It is called Pace Group, a name that sounds Italian, but it was born in Mumbai, India, in 1944. It was founded by Kirtilal Manilal Mehta, the first Indian to establish a diamond trading company in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1953. Pace Group was also one of the first Indian diamond trading companies to obtain Sight Holder accreditation from the DTC, the Diamond Trading Company, a subsidiary for the sale and distribution of rough diamonds by the De Beers group. From trading in diamonds, the company expanded to that of fine jewelry.
The founder’s son, Prabodh Mehta, who joined the company at the age of 17, has received numerous awards, including the decoration of Officer of the Order of Leopold of Belgium and the Order of the Crown. But it was his son, Chetan Mehta, who created the company’s jewelry divisions based in Italy and Thailand. For the Middle East, Pace Group also created the Imperia brand in 2012, which offers high-quality jewelry to customers in the Emirates. Pace Group now has offices in Dubai and Hong Kong as well as Mumbai.
