Protecting Saint Tropez’s Authenticity

Son of a watchmaker father and a jeweller mother, Steve Schaming was born in Saint Tropez. In the 1980s, his father Jacques Schaming set up his watchmaking business on Place des Lices. 

Steve's father was trained by Mr Frantz Proketch, a watchmaker-jeweller. When Frantz retired, he offered him the mould of the medal he had created in 1945.

This medal is now part of the family heritage, but it is above all linked to the history of the region: it’s the religious emblem of the Patron Saint of the village that Tropezians wear on a necklace or mounted in a bracelet.

Attracted by the jewellery trade since he was a child, Steve left his village to study by the Swiss border and later in Lyon, where he developed his skillset.  

The jeweller makes the structure of the jewel, that the stone-setter then assembles with the stones. 

Working with gemstones has a price. They are expensive, and for now Steve doesn't have the resources to get an apprentice. But he hopes to be able to train students in a school closer to retirement and help preserve the heritage. 

Styles always vary over the years, "it’s just like fashion”. But the constant is the medal: Tropezians are still too attached to it to change it. 

Apart from jewellery stores, Saint Tropez has only two artisan jewellers. Together, they collaborate on jewellery projects, but also share ideas for atypical creations such as board games inlaid with stones. 

These local collaborations can lead to unusual projects with artisans from all horizons: Steve is working on a piece mixing jewellery and carpentry. 

Jewellery has become an industry, and only a few craftsmen create their pieces from scratch. For Steve, the goal is to maintain the authenticity of his region... "Something that rarely come to mind when we talk about Saint Tropez!". A few years ago, he put himself on an electoral list to promote craft stores. "I like the image of Saint Tropez of the 1950s and 1960s. I’d like my village to be authentic again, rather than superficial".