Mentorship may seem like a selfless act of charity, and indeed it is. However it can offer unexpected rewards for those dedicated experts who take on this role.
Recently, the team at Piccolo hosted Savannah Male, a student from Inscape College. They describe the experience as “a great pleasure” and are thrilled to have given her the opportunity to enrich her skills with the kind of hands-on training that normally falls outside of the scope of learning institutions.
Some of Piccolo’s custom jewellery
The Piccolo approach is wholeheartedly people-centric and fuelled by a passion for creating uniquely customised pieces to meet each individual client’s requirements. This same philosophy was applied to their week with Savannah, where the team ensured that the experience was meaningful for their apprentice. She was immersed in the process from start to finish, including sitting in on consultations with clients and observing CAD design and manufacturing procedures.
The team found that she shared their passion for creating, and that her design abilities were surprisingly advanced in relation to other post-graduates they have encountered. Co-owner Suvette Claassens reflects that taking the extra time to develop Savannah’s hand-manufacturing skills and to interact compassionately with this young designer was highly satisfying.
Savannah Male training at Piccolo’s studios
Says Suvette: “I wish all universities would make an apprenticeship week part of their course. It is truly an eye-opener for the students to see how we actually operate on a day-to-day basis, the troubles a jeweller may face, as well as the great reward we feel when we are able to create with passion and satisfy a client’s every need.”
Cape Precious Metals commends Piccolo for their generosity and community-mindedness and we hope to see Savannah thriving in the jewellery industry in the near future!
Teaching requires deep knowledge and a clearly developed philosophy and process. Unencumbered by the ‘curse of knowledge’, a protégé simply doesn’t know what he doesn’t know and may ask challenging questions that an established professional would never have dreamt of pondering. If you are willing to assist up-and-coming or student jewellers, who could perhaps even ease your workload or bring fresh new ideas to your studio, please contact your CPM sales executive so we can connect you with someone in your area.
