Popley Group and Disney India to Launch Fine Jewelry Line

If you thought that Mickey Mouse was just for kids, think again. As the Popley Group, together with Disney Consumer Products, India, prepares for the June 1st launch of Disney Fine Jewellery, Mickey and other Disney icons and imagery are being geared up for young girls and women as well. 

In an innovative move, the two companies have come together to fashion a line of fine, high-end jewelry made of precious metals and gemstones, with an entry price of Rs. 25,000 ($585).

Speaking at the launch, Roshini Bakshi, regional director – Emerging Markets Asia, Disney Consumer Products of The Walt Disney Company (India) Pvt. Ltd. defined Disney as being “platform agnostic” and “age agnostic.”

Explaining these concepts, she said that Disney products were available in one form or another across various media, whether in books, films, iPods or others. It was also a company which touched the lives of people of various ages, she said. “Everyone enjoys our stories.”

Popley Group Director Rajiv Popley said, “We would like to recreate the magic of Disney for the woman of today – the woman who travels, has seen the world and is aware of the Disney brand and has been associated with it as a child.”

He pointed out that whereas for jewelry is was very difficult to create a visible brand identity, the Disney line would be one brand that would be distinctly identifiable, as the collections for the line are based on the vast Disney library, and each character and icon is so well known.

The Popley Group, which has the sole distribution and product development license in India, will design and manufacture the jewelry, as well as distribute it through its own and other similar outlets. The jewelry will use diamonds certified by IGI and come packaged in a unique manner, with an element of storytelling as part of the packaging.

Rhea Nasta, who heads Popley’s design team, has spent many intense months going through the library to select and choose the icons upon which the jewelry was to be designed. “The one association with all the material I went through was the feeling of being “happy.” And that is what all the jewelry embodies. The feeling of happiness and joy for the person owning and wearing it,” she said.

Interestingly, Bakshi tells us that internationally, Disney has been making its presence felt across many high-end consumer products including furniture, based on the original designs of Walt Disney himself.