Reed Krakoff Named John Hardy Creative Chair, Adviser to L Catterton
Reed Krakoff is ready for his next act — and it’s a double feature.
The former creative lead at Tiffany & Co. and Coach has signed on as both creative chairman of John Hardy and as strategic adviser to the jewelry brand’s owner, consumer private equity giant L Catterton.
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Krakoff’s focus for now will be squarely on the Bali-inspired jewelry brand, where he will oversee the creative and artistic direction of the business, working closely with chief executive officer Kareem Gahed.
While the precise creative path forward is yet to be charted, Krakoff knows he wants to bring the brand to a place where everything is all being worked on at the same time and, ultimately, telling the same story.
“That’s really the magic, that alchemy of all of the things not just coming together, but each one impacts the other,” Krakoff said.
So he could be working on packaging and thinking about branding and presentation that will ultimately impact product and so on.
“Everything feeds everything,” he said.
That idea is that the approach will build on what the business has already accomplished.
“Essentially, it’s time for a new chapter in the story of John Hardy,” he said.
Krakoff said the brand can be elevated, for instance, with materials such as rose gold or platinum.
But he said that the base is strong, noting that John Hardy has a proprietary look, it’s vertically integrated with a production facility in Bali, and has a history that is meaningful and rooted in sustainability from the start.
The approach Krakoff laid out mirrors most closely the work he did at Tiffany, where he was chief artistic officer from 2017 until LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton bought the business in 2021 after a drawn-out battle in court. (Krakoff is still traveling in the same circles — the “L” in L Catterton is a nod to one of the private equity firm’s backers, LVMH).
“When I was at Tiffany, it was really about looking at everything again. We reinvented the high jewelry, but it was also reinventing the home and accessories,” said Krakoff, noting he sees a similar approach working at John Hardy, but on a different scale.
Being at a smaller company will have its challenges, but also its benefits.
John Hardy, for instance, can move quickly because it’s producing fewer units and also using its own facility.
But in the end, the same branding principles apply.
“For me, it’s always the same,” Krakoff said. “Nothing is easy, it’s always hard and it always takes a great team.
“The most important thing in these things working is that the business and the creative side have to listen to each other, do what they do best and all be fighting for the same thing.
“It’s always a little bit scary when brands evolve,” said Krakoff, who in addition to taking a role at John Hardy has made an investment in the brand.
L Catterton bought John Hardy in 2014 and it was said to be looking to sell the business for about $200 million earlier this year before the dealmaking market weakened along with the economy.
Now there is clearly new energy behind the investment with Krakoff’s arrival.
J. Michael Chu, global co-CEO of L Catterton and chairman of John Hardy, said: “Reed has shown an unmatched understanding of the luxury market and a remarkable ability to take iconic global brands to new levels of success.
“L Catterton has been a strong believer in the growth opportunities ahead for John Hardy, and we are confident that, with Reed’s artistic eye, the brand’s distinctive heritage will continue to be set apart,” he said. “L Catterton will also benefit from Reed’s role as a strategic adviser across select investments and future acquisitions.”
Likewise, John Hardy CEO Gahed added: “We have admired his work and remarkable track record of injecting new creative energy and bold strategies into established and successful brands. We are confident that Reed’s industry expertise and innovative ideas will help us realize our mission of building a sustainable future for our community worldwide.”
As Krakoff’s creative vision for Hardy comes together, his role can expand at L Catterton.
“I’m really excited to work with Michael and his team identifying opportunities in the market and working on how to maximize other brands that are in their stable,” he said. “What I love about this opportunity is that it’s somewhat fluid where there are multiple things I can be doing in different times in different stages.
“Evaluating a company might be a couple days of my life,” he said. “John Hardy is full-time right now. Things will ebb and flow as the L Catterton people see fit.”
