Under the radar:

If you present customers with a selection of precious stones, don't mention the price range and ask which one they like best, it is inevitable they would choose the stone that is most expensive, says Moya Corcoran talking to,

Ciarán Brennan.

If that's the case it augurs well for her new business - personally designed, top of the range, one-off jewellery handmade by some of the best jewellers in Europe. Corcoran set up the business when she returned from London where, among other things, she had been head of authentication for Cartier UK and a former adviser to the BBC's Antiques Roadshow.

"I realised there was just this gaping void in Ireland for bespoke jewellery," says Corcoran. "There are a lot of good jewellers in Dublin but what they are promoting is branded goods and they are not interested in promoting bespoke jewellery." Corcoran's business allows customers to work with her to design their own piece of jewellery.

"We sit down and create the design together. I have a team of freelance designers that work for me and then I come back to the customer with a hand-painted design with three different visions of the piece from three different angles."

The stones that Corcoran has available are sourced from the same dealer as that used by the likes of Cartier and Graff and her pieces are handmade by select Bond Street trained jewellers.

It sounds simple but Corcoran says her background and experience in the business, particularly with the jeweller and watchmaker Cartier, makes a difference.

"I came back to Dublin and decided with my qualifications and background I couldn't really find the direct fit for me within the trade here so the most logical thing for me was to set up on my own," she says.

She spent around eight years working for Cartier. For many it may sound like the perfect job and Corcoran concedes there was an element of luck about landing it. She had originally studied art and design history and was working as a lecturer, but her decision to hand deliver her CV to Cartier changed her career.

"The HR woman said nobody had ever handed in a CV so she was curious about me. I came for an interview and it was a time when Cartier was having a British museum exhibition so I was taken in on temporary contract and I worked my way up to head of authentication," she says.

Along the way, she became a fully qualified gemmologist and diamond grader. She and her husband decided to bring up their children in Ireland.

The time is now right for a bespoke jewellery design service in Ireland, she says. As well as the growing affluence of the Irish people - latest statistics indicate there are 30,000 millionaires in Ireland - Corcoran describes the demographics in Ireland as perfect for business. Around 15 per cent of the population are women in the 25-44 age bracket.

"That is a huge percentage of the Irish population in that age group and that is the prime target for the jewellery market," she says. "Amongst the new rich in Ireland, they want a product that will set them apart from others, that has a story to tell, that is a little bit different. All you have to do is look at the sales of holidays in this county. There are a lot of people looking for a trophy holiday, they don't want to be going on the same holiday as everyone else and it is exactly the same with the retail industry."

Corcoran hopes to build her business: "The idea over time is that I would take people and train them to make sure they have gemmology and diamond grading training and over time they will be able to use my name and we will set up centres in Dublin, Cork, Belfast and start moving international after that point."

On The Record

Name:Moya Corcoran

Age:35

Family:Married to Paul with three children.

Background:Did a degree in the history of art and design in Manchester and a masters in film studies in UCD. Lectured in the National Gallery and Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery and also some adult education courses in UCD before joining Cartier where she trained as a gemmologist and diamond grader before becoming head of authentication. Also worked as an advisor to the BBC's Antiques Roadshow.

Inspired by:Coco Chanel for her style and business sense.

Most likes to:spend time with my children, family and enjoys a lot of retail therapy.