[Question] I'm about to propose to my girlfriend I'm trying to choose between lab grown and natural diamonds. Do you sell lab created diamonds at wholesale prices? Do you sell natural diamonds to the public? I am leaning towards lab grown diamond because I can get a large diamond for a third of the price. A rock is a rock right?
[David Watts]
Hello, David, are you in any relation to Mark Watt's? I am a wholesaler and broker. I will sell to the public from time to time, but I strongly recommend using a professional retailer. Because if you do not know what you are doing or exactly what you want, you will be unhappy as all transactions are irreversible, and there is no continued support after the sale. You need professional help, which I am not equipped to give you as a wholesaler. There is no such thing as a free lunch. You will save money buying from a wholesaler, but you will sacrifice all service, guarantees, and education that comes with buying from a professional retailer.
I bought my Benz from a retailer because I understand the purpose they serve. I could have gotten my car much cheaper at auction. But I am not a professional car dealer. When I buy from a retailer and the battery in my fob is dead, I go to Mercedes of Richmond and say, "Your" battery in the key fob is dead!! And they replaced it free. When a customer buys a diamond ring, they say my diamonds are beautiful, when one falls out, they take it to the retailer and say one of "Your" diamonds fell out of the ring you sold me, and they replace it free. The retailer's hand picks perfect diamonds for you, weeding out bluff diamonds and second-rate diamonds that look milky or have a weird overtone. They compare diamonds side by side and choose the highest quality diamonds at the best possible price to put in their cases. They spend millions creating an excellent experience for their customers. The actual customer service after the sale is valued at a few thousand dollars of real money. So when you shop for something important like a diamond, you want to use the consumer's only mechanism of protection: a retailer. The retailer is there to guide you to the best possible outcome and provide the continued customer support that you will inevitably need, like ring sizings, stone replacements, upgrades, etc.
Wholesalers/Brokers charge fees between 2 and 10% based on what you want. You have to know precisely what you want in terms of clarity, characteristics, color, and make. You have to understand the realistic prices for diamond goods and how modifying your budget affects the quality of the diamond you want to purchase. If you buy a diamond from a genuine wholesaler, it's yours, and there are no refunds if you change your mind. So you need to have your mind made up, know what the diamond will look like based on a GIA grading report, and expect no customer service beyond a diamond of your choice, changing hands, and nothing more. We do have customers who buy from us, but they do so from a position of knowledge. And they pick diamonds they can sell back to us without losing more than our brokerage fee.
As for CVD, Lab diamonds are not valuable stones. They are worthless in the cash markets. As I mentioned before, customers often sell me diamonds, and they are paid premiums based on current market conditions. The market condition for CVD is best described as flooded. The demand is high on the retail level, so the prices are in the thousands. Primarily because of the extensive amount of services the retailer provides. The wholesale trading markets sell CVD for pennies on the dollar. Lab-Grown diamonds have dropped precipitously since they came to market. If you ever try to sell a CVD back to a jeweler, the value is close to zero. Therefore any amount you pay is an overpayment considering an unlimited supply. I recommend CVD if you want something cheap that looks good. They typically sell for a few hundred to $1500 wholesale in average sizes. Feel free to call us, and we will recommend a retailer who will take care of you and make sure that you get a perfect diamond at an excellent price.
[David Watts]
Hello, David, are you in any relation to Mark Watt's? I am a wholesaler and broker. I will sell to the public from time to time, but I strongly recommend using a professional retailer. Because if you do not know what you are doing or exactly what you want, you will be unhappy as all transactions are irreversible, and there is no continued support after the sale. You need professional help, which I am not equipped to give you as a wholesaler. There is no such thing as a free lunch. You will save money buying from a wholesaler, but you will sacrifice all service, guarantees, and education that comes with buying from a professional retailer.
I bought my Benz from a retailer because I understand the purpose they serve. I could have gotten my car much cheaper at auction. But I am not a professional car dealer. When I buy from a retailer and the battery in my fob is dead, I go to Mercedes of Richmond and say, "Your" battery in the key fob is dead!! And they replaced it free. When a customer buys a diamond ring, they say my diamonds are beautiful, when one falls out, they take it to the retailer and say one of "Your" diamonds fell out of the ring you sold me, and they replace it free. The retailer's hand picks perfect diamonds for you, weeding out bluff diamonds and second-rate diamonds that look milky or have a weird overtone. They compare diamonds side by side and choose the highest quality diamonds at the best possible price to put in their cases. They spend millions creating an excellent experience for their customers. The actual customer service after the sale is valued at a few thousand dollars of real money. So when you shop for something important like a diamond, you want to use the consumer's only mechanism of protection: a retailer. The retailer is there to guide you to the best possible outcome and provide the continued customer support that you will inevitably need, like ring sizings, stone replacements, upgrades, etc.
Wholesalers/Brokers charge fees between 2 and 10% based on what you want. You have to know precisely what you want in terms of clarity, characteristics, color, and make. You have to understand the realistic prices for diamond goods and how modifying your budget affects the quality of the diamond you want to purchase. If you buy a diamond from a genuine wholesaler, it's yours, and there are no refunds if you change your mind. So you need to have your mind made up, know what the diamond will look like based on a GIA grading report, and expect no customer service beyond a diamond of your choice, changing hands, and nothing more. We do have customers who buy from us, but they do so from a position of knowledge. And they pick diamonds they can sell back to us without losing more than our brokerage fee.
As for CVD, Lab diamonds are not valuable stones. They are worthless in the cash markets. As I mentioned before, customers often sell me diamonds, and they are paid premiums based on current market conditions. The market condition for CVD is best described as flooded. The demand is high on the retail level, so the prices are in the thousands. Primarily because of the extensive amount of services the retailer provides. The wholesale trading markets sell CVD for pennies on the dollar. Lab-Grown diamonds have dropped precipitously since they came to market. If you ever try to sell a CVD back to a jeweler, the value is close to zero. Therefore any amount you pay is an overpayment considering an unlimited supply. I recommend CVD if you want something cheap that looks good. They typically sell for a few hundred to $1500 wholesale in average sizes. Feel free to call us, and we will recommend a retailer who will take care of you and make sure that you get a perfect diamond at an excellent price.