Looking At Diamonds…And Myself

Posted on | February 1, 2010 | 4 Comments

I had an enlightening experience today with a customer. He came in to look at some diamonds we were holding for him, only to tell me that he found another diamond from an e-tailer and just wanted to look at settings. I explained that we don’t just sell mountings and set other company’s diamonds in them. Setting a stone in an engagement ring is the riskiest and most important part of the process. As a policy, we only set diamonds that we sell or, in some cases, a customer’s family heirloom. And, regarding diamonds, we don’t just sell paper, but provide an opportunity to view a selection of diamonds up close and answer any questions. When this customer, in my opinion, lacked an appreciation for this, I was actually offended, and I even responded to him in such a tone. As I reflected on my reaction, my first thought was, “oh no!” The last thing I need is to compromise my brand because I may have come across like a jerk, but I am so passionate about my business, and I want to get through to young people about how to buy a diamond, so that’s how it came out.

I’ve been taught by my father and grandfather this tradition of community, giving back, and standing behind my product and my word as a staple in our business. And it posed the question that maybe young people aren’t learning this lesson. It seems that in this virtual world, everything is just a number, or in this case a piece of paper. And it’s very frustrating. Hopefully, that’s what social media is doing, giving a human touch to what used to be an information driven internet. So it’s not just a sale, but a business philosophy down here. A diamond is not what a laminated piece of paper says, but each has it’s own beauty and uniqueness.

It reminds me of this blog post I wrote back in November 2008 entitled, “How to Look at a Diamond”.

Francois Curiel, head of Christie’s international jewelry division says this:

Question: What makes a stone great?

Answer: “Its ideal proportions, its life and whether it talks to you or not. We had a group of young gemological students come to our New York viewing in October. We sat them behind the showcases, like real professionals, so that they could examine the diamonds. What struck me was that the first thing they did when they picked up a stone was to loupe it. I smiled because this is what I did when I started in the business and this is what all gemological schools teach you to do. When one gets a bit older, the loupe comes second and one first looks at the diamond in one’s hand. Do I like it? Even though the proportions might not be perfect by GIA [Gemological Institute of America] standards, do I want to own this stone? Ten people look at a gem, 11 opinions. So, what makes a stone great? Your eye and appreciation of it.”

We are real people. We would love to meet you and talk to you about diamonds and explain what you should really be looking for!