About Kai Zaunick

Young German software designer Kai Zaunick arrived in Peru six years ago in search of adventure and instead found a new vocation. Inspired by the spectacular jewelry of Peru´s Mochica and Inca civilizations and Spanish colonizers, Kai turned to silverwork, cutting his teeth on ornate pieces for private clients. His first range of jewelry, heavily influenced by pop culture, soon caught the eye of trendsetters in Lima, Peru´s capital.

Demand for his work was so strong that in 2006, Kai founded his own studio in Barranco, Lima´s artist enclave, and soon after launched an online business focusing on cufflinks. Today Kai´s sterling silver cufflinks are sold in the United States, Europe and Latin America, and Peru´s government named him best exporter start-up for 2009. A German national, Kai is a perfectionist with a knack for catching the zeitgeist. Among his best-selling cufflinks are the “great white” reminiscent of Jaws, piranhas modeled on the 1970s B-grade film, flying saucers, familiar cartoon characters and iconic objects such as 1950s-style microphones and 1930s “Widowmaker” single-propeller airplanes.

Clients can also order custom cufflinks within two to four weeks by contacting Kai with an idea. All cufflinks are handworked and finished by Kai and a team of five craftsmen in his Lima studio, using local silver. Each new design is based on hand sketches and a series of wax models.