Wilhelm John “Willi” Kalich (b. August 24, 1938; d. June 3, 2020) was a German-trained jeweler and designer known for his technical excellence and fine jewelry creations. Born in Banja Luka, Yugoslavia, he and his family relocated to West Germany in 1954 as World War II refugees. He later attended the Design Academy for Precious Metal Work in Schwäbisch Gmünd and achieved early international recognition for his designs. By his mid-twenties he was working in New York, first at Ostier, Inc., and soon after at Tiffany & Co., where he served as a designer, model maker, shop foreman, and ultimately Manager of the Fine Jewelry Workshop under Walter Hoving. There he established an apprenticeship program and collaborated with leading designers at Tiffany & Co., while teaching jewelry construction at the Fashion Institute of Technology. In 1978, he founded W. Kalich Mfg. in New York City, building a respected workshop run largely by his former students.