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Shopping for a diamond engagement ring

Vancouver Under Loup

Vancouver under the loup

If you are reading this, then most likely you are currently shopping for a diamond or an engagement ring in Vancouver. If you’ve done some researching so far, you will probably be familiar with some of the high-end jewelry stores. You have likely taken a few walks through the malls and seen some of the stores there, too. You might have even met with one or the other diamond broker here in Vancouver who likes to call his business “diamond wholesale”. It is much less likely that you have actually been to a real local diamond wholesaler where you get the best quality and the best price.

I will try and help you get a better idea of how the diamond and jewelry industry is organized here in Vancouver.

Buying Diamond From Retailers?

Big or small, the overhead these operations produce is enormous. And guess who will pay for that? If you add on top the extra charge for the brand name you get to the numbers displayed in the retail stores. Is the quality offered by retailers any better? No. Not of the diamond and not of the jewelry. By now, I believe, the informed customer knows what it means to buy retail.

How we do it color scheme

How we do it color scheme

Diamond Brokers Here to Help You

There are plenty of diamond brokers here in Vancouver. Typically they present their businesses as “diamond wholesale” to benefit from the message that the word wholesale carries. Buying from a diamond broker you will get a better price than through a retail store for sure. Basically you will pay the wholesale price plus whatever mark-up the broker puts on top. A broker is likely to sell you one of our diamonds or one of the few other wholesalers’ here in town. A diamond broker usually has a nice website and an office and will meet you there for an appointment. The broker will have a small selection of diamonds and he will show you diamonds that are not his but are actually consigned to him by local wholesalers. If a diamond broker shows you only certification and no physical diamonds you should in most cases shy away from dealing with that broker altogether.

DiamondNet, a Diamond Wholesaler

DiamondNet is a Vancouver diamond wholesaler. We source, cut and own a large inventory of diamonds both in and outside of Canada. The fact that we own all these diamonds is what makes us a true wholesaler in terms of our ability to offer you a large selection, a physical inventory and wholesale pricing. We buy in bulk and we buy very well! As a family business we keep expenses low and work on small margins. We are not a retail store and we are not a diamond broker. We are a traditional diamond wholesale operation offering you hand-picked diamonds for less money. In the past, our family has exclusively supplied jewelry stores and other wholesale businesses. Now, we are offering our diamonds to the public. In Vancouver, we are the only true wholesaler open to the public. Everybody else is a “diamond broker”.

Here in Vancouver there are a few true wholesalers, most of whom supply only to other smaller local businesses. The high-end retailers don’t buy from local wholesalers. They run their own chain of supply. Their prices are, without a question, through the roof!

The businesses who buy off the local wholesalers are mostly local retailers and diamond brokers. They, in turn, sell to the end-consumer. A goldsmith can sometimes function as a diamond broker as well. They do have the same connections. The goldsmith has the advantage over the broker that he can also offer you the actual jewelry, the setting for the diamond, at his own price, not marked-up again by anyone else. The diamond he will offer you, however, is not his and will be marked up and offset the savings on the ring.

DiamondNet can offer you the best of both worlds. I can offer you true wholesale diamonds as well as manufacturer pricing on the jewelry. We have our own jewelry manufacturing department that specializes in custom jewelry. Our prices on customized rings are 40-70% below retail. Our goldsmiths have over 50 years combined experience. Each diamond engagement ring and diamond jewelry piece passes rigorous quality testing and is offered at its true money value.

If you end up buying from a diamond broker you have done well. If you bought from a true wholesaler you have done great! I’d be happy to welcome you in our showroom on Granville Street and help you find the perfect diamond.