Luxury Battle: Sotheby's vs Tiffany

De Beers, Sotheby's Battle Tiffany as Demand for Diamonds Booms Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Atsuko Tamura says she hopes her husband splurges on a 1.3 million yen ($11,000) De Beers flower- shaped ``Cocktail Fizz'' diamond ring for their 15th wedding anniversary. She already has a Tiffany & Co. necklace.

``The diamonds are just sprinkled all over,'' Tamura, 40, says as she steps out of the De Beers shop in Ginza, one of Tokyo's busiest and most glamorous shopping neighborhoods. ``De Beers is the most genuine of all.''

Competition is intensifying in the $70 billion diamond jewelry market as rising wealth in Asia increases demand for higher-priced pieces. De Beers, the world's largest supplier of diamonds, is winning customers from companies such as Tiffany and Cie. Financiere Richemont AG's Cartier four years after creating a retail venture with LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA. Sotheby's Holdings Inc. began selling a line of gems this month.

``Size is an advantage in this business, as is brand recognition,'' says Scilla Huang Sun, who manages a $100 million luxury goods fund, including shares of Tiffany, Richemont, LVMH and Rome-based Bulgari SpA, for Clariden Bank in Zurich.

The shares of Tiffany, which was founded in 1837 and opened its flagship store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan about a century later, have fallen 11 percent to $38.63 since the U.S. Christmas shopping season began Nov. 25.

The stock has risen 21 percent this year, compared with a 35 percent gain for Paris-based LVMH and 52 percent for Geneva- based Richemont, which also owns jeweler Van Cleef & Arpels and watchmakers IWC, Piaget and Jaeger LeCoultre.

Year-End Engagements
The shares of Anglo American Plc, which owns 45 percent of De Beers, have risen 60 percent to 1,973 pence in London. The Oppenheimer family owns 40 percent of Johannesburg-based De Beers, and the government of Botswana owns the rest.

About 25 percent of all diamond jewelry is sold during the year-end holiday season, says Sally Morrison, director of the Diamond Information Center, which is affiliated with De Beers.

Christmas Eve tops Valentine's Day as the most popular moment to pop the question, according to New York-based jeweler Jacob & Co., whose clients include Nascar racing champion Jeff Gordon. The average price of a diamond engagement ring reached a record $2,600 in the U.S. last year. read more

Waiting to Exhale

Before entering a room of well-intentioned relatives anxiously waiting to ask pointed personal questions about your love life-or lack thereof-what do you do? Hold your breath and count to 10, then exhale deeply (repeat if necessary).

Not surprisingly, the very thing that gives us life makes us calm. This is the meaning behind Exhale, a whole-body wellness spa, which promotes complete physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. Exhale's guiding principles focus on the exhaling experience through yoga, Core Fusion, spa therapies and healing treatments in. As expected, a visit to Exhale is a celestial experience, so much so that when you leave you'll feel at one with everything, from the air to the trees to your car (better arrange for a ride home).

Exhale has a treatment for everything, whether you want to be energized, detoxed or relaxed?or all of the above. Feeling the burn from an over-zealous workout (or from climbing the stairs when the elevator malfunctioned)? Try an uplifting fusion massage with rosemary, basil, chamomile and laurel leaf extracts for improved circulation and muscle soreness relief.

Maybe you need a complete overhaul. I'm not talking about a glamour makeover-I mean a makeover from the inside out-a complete reprogramming. In six weeks Exhale staff will transform you through acupuncture, nutritional wellness coaching, two core fusion classes per week and one yoga class per week to help increase your metabolism, reduce cravings, rid you of unwanted habits, and tone, shape and balance your body.

Be the first of your friends to try vibrational therapy, a unique healing therapy using tuning forks tuned to specific frequencies. Each frequency is supposed to evoke a physiological respond that helps ground and balance the body, mind and spirit. Afraid of needles? Don't worry; these are all good vibrations (no needles).

Party too hard last weekend (or every weekend since college?). Exhale to the rescue. After their acu-detox technique no one will be the wiser about your party years. Acupuncture and hot oil abdominal therapy facilitate the release and elimination of toxins in the body while enhancing organ function. Your liver is saved!

Exhale employees are serious about living a peaceful, stress-free life. But they're realistic and know that after your wonderfully relaxing experience at their spa, you'll be back to yelling at other drivers and stressing out over work, which is why they hold workshops. Get a grip on the holidays with the) "Take the Stress Out of the Holidays" workshop; or learn new relaxation techniques in the "Sotai Movement Therapy Workshop" or "Twisting into Backbends" workshop (I'll leave this one to your imagination).

See? I told you Exhale has a treatment for everything. If you live in Chicago, Boston, LA or New York (and soon Dallas), you're in luck. Exhale has locations in each of these major cities. Visit www.exhalespa.com for specific locations.

For LxM Amy Covington

When Fashion's Your Passion

It has been stated many times over that clothes do not make the man; it is the man who makes the clothes.

However, when the man making the clothes is Ascot Chang, this philosophy is in need of a few alterations. Custom-made shirts by Ascot Chang enable a man to present himself like he never did before. These are shirts where the man separates himself from the ordinary and elevates his presence to extraordinary.

Ascot Chang's custom-made shirts are made from the finest Egyptian cotton. Single-needle tailoring, French seams and 22 stitches per inch infuse quality that ascends the wearer to a new level of refinement. It is more than a shirt. It is an asset that pays dividends each time it is worn. Some of the most respected and revered men in the world are Ascot Chang's customers. Beyond his presidential cabinet, President Bush's closet is lined with a fleet of Ascot Chang's-all on hangers and ready for takeoff!

With variety being the spice of life, Ascot Chang's custom made shirts offers a man numerous options to manifest his individualism. You get to choose from 15 collar types and four unique cuff styles. Monogramming comes in eight variants, and you decide whether it goes on the pocket or the cuff.

The only thing better than ordering a custom-made shirt directly from Ascot Chang's website would be to personally visit his stores in Hong Kong, Manhattan or Beverly Hills. A man's "cut of the cloth" has never been so definitive.

For LxM James Rothaar

Groomed for success

Five o'clock shadows are great but what could beat a well shaven man? Back in the day, a clean shave was taken seriously, worthy of a special trip to the local barber. Now days a can of shaving cream and a Bic razor pass for proper male hygiene.

A shocking concept to the legendary William Francis Truefitt, who opened the first Gentlemen's Barber Shop in 1805. Today, Truefitt & Hill is a household name among dignitaries from London to Toronto, and Chicago to Las Vegas. Discerning men bypass the accidental knicks for a hot lather shave, haircut and shoe shine from professionals trained in Truefitt's 200-year-old tradition. For those who don't live near one of the Truefitt barbershops, Truefitt & Hill offers a complete collection of fine grooming products like the Regency brush, razor and stand collection ($280).

For LxM Amy Covington