Simply Abu Dhabi XXII

2 5 3 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I Mikkel Kornerup joined forces with his brother Mads after an early career at the Microsoft Corporation and running his own IT consulting company. Having no prior experience in the jewellery business, he cofounded Shamballa Jewels with Mads and one employee eleven years ago. Since then he has steered the company to be a global brand with a presence in over 31 countries and a brand name that is synonymous with spirituality, style and quality in the jewellery and fashion industries. Mikkel says his focus is to develop Shamballa Jewels into a full repertoire fine jewellery brand while continuing Shamballa Jewels’ dominance in the bracelet segment. “It is an ongoing challenge to run Shamballa Jewels to both develop creative visions, and be very pragmatic at the same time. I love a good challenge,” he says with shining eyes and a smile. As CEO of Shamballa Jewels, Mikkel leads overall strategic development of the company in conjunction with the COO and the Creative Director. With his expertise in IT, Mikkel plays a key role in ensuring effective internal controls, product development, management information and digital development which are crucial to the company’s growth. Every piece of Shamballa jewellery incorporates ancient spiritual symbols and messages in their designs to encourage wearers to find their inner Shamballa, their inner wisdom and compassion. Shamballa pieces are made of 18-carat gold, diamonds and precious stones. Each piece can be customised bead for bead. The epitome of impeccable craftsmanship, they are set, braided and polished by hand in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Shamballa bracelet is an iconic piece today and is easily spotted all over the world, from salons in Paris, palaces in Europe, beaches in California to the streets of Shanghai. The bracelet triggered a zeitgeist that encouraged people to find meaning in the jewellery they wear. This is exactly what the brothers desire and had set out to do – to create jewellery whose value lies not only in the materials used, but in the very emotions they evoke and represent.