From Capturing Queen Letizia's Attention to Equipping Amaia Montero

ROD Almayate captured Queen Letizia's attention at the 2021 National Sports Awards, where the Queen wore earrings from the bold jewellery brand. These were shoe lace-shaped pieces, gold and palladium plated with Swarovski crystals, priced at 220 euros, which quickly sold out from the founder Diego Díaz Marín's stock. "A blessing," he remarked at the time, as he had not sold anything for months due to the pandemic.

The impact of Queen Letizia, who had previously worn the brand's pieces on three occasions, gave visibility to a rebellious and provocative brand that emerged two years earlier, providing "weight and seriousness," creating the contrast of dressing a queen, whom he considers "the most elegant woman in the world," and other women of very different styles, such as the trap singer and songwriter known as La Zowi.

The Malaga-based house has also attracted celebrities like Céline Dion, Olivia Palermo, Rita Ora, Eva Longoria, Paz Vega, Chiara Ferragni, Miley Cyrus, Najwa Nimri, Blanca Suárez, Manuel Carrasco, and more recently, Karol G. However, "sometimes the impact comes from the most unexpected places, because when Lady Gaga or major American stars wear our brand, it gives you weight, but it doesn't translate into impact or sales. Do you know who gives you an impact that leaves you stunned? Candela Peña," who, as she describes herself, is "another queen."

Beyoncé might have worn them in public, having purchased them for private use, or Rihanna, but in her case, it wasn't possible because she wanted them "overnight" and the collection was already promised for Netflix's 'Élite' series. Nevertheless, the Barbadian star hasn't given up and continues to try to reach an agreement with the Malaga brand, which has allowed Díaz "the luxury"—he emphasizes—of settling very close to his birthplace, Torre del Mar, leaving behind his past as a photographer with major brands like Versace, Aquazzura, or Roberto Cavalli and publications like Vogue Italia and Harper's Bazaar.

Unlike other jewellery houses, it seeks beauty in simple and everyday objects like band-aids, sardines, prawns, nail clippers, cigarettes, dental appliances, and clothespins, or in other figures considered politically incorrect like condoms or vaginas, one of the most popular figures, although the best sellers are the olive skewers and guns, which Candela Peña showcased on 'Late Show,' Marc Giró's program. "Before, no one bought them," and now, Díaz explains, it is "as viral in sales as the Queen's bows."

It was precisely the gun earrings that Amaia Montero chose to break her silence when Cayetana Guillén-Cuervo revealed that the singer was returning to La Oreja de Van Gogh, earrings she wore for the first promotional images of the band's comeback with her at the helm. Shortly before, Leire Martínez, the group's previous vocalist, had worn the brand's knives, but they went unnoticed, unlike the band-aids she opted for during her performance on 'Operación Triunfo.' A most enlightening narrative about the artists' situation through the Andalusian's earrings, whose unmistakable style is the hallmark of a brand that has managed to offer luxury items at affordable prices.

The Malaga native, a hard worker who mingles with the crème de la crème of fashion after starting from scratch in the industry, dominates magazine editorials and celebrity wardrobes with his most iconic pieces and, as he exclusively reveals in an interview for this newspaper, ROD Almayate's horizon includes film production, as—bridging the gap, he humbly notes—Saint Laurent is doing with films like 'Emilia Pérez' and 'Parthenope.' "We already have a project with a Hollywood actress as the lead," Diego confesses with the same ease with which he turns a band-aid into a jewel.