20 Years of Rheinfrank & Holzfuss – The Story Behind the Sourcing.

Oliver Rheinfrank on passion, friendships with dealers and the search for exceptional antique jewellery

When I started building up Rheinfrank & Holzfuss together with Dirk Holzfuss 20 years ago, no one really believed in Dirk’s vision of an international antique jewellery company. To be honest, neither did I.

At the time, I was working in the fashion industry as a stylist, studying art, and moving between fashion, creativity and beautiful things. And then one day, out of the blue, Dirk simply said to me: “Oli, that’s you.”

An antique jewellery shop? A bric-a-brac shop?

Antique jewellery was virtually worthless back then. The target audience was many decades older than it is today, antique dealers were generally seen as difficult, and the whole industry seemed to outsiders from another time. Many simply thought we were mad.

When we’d finally saved up our small start-up capital, my first buying trip took me to Stockholm. There, I walked into a dealer’s shop where a woman in a fur coat was singing “Que Sera, Sera” right in the middle of the shop. At that moment, I really thought I’d ended up in a madhouse. But then I saw the jewellery. The quality. The craftsmanship. The elegance of centuries past. The incredible beauty of every single ring, every brooch and every necklace. I was instantly captivated — and at some point, I simply joined in.

It was the beginning of it all.

After that, we moved on to London, Barcelona, Paris and later all across Europe. To be honest, the first few years were rather strange. We were a long way from staying in nice hotels back then. We often slept somewhere amidst suitcases, jewellery boxes and antique markets. But our collection grew. And with it, our success slowly grew too.

One day, I met the love of my life in the trade: Mariad from Ireland.

Mariad was a considerably older jewellery dealer with a small stall at ANTIQUARIUS on London’s King’s Road — a legendary antiques market where every dealer rented their own little space. To me, this place was magical. Old furniture, art, silver, antique rings and, everywhere, people with an incredible passion for historical objects. Unfortunately, at some point, a T-shirt company bought the building and threw all the dealers out.

Yet Mariad remained one of the most important people on my journey right to the end. She understood our vision from the very beginning and supported me almost until her last breath. Sadly, she died of Covid in 2021 at the age of just 83.

I think of her often.

Meanwhile, Rheinfrank & Holzfuss continued to evolve. Our Berlin showroom expanded to 165 square metres with over 60 display cases. Suddenly, we had a dispatch department, our own photography studio and customers from all over the world. Our sourcing network now stretched from Italy to the USA.

Today, we are supported by over 40 dealers worldwide. Many of them have been with us for decades. Sadly, some of them are no longer with us, and I would like to express my heartfelt thanks and pay tribute to these wonderful people:

Mariad.

Bella.

Martin.

Jean-Louis.

They were all exceptional antique jewellery dealers with an incredible passion for historical jewellery art, vintage jewellery and antique engagement rings. Without such people, the world of antique jewellery would not exist.

The success of our company eventually grew to such an extent that I moved to London to coordinate our international dealers and purchasing from there. Dirk, in turn, moved into a flat in Milan to be closer to our customers and contacts in Italy.

Last year, we also opened our second — significantly smaller — showroom in Munich. For me, this was also a wonderful opportunity to return to my favourite city, where I lived for many years.

And suddenly, a crazy idea became reality.

Today, antique jewellery has become fashionable. Our customers are often in their thirties, international, style-conscious and usually completely smitten when they discover their piece of jewellery. That is exactly what makes me happy.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank not only our customers, but above all our retailers around the world. Without them, Rheinfrank & Holzfuss would never have been possible.

And on a personal note, I would like to thank my business partner Dirk Holzfuss — for his patience, his vision, and for believing in this crazy idea long before it became a reality.

All is well. Here’s to the decades ahead.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Rheinfrank

In Memoriam

Mariad

Bella

Martin

Jean-Louis

We will never forget you.