Pulse of global wealth beats on London's Bond Street

By David Brough

LONDON (Reuters) - Well before the store opens, a window-cleaning van arrives every morning to ensure gleaming windows set off the sparkle of diamonds. A pair of burly guards, in black suits and earpieces, take their places.

Britain's retail summer may be set for a washout, Wimbledon strawberries may be prohibitively pricey and fuel for the four-wheel drive might be stretching some budgets -- but on Bond Street, jeweler Graff is ready for the season.

As the mega-rich get richer and seek ever more unusual gemstones, Graff and stores like it in the chic Mayfair district in London's West End -- Leviev, Moussaieff, Harry Winston and Chatila -- stand out as the premier location for jewellery shopping.

"People with new money want new treasures," said Fiona Spence, marketing manager for Graff, established in the heart of Mayfair since 1994 as a powerhouse of exclusivity and with clients including Oprah Winfrey, retail billionaire Philip Green and real estate mogul Donald Trump.

Bond Street was named after Sir Thomas Bond, devoted follower and close friend of King Charles II -- a hedonistic monarch whose 17th-century reign saw the rise of colonization and trade in India, the East Indies and America, including in 1664 the British capture of New York from the Dutch.

It still attracts royalty and its fame is legendary: for precious jewels, antiques and works of art, fashion and the accessories of gracious living, its shops are unsurpassed.

Today, Bond Street is a litmus test of the fortunes of the world's seriously wealthy, as jewelers say non-British buyers account for more than three-quarters of its turnover in fine jewellery.

In the wake of the credit crisis, some wealth in real estate and investment banking is slackening, jewelers say. However, demand is being fed by a fast-growing entrepreneurial elite from the emerging markets, including those who control increasingly valuable natural resources, such as Russia's richest men Oleg Deripaska and Roman Abramovich.

June to September is when Arab families head to Mayfair hotels, to escape the searing heat at home and to shop for brands and watchmakers including Asprey, Bulgari, Tiffany, De Beers, David Morris, Patek Philippe and Rolex.

EMERALDS AND RUBIES

Graff, which has 30 stores worldwide, has about 60 percent of the global market share in yellow diamond jewellery, currently popular with Russian women. Its windows are resplendent with dazzling combinations of yellow and colorless diamonds and pieces featuring huge emeralds and rubies.

Founder Laurence Graff is well known in the diamond world for buying some of the best stones on the market. At a Sotheby's auction in Geneva in May, he paid 5.2 million Swiss francs ($4.93 million) for a pear-shaped 3.73-carat blue diamond, setting a record price per carat for any gemstone.

His confidence in the sum suggests reports of a slowdown are premature or the global super-wealthy are immune.

Across the road from Graff, visitors to Alisa Moussaieff's store are still shelling out dizzying prices for what she calls "square eggs", referring to the rarest gemstones in the world.

If shops selling such indulgences to the world's mega-rich are feeling the pinch at all, it is on the side of supply, not demand: "The new material is the same or less than a few years ago, while the number of buyers has increased," she said. "If more people chase fewer goods, you've got to pay for it."