The interview: Baccarat Asia CEO Clément Brunet-Moret on the story behind its iconic collaborations, including Fendi Casa

Shot on location at the Fendi Casa showroom in Singapore.

The collaboration between the French luxury lifestyle brand Baccarat and the luxury design maison Fendi Casa was conceived, naturally enough, on a superyacht. The Singapore showroom of Fendi Casa’s opulent, and occasionally eye-popping decor provides a fittingly glamorous backdrop for Baccarat’s glittering crystalware and statement art pieces, and instills a desire not only for, say, Cecil the Lion’s breathtaking sculptural presence, but equally the lushly embossed Fendi wallcoverings reified through Cecil’s liquid poise.

Baccarat’s Asia CEO, Clément Brunet-Moret, shares more on the collab, as well as Baccarat’s 261-year heritage of dishing out crystal to Tsars, sultans, robber-barons, celebrities, and everything in between.

Boulevard: How did the collaboration between Baccarat and Fendi Casa come about?

Clément Brunet-Moret: We met on a yacht, in fact, and quickly realised that we had a great deal in common— not only in terms of our customers and lifestyle, but also the artists we collaborate with. Marcel Wanders, for instance, has worked with Baccarat for more than 22 years, and has also collaborated with Fendi Casa for many years too. It therefore felt very natural to bring our strengths together. The idea was to unite our forces and create a beautiful display that showcases the best of both maisons, offering our customers, partners and friends the opportunity to experience both brands in a single setting.

Blvd: Could you tell us about Baccarat’s heritage and history of collaborations?

Brunet-Moret: ‘Baccarat’ is the name of a town in France, and the house was created by artisans both to provide work for the local community, and to serve the King of France at the time. Baccarat itself is not a designer or a creator—it is a manufacturer, defined by its artisans and craftsmanship.

Because of this, collaboration with the leading artists of our time comes naturally to Baccarat. Over our 261-year history, we have worked with hundreds of remarkable artists. 

More recently, these have included Virgil Abloh, during his lifetime, and Hiroshi Fujiwara this year—with a beautiful Pikachu Fragment piece—as well as historic collaborations with Georges Chevalier, Karl Lagerfeld and many others. It would be impossible to name them all.

What matters is that these artists bring their own vision and creativity to Baccarat. Behind us today is one of the first pieces created with Steve Leung, an exceptional collaboration that brings together his values and Asian influence with Baccarat’s crystal expertise, resulting in a refined capsule of beautifully crafted lighting pieces.

Blvd: The piece carries both your signature and his—could you elaborate on how that comes about?

Brunet-Moret: A craftsman such as Steve takes the best of Baccarat, like the details from our best-selling line, the “Printemps Bleu” Zenith chandelier. He then applies his own signature, drawing from our archives, and transforms it into a piece that reflects a sense of yin and yang. It brings together the best of his world and the best of ours in a single, striking creation.

Blvd: So in a sense, he is still operating within your world, but also pushing its boundaries. What is particularly interesting is how these collaborations have challenged and expanded your own technical capabilities

Brunet-Moret: Yes. Artists love to push us and often ask for things we cannot yet do. This forces us to rethink the way we work and the way we produce. Philippe Starck famously created Un Parfait, a set of six glasses, five of them deliberately defective, because it takes six attempts to create one perfect crystal glass. That concept became an iconic piece and later translated into the development of black crystal across our collections and special orders.

To realise Philippe’s original vision, we had to develop entirely new know-how. Artists consistently challenge our boundaries, and that is precisely why we enjoy working with them.

Blvd: Within the manufacturing itself, how do you balance advancing your techniques while preserving them through generations of artisans?

Brunet-Moret: For 261 years, Baccarat has remained in the same village, in the same factory buildings, largely untouched for nearly 200 years. We have generations of people working in our factory, often in the same roles as their fathers or grandfathers, and they take great pride in this continuity. This results in a very high level of craftsmanship.

We have the highest number of Meilleurs Ouvriers de France (MOF), artisans recognised as the best in their trade. They wear the colours of the French flag with pride, as a mark of excellence. There is a strong sense of regional pride in working for Baccarat and in being recognised as the best in this field in France. This pride helps us preserve tradition, retain our know-how within the factory and encourage generations of artisans to continue working with us.

Blvd: I would also like to touch on Baccarat’s residences. How do they bring the brand to life, and what do they add to the overall Baccarat experience?

Brunet-Moret: As a luxury lifestyle brand, we naturally belong in the home, in the places where people live. Over ten years ago in New York, we launched our first hospitality and residential building, located opposite MoMA. It was a huge success and, even today, I would say it remains one of the best places to live in New York.

It is therefore natural for us to seek out the best locations and the best partners to develop these exceptional properties. We are intentionally limited in what we do, as we place crystal pieces in every residence, which must align with what we produce daily for our B2C and B2B businesses. This naturally creates a sense of scarcity and rarity, which elevates desirability among our partners.

Looking ahead, we see projects in Dubai, as discussed, as well as upcoming developments in the Maldives. These are exceptional destinations, with exceptional properties, all under the Baccarat name.

Blvd: With your long history of collaboration, did this evolution feel like a natural next step for the brand?

Brunet-Moret: Yes. Working with the best designers—like the Parisian design firm Gilles & Boissier, Bruno Moinard, and many more, which you’ll see in the coming months—is a natural extension of our collaborative history. We bring these top names into our factory to learn what Baccarat stands for and how we work, and they create exclusive pieces that reflect both their vision and ours.

Parisian design firm Gilles & Boissier, for example, gained prominence after the Hotel Baccarat in New York. The lounge we created there is a full immersion into the world of Baccarat. Guests experience not only our crystal pieces but also the plaster moulds used in producing exceptional items. They see both the finished products and part of the production techniques within the hospitality space where they stay and dine. This approach shows how our collaborations naturally evolve into creating extraordinary branded experiences.

Blvd: You mentioned earlier that these pieces are crystal and can last a lifetime if cared for. From your perspective, what are collectors today looking for in your pieces?

Brunet-Moret: Well, obviously, collectors first need to love the design. It’s hard to collect something you don’t genuinely like—whether it’s a bestiary, a vase, or a chandelier. Beyond that, there needs to be an element of signature. It could be a collaboration, like with Hiroshi Fujiwara, or a signature in the form of a special colour we’re launching that resonates with their emotions.

At the end of the day, a collection is about emotions. You remember why you bought a piece and what it means to you. Our goal is to connect a piece with the collector’s emotions. When that happens, it’s a win-win: the customer is happy, we are happy to serve them, and it fosters a lasting relationship. This is why Baccarat enjoys one of the highest rates of customer retention in the luxury industry.

Blvd: Yes, from Pegasus to Pikachu, that’s a wide range.

Brunet-Moret: Yes, it really spans everything—from Miffy to Pegasus. It’s fantastic for young people to connect with Baccarat through icons they love and to start understanding what we do. Obviously, it’s a journey. You begin with something that is personal to you—if you’re a fan of Pikachu or Miffy, for example, you might have it on your desk while doing your homework or at your first job.

Over time, you grow with the brand. You may eventually be interested in a chandelier, a beautiful vase, or other pieces because you understand the emotional connection with your crystal: the way the light shines through it, the sparkle, and the unique sound it makes.

We also bring them into barware and tableware. Drinking from Baccarat glasses is unmatched, thanks to the mechanical properties of the crystal. We often demonstrate this through blind champagne tastings using the same bottle in different glasses. People think it must be a different champagne, but it’s exactly the same. Even those who consider themselves knowledgeable about wine and champagne are amazed at how the glass changes the experience.

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