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“This amazing project comes from the heart. What you’re doing here goes far beyond just generating profit, you’re really putting your soul into it” declared the Mayor of Córdoba, José Miguel Bellido, summing up, in the form of a speech, the words and emotions on display throughout the inauguration of the new Facet and Tracemark facilities in the Parque Joyero de Córdoba – a business area dedicated to the jewelry industry on the 25^th of September.

“The spirit and soul going into this project can be compared to the spirit and soul of jewelry  ever present in Córdoba. The jewelry sector is part of our identity, our history, our culture and our traditions. Now we can to turn that part of our soul our business muscle.” Applause rang out.

Reindustrialization, innovation and sustainability

Friday, 1:30pm. The Mayor’s words concluded the ceremony with the same emotion and ambition that Facet, a leading global designer, manufacturer and distributor of fine jewelry has invested in this project. The figures speak for themselves. Engaging with the reindustrialization of the region, Facet has created more than 40 jobs at a time when unemployment is rising and news outlets are freely speaking of a “crisis”. However, why now? And why Córdoba?

“What we’ve found here is amazing hospitality, cutting edge technology, and talent and know-how that we have never seen before” explained José Miguel Serret, president of Facet. “We came here out of necessity” he confessed, as manufacturing was hit by the arrival of Covid-19 to India, the country where Facet had centralized its production in a company-owned factory. Nevertheless, “We’re here to stay because what we have found here in Córdoba cannot be found anywhere else” he concluded.

Five centuries of jewelry tradition have given Córdoba a passion for the sector unseen elsewhere. “We are going to be able to attract large jewelry companies from all over the world that need to manufacture with great providers close at hand” added Serret, doubling down on his mission to position Córdoba as a leading global city for the jewelry sector. “Furthermore, we will compete in a way that leads with sustainability and innovation, with something that until today has never existed in the world of jewelry: Tracemark.”

Tracemark: something that has never existed in the world of jewelry

With these words, José Miguel Serret handed over to the next generation, to his daughter Berta Serret who is heading up the traceability start-up Tracemark. Friday, 1:15pm, the moment when Córdoba’s rich past and its jewelry tradition, the present-day investment by Facet and the future of the industry in the from of Tracemark came together.

Tracemark is born as a necessity of the industry. Despite jewelry being one of the most regulated industries around the world, it continues to lack transparency. As brands and consumers are becoming ever more conscious of the impact that industry players have on our ecosystem and our communities, this movement has generated more and more questions that, until now, nobody has been able to answer.

“Even today, there are more than a million children working in mines. One million children!” Exclaimed an indignant Berta Serret, CEO and Co-Founder of Tracemark. “And what’s more, 30% of all toxic mercury in water comes from the mining industry.” How can we stop this? How can we guarantee the ethical credentials of a piece of jewelry? How do we lead the charge towards authentic sustainable luxury? One word: traceability. One company: Tracemark.

“Tracemark has established a traceability protocol which, through encrypted and certified software, can provide complete traceability for jewelry from the mine to the end consumer” explained Berta Serret. By offering complete traceability of jewels, gold and diamonds, Tracemark verifies, for the first time in the history of jewelry, that every stage in the supply chain has been subject to high ethical and sustainability standards. In this way, the start-up which was launched this very September presents traceability as the next big step in sustainability and employs it as an important driver of change.

“As we have all been given the opportunity to work in this sector, we have to do our part” remarked Serret, putting in practice one of the Tracemark’s commitments: collaboration between industry players. From diamond cutters in India to the major distributors, any sustainable business has the opportunity to adhere to Tracemark’s protocol, so that in the future when a consumer goes to buy jewelry, they demand a jewel certified by Tracemark – a synonym of sustainable luxury.

Tracemark, in this way, is a huge step in itself towards “transparency, traceability and empowering the end consumer” with information for conscious purchases.