Establishment ,
Manhattan, storage area with
porcelain, Tiffany & Co. was founded in 1837 by
Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B. Young, in New York City, as a "stationery and
fancy goods emporium", with the help of Charles Tiffany's father, who financed the store for only $1,000 with profits from a cotton mill. The store initially sold a wide variety of stationery items and, as of 1837, operated as "Tiffany, Young and Ellis" at 259
Broadway in
Lower Manhattan. The name was shortened to Tiffany & Company in 1853, when Charles Tiffany took control and established the firm's emphasis on jewelry. The company has since opened stores in major cities worldwide. Unlike other stores at the time in the 1830s, Tiffany marked the prices on its goods to prevent any haggling over prices. In addition, though atypical for the time, Tiffany only accepted cash payments and did not allow purchases on credit. Such practices (fixed prices for ready money) had first been introduced in 1750 by Palmer's of London Bridge.
"Blue Book" and the Civil War The first Tiffany
mail order catalog, known as the "Blue Book", was published in 1845 in the United States (U.S.), and publishing of the catalog continues in the 21st century. In 1862, Tiffany supplied the
Union Army with swords (
Model 1840 Cavalry Saber), flags and surgical implements. In 1867, Tiffany was the first U.S. firm to win an award for excellence in silverware at the
Exposition Universelle in Paris. In 1868, Tiffany was incorporated. Tiffany stayed at this site until 1906. In 1887, Tiffany bought a number of pieces at the auction of part of the
French Crown Jewels, which attracted publicity and further solidified the Tiffany brand's association with high-quality diamonds. In 1885 the company revised the
Great Seal of the United States.
20th century " version of the
Medal of Honor In 1902, after the death of
Charles Lewis Tiffany, his son,
Louis Comfort Tiffany, became the company's first official design director. Tiffany’s use of glass, enamel, and opals became a hallmark of his style, and are credited with growing the company's reputation during this period. In 1905, the Manhattan flagship store was relocated to the corner of 37th Street and Fifth Avenue, where it would remain for 35 years. In 1919, the company made a revision to the
Medal of Honor on behalf of the
United States Department of the Navy. This "
Tiffany Cross" version was rare because it was awarded only for combat, using the previous design for non-combat awards. In 1942, the Navy established the Tiffany version for
non-combat heroism as well but, in August 1942, the Navy subsequently eliminated the Tiffany Cross and the two-medal system. The company moved its flagship store to its present-day
727 Fifth Avenue building in 1940; the building was designed by
Cross & Cross. In 1956, legendary designer
Jean Schlumberger joined Tiffany, and
Andy Warhol collaborated with the company to create Tiffany holiday cards (circa 1956–1962). Schlumberger's designs, such as the Bird on a Rock brooch, became synonymous with the company's post-war jewelry innovations. In 1968,
Lady Bird Johnson, First Lady of the U.S. at the time, commissioned Tiffany to design a
White House china-service that featured 90 flowers. In November 1978, Tiffany & Co. was sold to
Avon Products for about US$104 million in stock. However, in a 1984
Newsweek article, the
Fifth Avenue Tiffany store was likened to the
Macy's department store during a
white sale, due to the high number of inexpensive items on sale; Tiffany & Co. trademarked their signature
Tiffany Blue color in 1998. Three years later they partnered with
Pantone to standardize the color as "1837 Blue".
2000s gift boxes The Tiffany & Co. Foundation was established in 2000 to provide grants to nonprofit organizations working in the areas of the environment and the arts. In June 2004, Tiffany sued
eBay, claiming that the latter was making profits from the sale of counterfeit Tiffany products; however, Tiffany lost both at
trial and on appeal. Tiffany & Co. established their subsidiary Laurelton Diamonds in 2002 to manage Tiffany's worldwide diamond supply chain. In 2009, a collaboration between the Japanese mobile-phone operator
SoftBank and Tiffany & Co. was announced. The two companies designed a cellphone, limited to ten copies, and containing more than 400 diamonds, totaling more than . Each cellphone cost more than 100 million yen ($672,687).
2010s and 2020s In early July 2013, former Tiffany & Co. vice president Ingrid Lederhaas-Okun was arrested and charged with stealing and re-selling more than $1.3 million of diamond bracelets, drop earrings, and other jewelry. Lederhaas-Okun plead guilty to theft and was sentenced to one year in federal prison. The company's
Francesca Amfitheatrof-designed Tiffany T collection debuted in 2014. In February 2017, the company announced that
CEO Frédéric Cuménal was fired, after only 22 months, blaming weak sales results. He was replaced on an
interim basis by the company's longtime former CEO,
Michael Kowalski. Shortly before his departure, Cuménal had appointed former
Coach designer
Reed Krakoff as the company's new chief artistic officer. Although Krakoff had no previous experience with jewellery design, his previous success with Coach and "deep understanding of iconic American design" led to his appointment, with the hopes that Krakoff would be able to refresh the image of the brand. In April 2017, the company launched their Tiffany HardWear collection. In July 2017, it was announced that
Bulgari veteran Alessandro Bogliolo would be taking over as CEO. Under his leadership, it was hoped that Tiffany & Co. could turn around slumping sales and capture a younger audience. Tiffany & Co. opened the Blue Box Cafe in New York City in November 2017. Also in November 2017, the company launched their Home & Accessories line. In March 2018, the company opened the Jewelry Design and Innovation Workshop, a new 17,000-square-foot
atelier. In September 2018, Tiffany launched their Paper Flowers collection in Asia. That same month, the company debuted a new proprietary engagement ring design called the Tiffany True. In August 2019, Tiffany launched their first men's jewelry collection in October of the same year. The line was developed by Reed Krakoff. In October 2019, Tiffany opened a new brand exhibition in
Shanghai, China called "Vision & Virtuosity". Tiffany opened its first store in
New Delhi, India on 3 February 2020. After the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the brand announced that it was stopping purchasing diamonds from Russia. However, it was later revealed that they continued to purchase through intermediaries, including the UAE.
Acquisition by LVMH In November 2019,
LVMH announced its purchase of Tiffany & Co for $16.2 billion, $135 per share. LVMH cancelled the pending purchase in September 2020, with Tiffany filing a lawsuit asking the court to compel the purchase or to assess damages against LVMH. The same month,
Forbes reported that LVMH had cancelled the deal because Tiffany was paying millions in dividends to shareholders despite financial losses during the
COVID-19 pandemic. Some US$70 million had already been paid by Tiffany, with an additional US$70 million to be paid in November 2020. LVMH filed a counterclaim against Tiffany for its mismanagement during the pandemic. The case was set aside after LVMH agreed to purchase Tiffany at a reduced price of almost $16 billion in October 2020. The $15.8 billion deal was approved by shareholders in December 2020. Tiffany was delisted from the
New York Stock Exchange when the deal closed in January 2021. After LVMH's acquisition, several of Tiffany's senior leaders were replaced with executives from other sectors of LVMH. Alexandre Arnault was given the role of executive vice president. ==Stores==