Bohème by Véro began with Veronique “Vero” Manchara’s decade in India, where the beauty of traditional Indian jewellery inspired her to create expressive pieces that felt lighter and easier to wear. What started as a passion alongside a small beach shop in Goa followed her to Singapore, where Bohème by Véro officially began in 2016.
Ten years on, storytelling remains at the heart of every collection. Places, colours and atmospheres—from the Amazon rainforest and Ancient Egypt to Singapore’s tropical landscape—shape each design, with semi-precious stones chosen as part of the story rather than simply as decoration.
Made in close collaboration with artisans in Jaipur, the jewellery reflects relationships and knowledge built over years of working together. As Bohème by Véro celebrates a decade, Vero looks back on the places, people and experiences behind her belief that jewellery should always have a soul.
Below, the founder take us behind the brand
Bohème by Véro turns ten this year, taking us back to 2016. How did the brand begin?
The story really began in India. I lived there for ten years and, while working at the
American school in Goa, I opened a small beach shop. I was distributing pieces by Indian
designers, but I was also creating my own extravagant earrings. Indian earrings can be
incredibly beautiful, but often very heavy, so I began reworking that spirit into pieces
that felt lighter and easier to wear.
When we returned to Singapore at the end of 2015, I wanted to keep that creative spirit
alive. At first, I imagined I would simply do some import-export alongside everything
else I was doing. But I needed to register a brand, and that was the beginning of
Bohème by Véro. What started almost casually, as a passion on the side, gradually
became its own world.
Was there a particular moment in the last ten years when you realised the brand had become something bigger than you initially imagined?
COVID was a turning point. Until then, the brand was still very much something I was
developing alongside the rest of my life. During that period, clients began coming to my
studio in small groups. I saw how much the jewellery meant to them - not simply as an
accessory, but as something joyful, personal and emotional at a difficult time.
That gave me the courage to think bigger. I connected with an agent in Paris and
entered my first international platforms and retailers, including Poison Drop. It gave me
confidence that the brand could travel beyond Singapore.
Then, last year, I connected with Mega Mega Projects in New York. Since then, the
pieces have been celebrated internationally, worn by celebrities and featured across
numerous magazines. Each of those moments has pushed the brand into a new chapter
After a decade of designing jewellery, what has remained completely unchanged in your approach?
The stories. Every collection begins with a story. I am inspired by epochs, places,
feelings, atmospheres and the particular energy of a destination. I never want to create
jewellery that exists without a soul or a reason behind it.
For example, I will present Lumiere, a collection inspired by ice, wood and light - the
feeling and atmosphere as Christmas approaches. Then next summer comes Sol de
Ibiza, inspired by the island where I spent the month of June and where I have been
collaborating with beach clubs and hotels. The locations change, the materials evolve,
but storytelling has always been at the heart of Bohème by Véro.
After living and spending significant time across eight countries, what have you learned about the different ways women wear and respond to your jewellery?
I feel very lucky because today friends, clients and celebrities all over the world wear
Bohème by Véro. The pieces can be found on women in the United States, Russia,
Africa, the Middle East, Australia and across Asia.
What I love most is that there is no single Boheme woman. Our clients can be 20 or 80
years old, and the jewellery can resonate with both. Even men are increasingly drawn to
the pieces and to the spirit behind them. That has taught me that when a piece has
personality and soul, it can cross borders, cultures, generations and even traditional
ideas of who jewellery is for.
Now that you are based in Singapore, has living in Southeast Asia especially inspired you?
I have actually been living overseas since I was 20, and I have spent around 25 years in
Asia, so Asia is not a new influence for me - it is deeply woven into my life. My husband
is Singaporean, and my youngest child, now a teenager, is Singaporean too.
What continually inspires me here is the tropical vegetation, the extraordinary beauty of
nature and the strength of colour. I am naturally drawn to vivid tones and natural
stones, and Southeast Asia offers an endless palette: orchids, deep greens, water,
flowers, jungle and light. All of that finds its way, directly or indirectly, into my work.
Can you choose three items that Dia Guild will be carrying?
I would love to highlight three timeless pieces from the final Dia Guild selection. One of
them should certainly be the Amazonia Drops, launched for Summer 2026.
The Amazonia Drops are hand-carved and evoke drops of water falling through the heart
of the rainforest. Their colours speak to the landscape itself: the intense greens of the
vegetation and the luminous tones of water and sky. This collection was also a first for
us because we introduced specially carved stones, allowing the stone itself to become
part of the storytelling and movement of the design.
The other two pieces can be selected from Dia Guild's final edit so that together the
three jewels show the versatility, craftsmanship and storytelling of Bohème by Véro.
How do you choose which semi-precious stone belongs in a particular design?
The stones always belong to the story of the collection. I choose colour almost as if I am
painting a place.
For Amazonia, naturally, I chose the greens of the forest, the blues of the sky and water,
and yellow inspired by sunlight and the colours associated with Brazil. For an
Egypt-inspired story, I am drawn to lapis lazuli and citrine - colours that immediately
evoke ancient Egyptian richness, blue skies, gold and sun. For Singapore, the orchid
becomes an important symbol, and amethyst reflects the purple tones of the national
flower.
So each collection develops its own colour language. The stones are not added at the
end; they help tell the story from the beginning.
Tell us about the artisans and workshop behind the jewellery. Where are they based?
Our artisans are based in Jaipur. Having lived in India for ten years, my connection with
Indian craftsmanship is very personal. My first workshop was in New Delhi, but I moved
quite quickly towards Jaipur because of its extraordinary jewellery heritage and the
depth of craftsmanship found there.
Today, there is a dedicated section working on my products, and over the years the
artisans have become like family. That relationship matters enormously to me. There is
a shared understanding of the pieces, the stones, the proportions and the details that
comes only with time. The jewellery may travel around the world, but that human
craftsmanship remains at its heart.
If you could sit down with the Veronique of 2016, what would you tell her?
I think she would find it almost impossible to believe what was coming.
One of the first moments that truly astonished me was in 2023, when Sharon Stone
wore my jewellery, including a brooch styled on a long dress by Youssef Akbar. I could never have imagined in 2016 that one of my brooches would appear on a runway, that
celebrities would wear my pieces, or that Bohème by Véro would be featured
internationally - from Marie Claire UK and Marie Claire Australia to WSJ. Magazine, Vogue
and luxury publications across different markets.
I still sometimes cannot believe how far we have come. For the second decade, my wish
is very simple: I would love to see Bohème by Véro in more corners of the world and
touching more beautiful souls.
I want to continue creating jewellery with a soul - pieces that are versatile, expressive
and accessible within the world of luxury, and that resonate with people regardless of
age, country or background. That, for me, would be the most beautiful continuation of
the story
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
