A gem of a profession

One is an architect, the other a psychologist. But they have reinvented themselves and are now into a gem of a profession.

At the three-year-old Hoseki Jewellry firm, there is a creative duo, FaiCo and Knoi Esmane who are credited for having produced winning designs in international competitions.

Fai won three consecutive years in the South Sea Design Competition in Hong Kong while Knoi has been a finalist in the same competition twice. Together they have established Hoseki Jewellry, located at SM Megamall and SM North EDSA on the jewelry map of the country.

He still heads the Design Unit of Hoseki although he is now its president. No design reaches the production line until he has given his approval. He checks the finished products, too.

An architect by training, Fai entered the world of gems because of his family’s pearl farms. He has since immersed himself in the world of fine jewelry with as much determination and passion as he put in his earlier architectural renderings.

Fai recalls that his father introduced him to the magical world of gems and pearls by letting him do menial tasks like sorting out the fruits of the sea by sizes, colors, shapes and luster. Then he moved on to drilling holes in the pearls for setting and stringing the pearl strands.

After his job with the pearls, he had to clean and dust the equipment after office hours. His father stressed diligence, hard work and excellence. While his friends were playing boys’ games, Fai studied pearls worthy of a king’s ransom.

Fai keeps trim playing tennis and badminton, but he is happiest when he sits at his desk with his sketch pad and pencils and his computer. He relies a lot on his computer to supply him with a wealth of information on pearls and gems. He also keeps up to date on their movements in the world, trends, prices, etc.

He has started his sons in his line of work. Harold trained in management while Ivan has shown his father’s talents for design by drawing his own ideas for jewelry pieces. His wife Beth helps in the business end of the firm. She is Fai’s best friend, confidante, fan, critic, and the love of his life all rolled into one.

The second half of the Hoseki design team is Manuelito Esmane or Knoi, a psychology graduate of the De La Salle University.

What is a man with advanced graduate studies in Psychology from DLSU doing in the world of jewelry?

Knoi is the overall manager of Hoseki and also the exclusive in-house designer. His background is very interesting. He was an academician and counseling psychologist for eight years in St. John Ma. Vianney, a school that handles children with exceptional skills. He topped the very first Licensure Exam for Teachers in 1996.

He was prepared for a life surrounded by blackboards and lesson plans. But time came when he could no longer ignore the call of his creative side. He thus did a 360-degree turn in his career path and plunged into the world of jewelry design.

An artist at heart, Knoi prepared himself by taking a course on diamonds. After only less than a year in the field of jewelry design, he became a finalist in the International South Sea Pearl Design Competition in Hong Kong.

He still gets to practise his "psychology" in the store though. As the manager, he works with the staff and motivates them to maximize their skills and achieve the company’s goal. He also deals with clients and teaches them about the nitty gritty of jewelry. He "counsels" them on the appropriate jewelry to wear on certain occasions, andwith certain clothes and even skin type. "Before when I was still in the academe," Knoi recalls, "I looked at the multi-faceted dimensions of human behavior. But now in the jewelry business, not only do I analyze a client’s behavior but also look at the multi-faceted dimensions of diamonds and the mysterious luster of pearls. And we serve both as their consultant and counselor."

An art enthusiast, Knoi’s passion is collecting the paintings of famous Filipino artists. A firm believer in the Filipino talent, his dream of achieving world-class jewelry is epitomized in the company motto: "World-class South Sea Pearls, World-class Design."

Just for the upcoming pearl month (June) which coincides with the store’s anniversary, Hoseki Mega Mall and North EDSA are coming up with an exclusive jewelry exhibit and an off-the rack sale for the whole month.

Events by Westin

The Westin Philippine Plaza introduces the newly-renovated Grand Plaza Ballroom in the biggest corporate events fair, Events by Westin, on May 29, Wednesday. Over 50 providers and suppliers in the meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions industry, will converge and link up in this one-day seminar-exhibit cum sale. Open and free to the public from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., raffle prizes will be given away every hour to lucky guests. Visit all the booths and have your passport stamped for a chance to win the grand prize of a trip to Bangkok with hotel accommodations and a weekender traveling bag courtesy of The Leather Collection.

Companies planning their seminars, product launches, team-building workshops, training sessions and just about any event will have access to the country’s best events organizers, production houses, lights, sounds and staging suppliers as well as entertainment providers and PR consultancy firms, all in one place.

For those planning company events, there will be informative sessions throughout the day on the topics of E-Commerce, Profiling and Packaging for Success as well as an open forum on Tips and Tactics for Successful Staging. Guest speakers include the most respected names in the fields of advertising, staging and events management: Emily Abrera, Jos Ortega, Anthony Pangilinan, Tina Maristela-Ocampo, Joey Espino, Gigi Bautista and Patricia Puyat-Palanca, The Westin’s catering and conventions director.

There will be a noon breaker session — a one-hour corporate make-over by Franck Provost Salon and Clinique demonstrating makeup and beauty tips for the lady executive.

The highlight of the event is a fashion show by top designers, Rajo Laurel and Digna Rosales who will present their 2002 executive and corporate wear collection and showcase the smart new uniforms they specially designed for The Westin Philippine Plaza.