There are few CEOs who spend their spare time hand-crafting designs for their brand, but Focal’s Cédrick Boutonet is passionate about more than audio excellence. Having worked for brands such as Cartier, Alfred Dunhill and Vertu, the ultra-high-end smartphone maker, he knows that luxury is about seeking perfection (it’s helpful that Focal is merged with Naim, the British brand loved by audiophiles), but also offering people something truly unique and personalised.
That is the thinking behind Focal Crafts. Its laboratory, beside Focal’s production workshops in Saint-Etienne, is a true atelier, offering people the opportunity to customise the brand’s speakers, such as its high-end ‘Utopia’ and ‘Diva’ loudspeakers in a vast array of materials, from a plethora of leather colours to plumasserie (the art of covering objects in feathers), recycled plastics, woven and patterned fabrics and much more. A memorable example is the Focal ‘Utopia by Tournaire’ headphones – a limited-edition design encrusted with 18-carat gold and 6.5 carats of diamonds. They are the most expensive headphones ever produced.
And if there is a finish that Focal Crafts doesn’t currently have as an option, the team are willing to stress test it to ensure it will work without compromising your speaker or headphone’s audio output. Form should follow function, of course.
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But what of Mr Boutonet’s extra-curricular crafting exploits? He enjoys the art of applying patina to leather, an artisan skill from the world of shoemaking. The pieces he has created by applying creams and pigments to segments of semi-aniline cowhide have inspired the ‘Opus No1’ collection. It is a limited-edition range of 13 ‘Utopia’ loudspeakers, hand-covered in the artfully reimagined leather. Each speaker is accompanied by nesting tables and ‘Bathys’ hi-fi headphones featuring the same leather. The creations are available exclusively in selected Focal Powered by Naim boutiques. focal.com
