Selling Diamonds In Baltimore/Washington DC

Posted on | January 26, 2011 | 1 Comment

I just want to share this video where I talk about what we look for when buying diamonds from our customers. Of course we also show a few nice diamonds in this one! Have a look and please click here to contact us if you’re in the market to sell your diamond.

Silver…The New Gold!

Posted on | January 8, 2011 | 9 Comments

The talk the past few years has been about the bull run of gold, now hovering at about $1400 per ounce. I even talked about gold hitting $1000 per ounce in September 2009 in this post “Gold Spot Prices At 1000, What’s Next?” I also made a prediction in that post that is spot on!

What do I think? I don’t think $4-5000 per ounce is realistic any time soon, but $1200 – $1500 is possible in the next year. I definitely do not think that gold will go back to $500-600 per ounce as it was not too long ago.

Not bad, huh? Anyway, the metal that people aren’t talking about that has actually had a higher percentage rise than gold is SILVER. This week silver closed at about $28.70 per ounce and was hovering over $30 earlier in the week. In the past 10 years, silver has gone from approx $5 per ounce to $30 per ounce. That’s SIX times it’s value from January 2000. Here’s the chart:

Gold has gone up way more, dollar wise, in 10 years – from $300 per ounce to $1400. However, that’s only 4.5 times. Here’s the 10 year gold chart:

So, despite all of the gold talk, silver is cruising! My prediction? Well I don’t have a crystal ball, but I see silver holding at $25-$30 an ounce and creeping up to $40 is certainly possible. With the world economy the way it is, we’re pretty bullish on metals. The Dow Jones has done NOTHING the past 10 years. However, our philosophy on gold and silver is that we don’t hold anything. We buy aggressively, make a small profit and move on to the next deal. Do not speculate because silver can go back down to $15 an ounce just as easily as it went up. If you have silver bars, silver flatware or silver coins, it’s a GREAT time to sell. Check out this video we made about selling sterling silver flatware and please contact me – I’m a buyer!

When Will The Big Jewelry Companies WAKE UP?

Posted on | December 10, 2010 | 12 Comments

I was reading my friend Rob Bates’s column in JCK Online, Diamond Shavings, and came across this article about Blue Nile and their plans for mobile over the next few years. From the article:

But a phone call from a customer during the 2009 holiday season put the future into better perspective, says Diane Irvine, Blue Nile’s CEO.

“We had one gentleman, a customer who called us from a chairlift and placed an order for a product of over $40,000,” she recalled. “So we knew there was something there.”

Yes Diane, it’s smart for you all to be thinking about mobile and the fact that young guys getting engaged may want to buy diamonds on their phones or iPads. But what struck me the most was this retort from Signet Jewelers, one of the largest jewelry companies in the world:

But Signet Jewelers (SIG), which operates Kay Jewelers and Jared, two of the largest jewelry store chains, says Blue Nile’s strategy to allow more price comparison via mobile devices won’t dent its sales.

“Our customers tell us the in-store experience is the most valuable, particularly when you are trying to talk customers through carat, color, clarity and cut” of diamonds, said Signet spokesman David Bouffard.

David, you are missing it! What you should be thinking is how to beat Blue Nile at their own game. You should be

thinking about how to make a bigger and badder mobile app and experience for your customers. Do you still think that the internet is going away? I wish I had your cash and resources so I could do some really cool stuff, but I don’t…yet. However, Signet and Zale Corportaion, whose revenue was down 14% from last year, need to think outside the box.

From the Wall Street Journal:

Jewelry stocks like Signet Jewelers, owner of Kay Jewelers, and Zale suffered even more because they depend on appetite for high-dollar purchases.

Maybe they could use a few $40,000 purchases, dont’ you think?

WAKE UP big boys or you”ll be gone soon!

Video: Watch The Graff Pink Sell For $46 Million

Posted on | December 1, 2010 | 4 Comments

I have to hand it to Sotheby’s on this one. Here’s footage of the record setting 24.78 carat Fancy Intense Pink Diamond being sold at auction in Geneva for $46 million. Sotheby’s TV finally did it right here by showing the REAL live auction, giving everyone a chance to see what it’s like to be in the room during the Magnificent Jewels sale. Their previous videos were so terrible – the guy from Sotheby’s describing how “soft and sensual” the stone is. (click here to see him actually say that).

This is the real deal and it will only promote the Sotheby’s brand and draw more people to their auctions. Check it out:

Black Friday, Steely Dan

Posted on | November 26, 2010 | No Comments

I woke up with this song in my head. I found a version where Walter Becker did NOT take the guitar solo. (sorry Walter). Check out this ripping guitar solo by Jon Herington. Notice the drummer, Baltimore native and Samuelson’s Diamonds customer, (I sold him a bracelet once) Dennis Chambers. He’s one of the world’s greatest.

“When Black Friday comes, I’m gonna dig myself a hole, gonna lay down in it in it till I satisfy my soul!”

Phish Boardwalk Hall 10-30-10

Posted on | November 20, 2010 | No Comments

Went to see Phish at Boardwalk Hall for their Halloween run. If you’ll remember, I saw Phish a year and a half ago at Merriweather Post and the show was not great so I was down on the band. Check it out in my post, Summer Concert Review.

Well this past summer was a killer show and this AC show was unreal. SIX Zeppelin songs. Just check out this short video and you’ll see the energy of the crowd which is why I couldn’t take anymore footage. Enjoy!

A Milestone: 500,000 Facebook Diamond Fans!

Posted on | November 13, 2010 | No Comments

We reached a big milestone a week ago. Over a half a million fans on our facebook “Diamonds” page! (I know they’re “likes” but I still call them fans). In fact, this week we’ve gained about 30,000 new fans, so the page is cruising.

It’s been a great ride for the past 2 1/2 years and I want to thank the community of DiamondFans for their support. If anything the story is great. A small family business from Baltimore owns the single largest jewelry page on Facebook. We’re very proud of our accomplishment and I thank each and every fan of Diamonds for their support!

What are our plans for this page? Have a listen to Eric Clapton’s “Keep On Growing”…

The Diamond Market Moving Into December 2010

Posted on | November 6, 2010 | 2 Comments

It’s been a while since I’ve written about the state of the diamond industry as we prepare for the Holiday Season. I am in the unique position of looking at the market from both a wholesale and retail perspective. We buy so many diamonds from the public that we are regular traders in the market, dealing with wholesalers and manufacturers. We also are jewelry retailers (although I consider myself a dealer) so I see consumer trends as well.

On the inside (in the dealer to dealer world) I see caution from buyers. With the economy still in bad shape, some diamond brokers are only willing to buy larger fine goods. In my mind, diamonds are a commodity (sorry all you “Romance Retailers”) and if I see an opportunity, I will buy anything at the right price.

Looking at the average US retail market (white diamonds 1-2 carats) we are seeing a nice flow of engagement ring customers and that’s good news. However, I believe what drives our diamond business is the fact that we educate and sell diamonds for what they are. Sure they are a thing of beauty, but they are also a commodity with real value and demand in the market. That’s what we teach our customers and that’s why we’re not seeing a drop off in retail diamond sales.

It’s also interesting to look at rare colored diamonds. It seems that this market has not taken a hit at all. In fact, the “Bulgari Blue” diamond just hit a record price of $15.7 million, and there’s a 24.78 fancy intense pink diamond coming up for sale that is expecting to reach $38 million.

Only time will tell what happens this season. I will say that if you’re in the market for a diamond, now is a GREAT time to buy. The market is still strong, even with the economy so uncertain. Happy trading!

Blue Nile vs Local Jeweler Video

Posted on | October 9, 2010 | 2 Comments

I made this cool video the other day and got a nice reaction from it, especially from my friends in the jewelry industry. It’s a common conversation between a diamond retailer and an internet shopper.

The emails and comments that I received from people in the industry is that they loved it and it was right on. I also got some comments from Blue Nile customers that they were satisfied with their ring and with Blue Nile. Please know that I am not knocking Blue Nile in this video. Can’t knock a successful company, competitor or not. Blue Nile is the biggest and baddest and I respect their business. They are commoditizing diamonds which isn’t such a bad thing, and they have actually helped my business.

I am making a statement about today’s customers. In fact, you may remember this post, “Looking at Diamonds…and Myself”, that got me my bad yelp review, which was the inspiration for this video.

I am also making a statement about jewelers today and how to handle customers. It’s not like the old days, so us jewelers need to change with the times. We must learn to provide value beyond the etailers in order to survive – plain and simple. I think buying diamonds for stock (and not on consignment from dealers) is one way to beat diamond etailers all day.

Oh yeah, and if you bought a Blue Nile diamond and want to sell it, please contact me! 😉

A Great Customer Testimonial

Posted on | September 14, 2010 | 2 Comments

A great customer who bought her engagement ring from us, trusted us with her jewelry to repair, and recently sold her gold to us just left our best testimonial to date. It was in a blog post, and I want to personally say “thank you” for this and encourage all of our customers to do the same!

Please click here for the full post and check out Nelle Somerville’s blog,

Stone Hill Farm.

“Thank you Ron for always taking such good care of us and for helping us with our full wedding ring sets. I can’t believe the guy in the middle is your Dad. Thank you for your fair pricing and for the amazing job you all did on my charm bracelet. You all are true professionals.”

We thank you and hope to see you soon!

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