From the polo fields to our wrists, the story behind the iconic Vernet Polo Mallet Bracelet
Equestrian style has been a great source of inspiration for many brands throughout fashion history and is popular with non-equestrians too. So much so, that it has at times even become mainstream. Though polo nuts know how to tell other polo nuts apart from just fashion nuts.
We feel that we belong to a special club, the international polo club and we want to show that in every way we can. Overflowing our friends’ social media feeds with our polo pictures (guilty! check out my Instagram) and telling anyone who will listen, about our latest battlefield stories of hooking and riding off and scoring the perfect goal (not really my case). And why do we do it? Because we are proud of it. We want the world to know that we have the polo bug and when you spot a fellow poloist in the crowd there is that mutual connection and feeling of camaraderie.
Bianca Verneuil and Clément Gosset understood this and are very much part of that polo-bug-crowd and they wanted to create something special for polo people, which could be worn every day and shows your passion, then Vernet Paris was born. Bianca says: “The polo mallet is the most important accessory of a polo player, and it’s beautiful. In our mind, wearing a Vernet polo mallet bracelet is a good way to show your membership to the polo world!”
Bianca and Clément are both avid polo players. Whilst Bianca calls herself an amateur, Clément holds a handicap of 3 and can regularly be seen zooming down the polo fields of Chantilly and Deauville.
You have customers from all over the world. Which countries brought a smile to your face shipping a bracelet to?
We are a really young brand and the first time we had an order from another country, it was from the USA. We were so happy to see that we were sharing our products with polo lovers around the world.
We are happy to send our bracelets everywhere, but we really want to export them to Argentina, to famous polo places like Palermo, Tortugas or Hurlingham.
Which polo tournaments are you involved in? Why those?
This year, we were involved in a French ladies tournament, « l’Open des Dames » at the Polo of Paris.
I am happy to see more and more ladies tournaments! And we want to support the fact that girls are playing too!
In August, we organized a Vernet Paris Polo Cup 6-8 goals in Deauville, it was great!
Tell me about the process of making these teeny tiny mallets.
This part is so exciting! My favourite 😉
All our products are made by a French creator. Our workshop is in Paris, in the neighbourhood of LE MARAIS.
We use different materials for our mallets, so the process is not exactly the same for each, but let’s talk about the silver polo mallet for example …
The first step is the conception of the 3D drawing. We spend a lot of time on because it’s the base of a good work! So we work with a professional. We talk, we show some pictures, we spend some time looking at real mallets, explaining how to use it to make him understand all the motions.
When the 3D is done, we create a mould. The mould is tried 2,3 or more times… until we are satisfied with the result.
Then, the polo mallet is engraved to finish all the details (the logo, the grip). And after the engraving, it’s polished to perfection.
We test the product for a month, everyday and everywhere. We play polo with it, we take care of our horses… well, we live our daily life! And finally, if the polo mallet is still perfect at the end of all the proof sheets, we validate the mould.
When the mould is validated, we begin the production.
This summer we tried a new concept, with a mallet bracelet made of resin, which is funky and colourful, perfect for long days at the beach and a great gift idea for kids and adults.
The dynamic duo behind Vernet Paris are expanding their design to cover more lifestyle sports, now offering the motor racing edition with the driving wheel and next up will be golf. I look forward to seeing where Vernet Paris will go and all the styles I will be able to include in #MyPoloStyle.
*Disclaimer: I received a Vernet Paris Polo Mallet Bracelet as a gift. The story of how it is made inspired me, so I wanted to share it with you guys.