#Iconic_Audencians: Céline Assimon (GE 01), the sparkling chameleon

How did the daughter of a construction contractor with no connections, who grew up in a rural area of south-western France surrounded by cows, ever become the first female CEO of one of the most prestigious jewellery brands in the world? This is the remarkable trajectory of Céline Assimon. In 2001, she started in marketing with Piaget in NYC, then in 2011 for Louis Vuitton in NYC followed by Paris in 2015 as the worldwide head of high jewellery & high watchmaking sales, before re-joining Piaget in Geneva as its international high jewellery director. In 2018, at 41, she landed her first CEO position with Swiss de Grisogono. Today she holds no less than two CEO roles, as the head of De Beers Jewellers and De Beers Forevermark. She takes pride in the mining giant for its engagement in tracing every diamond it discovers and sells, and for raising high business, environmental and social standards for its own operations and the industry as a whole. Céline’s mission is to engage her consumers in both the beauty of the crafted diamonds as well as the beauty of their story, so that these precious symbols of connection and celebration can be worn with pride.

When we explain to Céline that this portrait series aims to reveal the human nature behind Audencia’s iconic alumni, she is immediately up for it. She tells of her regret that she didn’t identify inspiring leaders she could relate to when she was studying at Audencia 20 years ago. At the time, “They all seemed to have this cookie-cutter life, the suit and the wife at home. I wish I’d had access to CEOs who shared their personal stories, successes, mistakes and the fact that you can thrive if you learn from them.”

Looking back at her career to date, Céline makes a point of emphasising the hurdles she had to overcome. She is convinced that she wouldn’t have reached her current position if there hadn’t been a few difficulties and failures along the way. She highlights three in particular: her father’s struggles with running his business, her own countless rejections in the search for her first internship, and the experience of taking de Grisogono through bankruptcy.

Céline has long established her reputation in this coveted industry, but she doesn’t take success for granted. “I am trying to look to the future with a cool head and a dose of humility. Careers nowadays are very fluid, and I might not have my CEO title in a few years from now.” It is with the same refreshing candour that this self-described chameleon, petrol head and bon vivant reveals her immersion into the African American culture, her best red-carpet moments and her signature dish.

 

It all began back in 2020 when we celebrated Audencia’s 120th anniversary by launching our very first iconic alumni collection. For this second series, we are delighted and proud to showcase 12 new profiles of Audencians from around the globe. The alumni that you will discover have very generously given up their time for an interview with fellow alumna, Katia Hérault (GE 2001), for which we are immensely grateful.