Ernst & Young (EY) Entrepreneur Of The Year™ New Zealand Finalist: a moment of recognition for our team and our clients
We’re proud to share that Chris Benham, director at The Village Goldsmith and co-founder of Floeting®, has been named a finalist in the 2025 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Awards.
This world-renowned programme celebrates leaders building businesses with purpose, innovation and global impact. Chris’s nomination reflects not just his personal vision and leadership, but the collective creativity, perseverance and ambition of our entire team at The Village Goldsmith. Together, we’ve brought to life a bold idea that’s helping to reshape the future of fine jewellery: the Floeting® Diamond.
Getting to know Chris
Chris co-founded Inspired Jewellery with Ian and Christine Douglas in 2009, with Chris as CEO. The business addressed the unmet global need for design-led, tension-set engagement rings. Despite technical complexity, Chris helped drive rapid international expansion, securing partnerships with major jewellery chains across India and China. Within three years, he was recognised as Young Leader of the Year at the Jewellery World Awards.
As momentum grew, Inspired merged with The Village Goldsmith where Chris became a director. Bringing deep commercial, operational, and global strategic expertise to the highly creative team, the foundation was laid for what would become Floeting®. Born from an idea by Ian Douglas and developed in collaboration with Christine Douglas, Chris Benham and a team unafraid to challenge convention, Floeting® represents a new way to hold, see and experience diamonds without claws. The result is a world-first innovation rewriting the rules of fine jewellery design.
Powered by an extraordinary team
The Floeting® success didn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of nearly two decades of problem-solving, collaboration, and persistence driven forward by an incredible group of designers, engineers, makers, and thinkers. What began as a technical challenge has become a globally scaled design platform, now selling in over 50 countries and recently featured in one of the world’s most iconic jewellery brand’s new collections.
As Ian Douglas puts it:
“Chris has helped Christine and I shape The Village Goldsmith into more than a jewellery brand. We’re a global creative hub, a technology partner, and a team that believes in doing things differently.”
This year’s EY theme is building better businesses for Aotearoa — and that’s exactly what drives us. Chris’s recognition highlights the values that guide us: boundless curiosity, a respect for the craft and refusal to be bound by it, and a shared desire to build something meaningful. We’re proud to show that you don’t have to be based in a fashion capital to lead global innovation in fine jewellery. You just need vision, grit, and a great team.
What’s next
The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ finalists will be considered for the national title later this year, with one going on to represent New Zealand at the global awards in 2026. Whatever the outcome, we’re honoured to stand alongside some of the country’s most inspiring innovators — and proud to have our story recognised as part of that conversation.
Thank you to our team, clients, and partners who’ve helped bring Floeting® to life. This moment belongs to all of us.
