Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) is American jewllery and silverware company.

As part of its branding, the company is strongly associated with its Tiffany Blue     , which is a registered trademark. 

Model 1840 Cavalry Saber and "Tiffany Cross" version of the Medal of Honor  

History:  Founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany and Teddy Young in New York City in 1837 as a "stationery and fancy goods emporium," the store initially sold a wide variety of stationery items and operated as Tiffany, Young and Ellis in lower Manhattan. $4.98 was the total sales on Tiffany’s first day of trading. Shortened to Tiffany & Co. in 1853 when Charles Tiffany took control, the firm's emphasis on jewelry was established. In 1845 the first Tiffany catalog, known as the "Blue Book", was published - it is still being published today. In 1862 Tiffany & Co. supplied the Union Army with swords (Model 1840 Cavalry Saber), flags and surgical implements. In 1867 the company was the first US firm to win an award for the excellence in silverware at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. In 1877, an insignia that would become the famous New York Yankees "NY" logo was struck on a medal of honor by Tiffany & Co. and issued to the first NYC police officer shot in the line of duty. The Yankees adopted the logo in 1909.

In 1865 the company revised the Great Seal of the USA. In 1919, the company made a revision to the Medal of Honor on behalf of the United States Department of the Navy. This "Tiffany Cross" version was rare because it was awarded only for combat, using the previous design for non-combat awards. In 1942 the Navy established the Tiffany version for non-combat heroism, but it proved unpopular, perhaps due to its resemblance to the German Iron Cross. In August 1942 the Navy eliminated the Tiffany Cross and the two-medal system.

In 1968, US First Lady Bird Johnson commissioned Tiffany to design a White House China Service, which featured 90 flowers. In June 2004, the jeweler Tiffany & Co. sued eBay, claiming that eBay profits from the sale of counterfeit Tiffany products.  Tiffany lost at trial and on appeal.

Each year Tiffany & Co. creates a new Vince Lombardi Trophy, the award given to the NFL team that wins the Super Bowl that year. On the 28th of January 2008, it was announced that the Japanese mobile phone operator SoftBank and Tiffany & Co. had collaborated in making a limited 10 model-only cellphone. This cellphone contains more than 400 diamonds, totalling more than 20 carats. The cost is said to be more than 100,000,000 yen.  

The Vince Lombardi Trophy and the cellphone 

Current designers and collections: Frank Gehry's collections include Axis, Equus, Fish, Flux, Orchid, Torque and Tube. Elsa Peretti's collections include Bean, Diamonds by the Yard, Open Heart, Sevillana and Teardrop. Paloma Picasso's collections include Loving Heart and Sugar Stacks. Jean Schlumberger. Richard Lambertson and John Truex designed the upcoming Handbag collection that was announced on the 26th of August 2010.   

Stores: Tiffany’s flagship store, since 1940, is located at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 57^th Street in Manhattan. The polished granite exterior is well known for its tiny window displays. The store has been the location for a number of films including Breakfast at Tiffany's - starring Audrey Hepburn, and Sweet Home Alabama - starring Reese Witherspoon. The former Tiffany and Company Building on 38th Street is on the US National Register of Historic Places. 

The Hooker Emerald Brooch commissioned in 1950 

Other locations: As 2007, the Company operated 64 Tiffany & Co. stores in the US and 103 Tiffany & Co. international stores, including Brazil, Honolulu, Kuala Lumpur, London and Terminal 5 - Heathrow airport, Shepherd's Bush, Dublin, Madrid, Australia and Colombia.

Iridesse: In 2004, Tiffany & Co. created another chain of stores, Iridesse, dedicated to pearl-only jewelry. The company operated 16 stores in the US but due to disappointing sales the stores closed in 2009.

The Wall Street Branch where we were made to feel very welcome. 

Diamonds: Tiffany designs were worn by such famous US families as the Astors, Vanderbilts, Posts, Huttons and the Morgans. Athletes, Hollywood stars and even European royalty adored these diamonds. Museums valued the Tiffany designs, which ranged from the Art Nouveau period to Art Deco to today's modern styles. A Tiffany’s gemologist, George Frederick Kunz, was instrumental in the international adoption of the metric carat as a weight standard for gems, and the Tiffany standard for sterling and platinum have been adopted as United States Standards. There is just something very special about Tiffany's. My Auntie Maud gave me a Tiffany gold, twist, two strand, fine rope torque bracelet when I was young; she said everyone who visits New York should visit, so we did just that. It was everything and more.