Our success is in our mission
We seek to supply finely made, high quality diamonds ideally suited to our customers’ needs at the lowest possible price. We assess the interests and needs of each customer and then help, coach and even teach them the fine points of quality/value (Q/V) evaluation that many competitors avoid. We then produce the diamond that ideally fits the customer’s needs.
A combination of the procurement methods we use, our low operating costs and financial management skills account for our ability to supply the diamond at the lowest possible price. As a consumer oriented organization, we seek to maintain and expand our company based on sound principles of customer satisfaction, fast and friendly service and quality/value pricing. Our consumer commitment is evidenced by the fine jewelry course we teach at Northern Virginia Community College. The more you know as a consumer the faster you will become an IGS customer and the more you will get from your investment.
A little history….
About nine years ago and after a 20-plus year career of wholesale and cutting gemstones for jewelers, my newly college graduated son (you will come to know as Ed Jr.) and I took a long, hard and critical look at the jewelry industry.
We found that particularly in the area of diamonds, many people who were not gemstone experienced were involved in selling. It would be difficult, we reasoned, for the average consumer to recognize this. In many cases, we actually wondered how and why these people were selling diamonds. Furthermore, the purchase of a diamond being 90% emotional, it was unlikely that consumers would ever discover this. It meant, customers were receiving advice based upon how these non-expert “dealers” had anticipated making a sale, not upon the customer’s best interest.
Our market evaluation revealed lots of low quality diamonds being sold for prices ranging from low to unreasonably high and there were fine, ideal cut diamonds selling for very high prices or for deceptively discounted prices. Many “dealers’ were listing thousands of diamonds that weren’t even theirs. In fact, some were ours!
Hence, confronted by a marketplace with many untrained sellers and a void of sharply priced, fine quality and finely cut diamonds, our mission became clear. We would control overhead costs to the lowest possible level, we would broker and/or opportunistically purchase selected diamonds from cutting connections our international experiences taught us and offer them to the public at cost plus a small profit margin.
Initially, we had to convince prospective customers of our legitimacy because our prices were so much lower than those they were able to find elsewhere. Now we proudly boast 3rd and fourth level referrals from customers so satisfied they had to tell their friends. Referrals have become a major part of our business.
There you have it! We are dedicated to make fine diamonds within the reach of all budgets; if you find another firm who does it better we’d like to know and until such time we will continue our proud claim…
“Nobody does diamonds better.”
