RAPAPORT... The 4Cs are not the only things that make a piece of diamond jewelry a sales winner. In an ongoing series, RDR explores the “3Ws” — what’s selling, what’s not and why — by going straight to the people who really know — jewelry retailers. Each month, we ask a sampling of retailers to comment on the important issues that are facing the industry today. Here is what they had to say when asked: Do you sell diamond jewelry made with less-traditional diamonds — slices, rough, off-colors — and how do customers respond?
JENNIFER BOIN GETZ, OWNER
SAMUEL GETZ PRIVATE JEWELERs & Designers
CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA
“We have Vhernier, here in the salon, which is an Italian jeweler, based out of Milan. They use a lot of black diamonds. They explore diamonds in wood and ebony and corals and unusual combinations of elements. Samuel Getz did a black diamond choker with white diamond stations between the black diamonds. He also has a pendant with a black diamond slice that’s set in onyx — so you’re seeing a slice of diamond — and he put that on a leather cord. But the price is not inexpensive. It can also be for a man. We also have Indian chains in the salon, made with rougher-faceted brown diamonds, that are made to be casually worn. People who like them buy a couple of strands and it’s a very funky thing to wear every day. It’s a fun piece but the cost is not so outrageous for a strand of diamonds.
“Our clients come to us because they know we’re going to have something other people don’t. Anything that’s intriguing and fun and fascinating and beautifully done we’re going to be interested in.”
HOPE WIXON, OWNER
WIXON JEWELERS
BLOOMINGTON, MINNESOTA
“Nothing along those lines. We tend to sell slightly bigger diamonds and when people are spending that kind of money, they don’t want something trendy. They want something that will hold its value and that always boils back down to the traditional. We do very little brown or black color diamonds unless it’s in a fashion designer piece. We have a champagne diamond pendant but it’s not something we’re really stocking. We’re pretty traditional.”
KOROSH SOLTANI, VICE PRESIDENT
DAVID ORGELL
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA
“No, absolutely not. I have a couple of pieces of finished jewelry with brown and black diamonds. But I’m not going out of my way for that. Where we are is really a white diamond market and classical diamond types of jewelry. And the ones who do the black diamond and brown diamond and the rough diamonds are fashion-type jewelry and that doesn’t sell for us here.
“I just brought in a collection of diamond skull pendants with white diamonds in rose gold. And this collection has what they’re calling ‘silver’ diamonds, which are basically gray diamonds — lower-quality white diamonds that are gray in color — and they give it an older look. And that’s ‘funky’ jewelry for us. I bought different sizes and shapes as a test try. I always test something new every year and it either gets shot down or it’s a success. The silver diamond is half the white diamond price.”
MAUREEN TRACY, PRESIDENT
TRACY JEWELERS
SPOKANE VALLEY, WASHINGTON
“No, not this year. This year, it’s more bread-and-butter to stock. We have on memo more unusual pieces but the stock pieces will be more diamond earrings, more round cuts — certainly some Princess — but not so much the more unusual. We’ve taken on some of the black diamonds. We are stocking them because of the price point.”
KAE WEBSTER, MANAGER
DVVS Fine Jewelry
NEW YORK, New York
“Yes. Through the years we’ve always done color — browns have always been some of our favorites. We’ve done engagement rings and all sorts of pieces with faceted browns. We’re seeing a bit more black diamond being done in men’s jewelry. It feeds right into the silvery color or white metal and black theme that a lot of men like. We carry Alex Sepkus and he uses a lot of colored natural diamonds.
“We try to be a little more artsy in our lean and we target designers who have wearable pieces of jewelry that have a natural element to them. Now there is so much more interest in rough and we do carry Todd Reed and he’s one of the most dynamic users of diamond rough, we believe, right now. We do a lot of necklaces and custom pieces out of the rough — we’ve done chunks of diamond rough that look like they’re erupting out of metal that really has a rustic feel. We have had a lot of success with diamond rough and now more so because it’s being used a lot more by other designers and so it’s on people’s radar. Price point is important. Certainly, the rough is not as expensive and the mere fact that it’s a diamond appeals to a lot of people.”
KEN SHELTON, OWNER
KENNETH EDWARDS FINE JEWELERS
LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS
“There’s an Italian manufacturer Mariani that does cognac-colored diamonds in sort of a free-form cut and it’s in crosses that we’ve had our greatest number of sales — price points of $6,000 to $12,000 and we’ve sold five of them. The color of the cognac diamond is what sells the piece; it’s really beautiful. It’s usually mixed with white. Also, we’re doing a lot of Le Vian’s chocolate collection, even in the cognac diamond watches. Of course, pinks are still popular and fancy yellows, but it’s really the unusual and unseen that seems to be grabbing people’s attention.
“In terms of diamonds in the rough, I really haven’t seen anything other than in magazine articles that caught my eye. But we do carry colored gemstones that are rougher and unpolished, so I think it’s a natural progression for us.”
RICHARD ROSS, PRESIDENT/OWNER
TILDEN ROSS JEWELERS
SARASOTA, FLORIDA
“We’re using a lot of black diamonds. Jewelry became very popular with the black and white mix. There’s a lot of contrast in it — it really shows up beautifully. In other colors, we are using the chocolate and champagne diamonds. Much of the designer jewelry today is coming in from overseas and Italy is coming in with the chocolate diamonds and the champagne diamonds. And our customers are responding quite well to them. It’s a different look. It’s quite high fashion. It’s been very, very good.
“We just opened up an account with Todd Reed — bracelets, rings, pendants. We haven’t received the merchandise yet, but we’re quite excited about carrying his jewelry because it’s different. In today’s market, most people are looking for pieces that are not the run-of-the-mill plain diamond jewelry. Who’s buying most today is affluent consumers and affluent consumers want something that they’re not going to see everywhere else.”
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - August 2008. To subscribe click here.