Meet Sian Fullard, founder of Fullard Fine Jewellery

My name is Sian Fullard & I founded Fullard Fine Jewellery here in Marlow almost 30 years ago now with a simple ethos: that fine jewellery should be made to represent the same personal, honest & caring feeling that it is bought with. Now, as a 2^nd generation, family owned & run business that belief still guides us in everything we do. We are proudly female led and, for us, Fullard Fine Jewellery is not simply about manufacturing beautiful jewellery, it's about the people we get to meet along the way and the opportunities they give us to build special pieces that will last for generations to come. As soon as you walk through our doors, you'll see everything has been designed to provide an environment that strays from the clinical vibe that comes with many other retail jewellers.

Over the years we have strived to create a boutique space where you can take your time, have a coffee (or flute of champagne) and feel entirely at ease; choosing the right piece and building a comfortable rapport is not something to be rushed.

What truly sets us apart, however, is what happens behind the scenes. Below the ground floor of our Marlow shop is our own full workshop, with traditional goldsmiths who we employ and train in-house with over 50 years of knowledge and experience. Something we feel very strongly about is the fact that traditional goldsmithing as a whole is a dying trade in the growing shadow of machine mass production and if businesses like ours don't invest in it, those skills will simply cease to exist. As part of this when you come to us to have something made, your aren't speaking to a salesperson who will pass your unique idea onto a distant factory, you're speaking to the goldsmith who will actually make your item. There's a level of honesty and connection in that process that you just can't replicate when the work is sent away.

In the constantly evolving world of technology, the one topic we are constantly asked about is lab-grown diamonds and at Fullards our choice was immediate and final: for us, fine jewellery should hold lasting value, both emotionally and materially, and we believe lab-grown stones that can be printed on demand simply don't reflect this. Many jewellers have chosen to move in the direction of following the latest fashion trends but for us it's about staying true to who we are & guaranteeing the future-proofed quality of the items we produce.

Being entirely candid, there are easier & cheaper ways to run a fine jewellery manufacturing business; many retailers in our industry offer bespoke services by relying on large commercial workshops, using shared resources and adjusting margins to compete with others retailers using the same system. This way of working nearly always results in unknown variables and can make the quality of the work difficult to control. At Fullards, we chose to do things properly & in developing this over the years we have learnt that this means we offer something fundamentally classical, and therefore different. We train and pay our goldsmiths very well because we believe their skill deserves it, our workshop is solely for the use of our clients and we never compromise on the quality of our work.

Our commitment to the local community doesn't just stop at jewellery. Following the disaster of COVID-19 and the subsequent intolerance of landlords towards tenants, we chose to purchase the building that houses us in Marlow from a fellow local family business.  This was a very deliberate decision, not just for our own future but from decades of watching the high streets of many towns become monopolised by conglomerate landlords & the days of trusted family-owned freeholds coming to an end. Marlow has always been a thriving town of small independent businesses and protecting this spirit has become a core tenet of ours; we're here to stay, to support Marlow for the long run.

Over the years we have had the privilege of helping our clients mark some of the most important moments in their lives - from engagements, to anniversaries, to new beginnings - and it is a particular honour of ours to have evolved into a fine jewellers that serves the next generations of these same trusting families. If you're curious for yourself, I'd always encourage you to stop by, have a chat & feel the difference in person. Whether you're redesigning something old, creating something entirely new, repairing a well-loved piece or simply wanting to stop by and have a chat over a cuppa you'll be met with honesty, expert knowledge and genuine care at every step; because once you experience the real tradition of goldsmithing from a dedicated family, you'll be hard pressed to trust anything else.

Visit Fullard Fine Jewellery at 21-23 Spittal St, Marlow SL7 3HJ

https://www.fullardfinejewellery.co.uk/