Simply The Best

As a small child Catherine Best loved being in the outdoors, creating things out of wood in her father’s workshop. Today her name is synonymous with beautiful jewellery, but she traces her interest back to those early days of childhood.

 “I used to make snail houses and tiny wooden coffins for dead birds, I really enjoyed it and would lose myself totally when I was out there making them,” says Catherine.

So, the die was cast on what was to become a high-octane career that took off almost from the moment she left college in the UK to return to her home in Guernsey.  She was, she admits, in a hurry to get going on what was to become the great driving force of her life.

At the beginning of her training, Catherine was adamant that she would do things her way. “I suppose I have always been a bit of a rebel. When they teach you how to design jewellery you’re supposed to use base metals, but I couldn’t see the point. I decided that, if I was going to spend all that amount of time making a piece, it should be the real thing! Otherwise at the end of the course I would have nothing to show for it.”

Catherine convinced her father that she should be using gold and silver. He loaned her the money to buy the precious metals and stones – and the distinctive Catherine Best brand was born. “I came to a deal with him and, luckily for me, he went for it. It did make me very aware that I had to get it right first time.”

When Catherine came home she moved into the beautiful old Mill, which is now a thriving studio workshop and retail outlet – and the family home.

“I worked like crazy and struggled to build up stock,” says Catherine.

In the early days, she started trading by attending sporadic craft fairs to build up a reputation.

In the late 1980s she did suffer a major setback when all her jewellery was stolen from a hotel foyer showcase. It represented years of hard work.

“I was so naïve. There was so much work there and I lost the lot. I had only insured it for the value of the materials, not for the hours I had worked. It was a hard lesson to learn.”

Catherine decided that she had to earn some money to buy stones, so she took over a cheese shop in partnership with her sister. “I didn’t make a lot of jewellery at that time, but it was a laugh and I did find a husband!”

Catherine met Paul – “he was the egg man,” she says laughing – and once again it was time for a major re-think on the job front.

“We got married and I got pregnant with the first of my daughters and it became impractical to carry on with the cheese shop – although it was a lot of fun! We decided that, if I was going to make a go of the jewellery business, I had to do it full time or not at all. That’s when we opened up the Mill, hired a nanny and started to develop the business properly. This made a huge difference although the pressure was on because there were bills and school fees to pay. It was a sort of sink or swim time.”

The business grew and Catherine employed more jewellery makers, took on trainees and devoted more and more time to the design side of the business.

Her staff is focused and happy and Catherine is proud that there is little, if any, staff turnover. She is also very thorough when it comes to training and her apprentices follow a five-year course.

The expansion into Jersey three years ago was a huge leap forward, and Catherine and Paul are delighted at the response they have received. “It was a good decision and we are now building up a good client base. Paul was flying home to Guernsey when he read about the Windmill Pub in Jersey. We had been looking for premises on the island in Jersey for a year but nothing was right. This seemed to fit the bill perfectly.”

The couple contacted Ann Street Brewery and, although the Mill had not been up for sale, they agreed to negotiate. “I now spend a day or so a week in Jersey and love it. The market is different but it’s a new challenge and we are getting there.”

She is also keen to promote the jewellery re-design side of her business. “There is no point hanging onto an old diamond ring or necklace which you won’t ever wear. Lots of old jewellery with lovely big stones has the potential to be turned into something very special and very up to date. We love this aspect of our business.”

Catherine now employs 26 staff across the islands and in the UK, and she is still very passionate about designing and never seems to run out of new concepts. “We get very excited about using new stones. At the moment we are working a lot with paraiba and tanzanite. They have wonderful colours. We do a lot of designs with coloured stones – although I always have done that. Fashions just seem to have caught up with me.”

But she does admit to wanting to spend more time with her daughters – Vikki, 15, and 13-year-old Penny – and she now makes more time to be with them. “I love to spend time with my family. Vikki is totally focused, like me. In fact, she wants to be me and have my job now. Both my girls enjoy art and, looking back, I loved art too when I was their age and thought I was good. Unfortunately my teachers didn’t agree so I rebelled and they threw me out. There is a vast difference between art and design.”

www.catherinebest.com

Guernsey Studio
The Mill, Steam Mill Lane, St. Martin's, Guernsey GY4 6XE
+44 (0) 1481 237771
E-mail: guernsey@catherinebest.com

Jersey Studio
The Windmill, Les Chenolles, St. Peter, Jersey JE3 7DW
+44 (0) 1534 485777

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