Fourtané Names Russell Kelly as Chief Operations Officer
Fourtané Jewelers has appointed Russell Kelly as chief operations officer for the company, effective immediately. In the newly created role, Kelly will oversee operations and continued growth for the historic flagship location in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.
“What I’m most excited about is elevating our service even more; because of the current market conditions, the high demand for these great brands we are fortunate to represent, we have to think about how we can deliver an unreasonable level of service and experience in the store. For us that’s the ultimate goal,” said Kelly.
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Kelly’s foray in the watch industry began in 2004 as sales manager, East, for Blancpain. In 2008 he became U.S. national sales director for Vacheron Constantin, and then in 2013, Rolex tapped him to become vice president brand manager for Tudor Watch USA, spearheading the brand’s reintroduction into the United States. Most recently, Kelly served a four-year run as chief commercial officer for Hodinkee, the leading editorial and e-commerce website for luxury timepieces.
“We are thrilled to have Russell join the Fourtané team at this crucial moment when our business is poised for significant growth,” said Josh Bonifas, part of the second generation of Fourtané’s family ownership and its resident vintage watch expert. “His unmatched expertise in brand experience and his success in leading teams across digital and commercial operations will prove to be invaluable for Fourtané as we continue to deliver the best service and experience we can for our visitors.”
Established in 1950 and operating as a family business, Fourtané Jewelers is one of the leading estate jewelry, vintage watch and authorized Rolex and Cartier retail stores in the U.S., and has brands such as Patek Philippe, Tudor, Roberto Coin, and Messika, with the addition of Carolina Bucci later this fall.
After joining his family’s jewelry store to develop its watch department in 1998, Bonifas’ expertise led to Fourtané becoming an official Rolex jeweler in 2002 and an official Rolex boutique owner in 2018, expanding locations to San Diego.
Kelly’s role will also oversee a new retail expansion into women’s fine jewelry, slated for later this year. “It’s really a return to a focus on fine jewelry — the business was founded on jewelry, that then turned into estate custom jewelry. We currently have a designer in house that creates amazing designs from scratch, and our focus has drifted over the years more towards watches. However, we are in the process of construction; less than a block from our current historic location in Carmel-by-the-Sea, we are building a new dedicated jewelry space opening in October, shining a spotlight on the product category that brought us where we are today,” said Kelly to WWD.
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