Caroline Scheufele has served as our independent director since June 2021. Ms. Scheufele has over 35 years of experience in the watchmaking and jewelry industry and currently serves as the co-president and artistic director of Chopard, one of the last family-run Swiss watch makers and jewelers. Since 1985, Ms. Scheufele has held various leadership positions at Chopard, including leading Chopard’s ladies’ collections and developing the jewelry section and later the high-end jewelry department at Chopard. Ms. Scheufele designed Chopard’s first jewelry collection, Happy Diamonds, the Happy Sports watches featuring a world-first combination of steel and diamonds, and the Haute Joaillerie Red Carpet and Animal World collections. Ms. Scheufele has also contributed to Chopard’s international exposure by connecting its image with the world of cinema and iconic events, such as the Cannes Film Festival. In 1998, she redesigned the Palme d’Or, the award piece for the Cannes Film Festival, and made Chopard the official event partner onwards. Ms. Scheufele is a dedicated philanthropist in support of charitable causes, such as the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amFAR) and the José Carreras Leukemia Foundation. She has promoted corporate social responsibility including Chopard’s membership in the Responsible Jewelry Council since 2010. Under the leadership of Ms. Scheufele, Chopard has become one of the first brands to use raw materials that meet the highest possible social and environmental standards and has supported Fairmined certified responsible gold. Ms. Scheufele was honoured with both the annual Fashion 4 Development (F4D) Award and the BRAVO Business Award for “Environmentalist of the Year” in 2014 and received the Designer of the Year Award at the second Sustainable Style Gala in 2019. Ms. Scheufele holds a diploma from Geneva’s International School and decided to join the family business where she took intensive classes in design and gemmology afterwards.