Daniel Swarovski

The Magic of Crystal

Swarovski is an Austrian success story par excellence. At the end of the 19th century Daniel Swarovski founded a company with the aim to cut crystals automatically. The company was enormously successful and soon worked in numerous fields like the production of optical products, abrasives and grinding tools, the cutting of crystals and the manufacturing of decorative stones made from crystal.

Those were mostly used for the jewelry and fashion industries, as chandelier parts, as accessories and as beads and ornaments for attire and jewelry. Swarovski's necklaces, pins and earrings are popular worldwide. Swarovski's crystal beads are also used to adorn dresses, shoes and handbags. By this they have entered the realm of haute-couture, James Bond movies, Hollywood celebs and Oscar night fashion talk.

113 years after its founding, Swarovski is still driven to always improve on what is good. When the company history is retold in future years, the CREATE YOUR STYLE with SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS initiative will most certainly be another extremely important chapter.

Daniel Swarovski was born on October 24, 1862, in Georgethal, Bohemia, in what is now the Czech Republic. He learned his artisan craft of glass-cutting alongside his father. Bohemia's rich glass-cutting history, dating back to the 14th Century, would soon be revolutionized by the young Swarovski's innovative thinking and his creation of an automated stone cutting system.

In 1883 Swarovski visited the International Electric Exhibition in Vienna. At the Exhibition the works and new technology presented by inventors like Edison, Siemens, and Schuckert, inspired Swarovski. It was in viewing these innovations, that Swarovski saw potential for his own industry. Less than ten years later, in 1892, he successfully applied for a patent for a machine that produced automated high quality crystal stones that were cut mechanically and polished to precision.

On October 1, 1895, Daniel Swarovski left Bohemia and moved to Wattens (in the Austrian Tyrol) to set up a factory specializing in the industrial production of cut crystal stones. The company that would bear his name was co-founded by Swarovski, his brother-in-law Franz Weis and Armand Kosmann. The Tyrolean village of Wattens was a less expensive location for a factory and was near the Rhine River. The abundant water source provided the energy source for the Wattens hydroelectric plant that went online in 1907.

In 1908 Daniel Swarovski and his sons, Wilhelm, Friedrich, and Alfred experimented with different methods to produce pure crystal. Within three years they refined their methods and were producing crystals of flawless brilliance. The ever-innovative Swarovski began producing grinding wheels needed for cutting crystal jewelry stones in 1917. This process was later put out on the open market under the trade name, "Tyrolit." The Swarovski innovations continued in 1925 when the company began experiments with glass reflecting elements for road safety applications. These experiments would become actualities and appear on the market in 1950 under the Swareflex trademark.

Fashion Industry

Swarovski's affiliation with the fashion industry dates back to 1931 when he began manufacturing "trimmings." Trimmings refer to jewelry stones that are processed into decorative bands and laces and then attached to garments and accessories. The company's involvement with ornamental, decorative elements for jewelry and fashion continues today as they work with contemporary designers such as Christian Dior and Elsa Schiaparelli.

In 1935, Daniel Swarovski's oldest son Wilhelm laid the foundation for the company's optical products division when he produced the first prototype pair of binoculars. Swarovski Optik was established in 1948 and to this day, under the brand name Habicht, remains one of the world's leading producers of high quality optical products including binoculars, and elegant but ergonomic telescopes.

Daniel Swarovski died at the age of 94 on January 23, 1956. Since his death, the Swarovski company has continued to grow and expand.

In 1957 they opened their own gem-cutting department and then in 1965 they began producing their famous chandelier parts (it is a Swarovski chandelier that is used in the 2004 Warner Bros film, "The Phantom of the Opera.")

It was in 1976 that the first tiny, crystal mouse, glued together from four crystal chandelier parts, became the first piece in the Swarovski famous crystal animal menagerie. The Swarovski Collectors Society was founded in 1987 in response to crystal collectors worldwide.

In 1995 Swarovski celebrated its 100th anniversary.

To mark this milestone occasion, the company built a spectacular theme park in Wattens and named it Kristallwelten (translated: Crystal Worlds.)

Designed by artist Andre Heller, the Swarovski Crystal Worlds transports its visitors into a land of beauty that was inspired by the man whose vision was to make crystals to provide people with unimaginable pleasure.

The legacy of Daniel Swarovski lives on in the company he painstakingly and lovingly created from the foundations on upward.

A company that has remained fully independent since its inception in 1895, Swarovski now has a presence in more than 120 countries and employs 20,000 people. Swarovski operates production facilities in sixteen countries and owns more than 650 boutiques worldwide.

Daniel Swarovski believed in craftsmanship, quality, and creativity and the success of his company is a testament to the ideals he held and his tireless pursuit of crystal perfection.

·The French designer Christian Dior in 1957 helped to produce the alluringly popular color Aurora Borealis and it was a hit. In 1977 Swarovski came to the United States with a jewelry collection and has been a favorite of fashion lovers ever since.

·Swarovski does not only produce crystals intended for jewelry. They are also producers of belts, watches and handbags for men as well and women. Another unique product includes sculpture and in 2010 Swarovski introduced a new collection of sculptural pieces. The golden dragon includes 63,110 hand laid crystals in 21 shades of gold. The elephant sparkles with smoky quartz, topaz and black diamond colored crystals and the horse made of crystal metallic blue. The set was completed by the end of 2010 with the final piece, the falcon.

·Swarovski crystal isn't actually made of crystal. It's a glass made of a secret recipe containing natural minerals, metals and quartz sand. The material is melted and then cooled at a very slow rate. The crystals are especially shiny because of their unique composition, they are 32 percent lead. In addition some of the crystals are coated with other metallic chemicals to produce color effects. Aurora Borealis is one of their popular colored crystals and it gives a light rainbow sheen.

·In 1995 the Swarovski group celebrated its 100th birthday and to celebrate they built the Swarovski Crystal Worlds theme park. The crystal themed park sparkles in the heart of the Alps just outside the town of Wattens, Austria, where the Swarovski crystal factory is located. It is one of the most popular attractions in the country and features a 42 meter long route filled with 12 tons of crystals, a water spouting giant and pieces from the artists Salvador Dali and Andy Warhol.

·The Swarovski group is a worldwide business operating in 18 countries. As of 2009 they own over 1000 boutiques and have an additional 800 partner owned boutiques. They employ a total of 24,841 people worldwide. In 2009 the Swarovski group made a turnover profit of 2.25 billion euro. 1.77 percent of that profit came directly from their crystals and the rest came from Tyrolit and Optics.