Following the success of Europa Star’s ‘80th Anniversary Portraits’ column that we ran in 2007, we have decided to feature an exceptional portrait section in this issue as part of our special glamour section. The particularity about these portraits is that there isn’t a man among them. From Germany to Japan, Italy to Australia, France to the United States and the United Kingdom to Switzerland, there are some incredible women moving and shaking the watch business. Europa Star’s network of international correspondents decided to talk with some of the industry’s most talented women to find out how they have succeeded in the male dominated world of horology.

“The brown eyes of this petite lady sparkle when she talks about her work” reads the press release of Germany’s most prestigious and only internationally working watch and jewellery company -Wempe. It is true that Kim-Eva’s eyes do frequently sparkle because she is enthusiastic about a lot of things. She has a kind of positive energy that is contagious. But don’t be fooled, Wempe is charming, but also tough. For example, if any of her male employees forget their positions, she makes it very clear who is the boss.
Born in 1962, Kim-Eva visited the language school in her hometown Hamburg, right after she finished public school. After one year as a trainee in the watch and jewellery centres of Switzerland and Italy, she started her business studies in Hamburg, while, at the same time, taking her first steps into the family business, which was founded by Kim-Eva’s great-grandfather.
As she is a perfect communicator with a faultless temperament and an irresistible charm, speaking four languages fluently, she was especially interested in marketing and public relations. Today, the mother of two children travels a great deal between the Wempe stores in Germany, Paris, London, Vienna, Madrid and New York City and even designs her own jewellery collections.
Wempe was a founding member of the former AIHH (Association Interprofessionelle de La Haute Horlogerie) supporting the worldwide watch culture. She has a seat on the board of several Hamburg retailer associations. In 2007 Kim-Eva Wempe was elected Hamburg’s Entrepreneur of the Year. She received her prize and delivered her speech, as always, with a sparkle in her eyes. (GC)


Source: Europa Star October-November 2008 Magazine Issue