Consumers still desire diamonds, but today’s market doesn’t inspire them, according to Moshe Lax, founder of the Facet of Love diamond gallery on New York’s Fifth Avenue. Classic retail brands set prices high, while the alternative of buying online is boring, Lax argues. Customers want online prices, but they also seek an experience they will remember.
To this end, Lax is opening a diamond display based on the eight perspectives on love that appear in Plato’s Symposium. He is returning to the basics — claiming that the fundamental reason people buy diamonds is their message about love.
“Diamonds are all about romance and love, so Facet of Love is going back to where the Western perception of love started,” says Lax, CEO of Dynamic Diamonds, a wholesaling firm he founded with his father, Chaim, more than two decades ago. By taking real estate in the heart of Manhattan and leaving his wholesale business to focus on the new venture, Lax is sending a bold message that the diamond trade needs to make itself more appealing to millennials.
The 10,000-square-foot, two-story “diamond playground” features an outdoor garden, enabling visitors to enjoy the romantic environment and the opportunity to learn about diamonds and experience a touch of luxury. He aims mainly to attract 20- to 45-year-olds, “but I think we will be surprised by the older generations adapting quicker than we imagine,” he remarks.
“Online sites are a glorified Excel sheet of diamonds,” Lax continues. “To the customer, it feels like an accounting course rather than a romantic experience or purchase. Nobody ever bought a diamond for its mere value or even beauty — people buy diamonds as a romantic symbol of love.”
Raymond Lee Jewelers markets to the younger generation in a number of ways. In June, it put out a video depicting a lesbian couple’s romantic proposal as part of the company’s “It’s Your Story” campaign. “We are not your parent’s jewelry store,” read the accompanying blurb on its website. The ad received significant acclaim on the web for the way it told the story and for its ideological message.
The Florida-based retailer has a preference for alternative thinking when it comes to developing a rapport with customers. The company is mainly involved in the business of buying and selling pre-owned jewelry, diamonds and watches, but CEO Lee Josephson, while working with his father during the first 20 years of his career, frequently noticed that some customers did not like that environment.
“It was and still is very old-fashioned-looking, run in an old-school fashion, and just overall doesn’t appeal to a young, first-time buyer — or even a high-end baby-boomer buyer in some cases,” Josephson explains.
The company later opened a concept store to offer diamonds in a new way, stocking well-known engagement-ring brands and using an open-floor plan. The outlet even has a bar serving craft beer, and “cool, young and progressive” salespeople, Josephson says.
“Our staff is very in tune with the buying process, since we are all buying for ourselves in the same fashion,” he explains. “There is always the client that isn’t interested in a diamond, but rather an alternative, and we regularly accommodate their needs as well.”
Image: Facet of Love diamond galleryArticle from the Rapaport Magazine - September 2017. To subscribe click here.