Mozambique: How António Duarte turns silver and pearls into jewellery

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Mozambique: How António Duarte turns silver and pearls into jewellery

3:11 CAT | 10 Oct 2022

Photo: Domingo

António Duarte discovered his passion for jewellery three years ago. He has no training in the area, and started out of pure curiosity. So he went on to study further in the area while training on rusty plates. His dream is to sell his products internationally and open the first jewellery factory in Mozambique. The young entrepreneur said that he currently uses silver, as long as it is pure, and pearls to produce his articles, all acquired domestically.

“I like to make themed jewellery. I don’t know how the idea came about, but I felt the need to do it and I started experimenting with material like sheet metal to see if I could model the parts,” he said.

After perfecting the modelling, he decided to create a collection as a way to launch himself in the market, but decided to use the more up-market silver and pearl.

The raw material is acquired domestically. In the case of silver, he buys it damaged and recycles it.

The pearls come straight from the oyster. “Often, we can be given a bag of oysters and only have one pearl. I have some suppliers in Inhambane, Ponta do Ouro, but it is not easy to find [them],” Duarte says.

He says he likes working with pearls because he relates to the material. “I believe that the process of its formation is similar to my own,” he explains. “I left my comfort zone to go after my dreams.”

In addition to silver and pearls, the jewellery designer has worked with sisal rope and medicinal wood. For his next collection he is planning to use a wood called mbádua. “I am conceiving of this collection as a rescue mission for my origins. Everything I wear is linked to Mozambique,” he notes.

The first public presentation of Duarte’s jewellery took place at the recent Maputo International Fair (FACIM) which, according to him, served to measure the temperature of the response. “I had positive feedback,” he reports.

The next step is to put on an exhibition for the sale of the pieces, but he says he is apprehensive, since people are not used to jewellery designers coming from Mozambique. “It’s something new. For me, it is not enough that noble metals are used for something to be considered as jewellery; it is necessary to involve themes and feelings. These are the aspects that I include in my work.”

Duarte revealed that, despite not having specific training in the area, he learned that the important thing is to put thinking into practice. “I learned by experimenting. That’s what young people should do. First, you have to enjoy doing it.”

In addition to working with jewellery, António has been a designer of work clothes (uniforms) for many years. At the moment, he performs both functions, but the focus is on jewellery – the new area. The other company is already consolidated.

“It hasn’t been easy to work in the jewellery store because I’m still not earning money from the pieces I make. I invest the money I earn in the uniform factory. In the beginning, I had support from a friend who believed that the project could move forward,” he recalls.

He confesses that it is a difficult area to invest in, but even so, he dreams of working with national jewellery stores to resell the pieces. “My idea is to exhibit jewellery internationally – for the whole world to see that it is possible to produce jewellery in Mozambique, based on local material,” he says.

His main challenge is to set up his first jewellery factory in Mozambique – hopefully next year.

Source: Domingo