who work it are certified by the RJC, the Responsible Jewellery Council, the international standard that verifies ethical, social and environmental conduct along the jewellery supply chain.

The work

The jewels are made entirely by hand by Italian artisans. Computer-aided design and 3D printing are used solely at the prototyping stage, to turn an idea into a first model more quickly. From that point on, making and finishing are entrusted to artisanal mastery. The crafts are described in Our crafts.

The document

Every jewel is accompanied by its own certificate, specific to the type of pearl it carries: it states the pearl type, colour, dimensions and place of purchase, together with the item code and description. Alongside it comes the warranty certificate. Exceptional pearls also receive an individual gemmological certificate, issued by one of the most authoritative international laboratories.

Longevity

A pearl jewel lasts when it is cared for. The maison offers restringing, thread inspection, replacement of a single pearl and a periodic check of the jewel: an object that can be repaired accompanies its wearer for a lifetime. The rules for keeping pearls are set out in How to care for pearls.