On August 12, the mayor of Souli, Yiannis Karagiannis, received a phone call from an associate of the Bulgari famil, off the well-known jewellery house Bvlgari, which originates from the broader area of Paramythia. The mayor was informed that the Bulgari's would be arriving the next day and wished to visit certain places that marked the beginning of their "empire".
"Essentially, we were notified at the last minute and ran to clean the school's courtyard because work was being done there. We also had to prepare something for the small reception for the private visit of Nicola Bulgari and his family members," the mayor told Proto Thema.
The black ten-seater van arrived in Paramythia just before 11 in the morning. Nicola Bulgari, his wife Beatrice and seven other members, mostly young people, got out of the vehicle and found themselves in front of the former Primary School, which had been built with a donation from Sotirios Voulgaris.
"With deep emotion, our visitors were guided by the attendees to the site of the former Primary School and listened with particular interest to what the municipality has planned to highlight the history of Bvlgari, but also of the place in general," said the mayor.
"The family stated they were delighted with the museological and museographic proposal presented and currently underway. Enthusiastic about the project, everyone had ideas and suggestions to share and declared themselves ready to interact and provide data and material to the municipality and the study group with the aim of a fuller and more accurate depiction of the house's history," said the mayor.
Nicola Bulgari listened and observed the entire study of the project, according to which there will be three rooms on the first floor of the old school, and they will concern his family. One will depict the life of the Voulgaris family, originally from the village of Kalarites in Tzoumerka, who were forced to leave it in 1821 because the Turks destroyed it.
The family moved to the nearby capital village of Thesprotia, Paramythia, which became the springboard for Sotirios Voulgaris, the only one of the 11 children of Giorgos Voulgaris and Eleni Struggaris who managed to survive.
Born in March 1857 in highly adverse circumstances, his fate was predestined: he followed the family tradition of silversmithing - his contact with jewellery began with his grandfather Konstantinos, an itinerant silversmith in the villages of Epirus.
Together with his father, Sotiris opens a jewellery store in Paramythia.
The war with the mafia
1880 they immigrated to Italy, initially opening their first jewellery store in Naples. In the Italian city, Sotirios Voulgaris faces the local mafia who loots the shop and the goods. Voulgaris leaves for Rome - and works as an itinerant selling their jewellery outside the Vatican to tourists. The money they earn is enough to open a new store.
The characteristic V instead of U in the first syllable of his name is inspired by archaic Roman scripts. In 1897, Sotiris Voulgaris built four more jewellery stores in Italy. By 1913, having his children, Giorgios and Konstantinos, in his work, he developed his career at a leaping pace.
The third room will depict the evolution of the family when after the death of Sotiris Voulgaris in 1932, his sons take entirely over the business and take it off the ground. By the mid-1970s, the Bvlgari brand was present in all the world's metropolises.
At the same time, film productions, the protagonists of which appeared in the house's jewellery, played an essential role in its dissemination.
Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida - in her hand-bejewelled white silk Bvlgari dress dancing with Frank Sinatra in the famous 1959 film Calcutta Beauty - are among his most famous clients. Marilyn Monroe but also later Jessica Lange in the 1976 film "King Kong", Sharon Stone in the 1995 film "Casino", and Madonna as Evita Perón (1995) gave glamorous film moments wearing legendary creations of the house, while Bvlgari jewellery a constant presence on the red carpet of the biggest shows in the world, such as the Golden Globes and the Oscars.
But also Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Keira Knightley, Charlize Theron and Carla Bruni are some other celebrities who are fascinated by the style of the jewellery house that lists at least 230 stores worldwide.
The abduction
In the third room of the first floor of the former Paramythia Primary School, there will be a separate space for the life of Anna Voulgari, who passed away in May 2020 at the age of 93 and who was the victim of abduction. The great-granddaughter of the founder Sotirios Voulgaris, who spoke Greek fluently, even though she was born and raised in Rome, made sure to visit Paramythia incognito during the summers while continually making donations to the town.
In the mid-1980s, she was kidnapped along with her youngest of three children by the mafia. She described her abduction vividly: "They kidnapped me and my son and held us hostage for 35 days. They cut off my child's ear to get the ransom. The kidnappers were from Sardinia. Killers. They kept us on the floor and in the cold on a mountain for 35 days. My family paid the kidnappers 4 billion lire, which is 2 million euros today. The child was strong; he did not say anything; they cut off his ear with a knife. I lost ten years of my life. It was terrible."
The lightning visit to Paramythia for the descendants of Sotirios Voulgaris was a pleasant excursion as part of their summer vacation in Greece. On September 24, architects and engineers from the company will be in Paramythia to meet with the municipal authority for any changes to the proposal that the municipality has given for the utilisation of the former primary school.
The first store
At the same time, there are indication that Nicola Bulgari showed great interest in acquiring the first store his grandfather had opened in Paramythia, which is in the hands of a private individual who has already held some initial discussions with the mayor.
Nicola Bulgari, whose fortune is estimated at 2 billion dollars according to Forbes, expressed his gratitude for the tour and what has been done in Paramythia by the municipality and said that he would attend the opening at the beginning of the year of the new cultural centre that will be housed in the school which was built with a donation from his grandfather.
"The sign of this extraordinary visit is 100% positive for our country. Nicola Bulgari stated that he was delighted with the reception, the organisation in a minimum of time, the tour and what was discussed," said the mayor.
"He emphasised his willingness to help in any way necessary from his side to complete the project of highlighting the Bvlgari heritage. He stated that he would be present for the opening of the building so that the event and the place receive the maximum possible publicity," continued Karagiannis.
"We thank them all from the bottom of our hearts for the visit and their positive attitude toward any assistance," he concluded.
READ MORE: The Art of Womanhood: Miss Polyplexi Unveils SS23 Collection.
