Hearpreneur interviewed Gary A Ingram the founder of The Diamond Store on his business, his background, future trends in the jewelry industry and advice for entrepreneurs and business owners.
Why did you start your business?
I started The Diamond Store 7 years ago out of sheer frustration. I had taken the bold decision to get engaged and was now looking for the ring with which to propose. Having never ventured into a jewelry shop before and with limited diamond knowledge, I found the whole process of research and window shopping uninformative and bamboozling. Walking into a shop didn't really change things, sure the staff were informative and helpful but just how many rings could I really ask to see, how many questions could I really ask before I became a pain?
My background is in Internet marketing so I naturally went online to do some research. The Internet didn't fare any better, phrases that spring to mind….information overload, too much detail…too much technical jargon…..girdles, cutlets and refraction only served to confuse and stalled my decision for fear of buying the worst diamond ever mined!Thankfully I had good friends in the Jewellery industry and they put me right but it got me thinking…how could we make this process better for everyone else? I knew I could make a difference.
What is your background and how do you feel that has helped your business?
My background is an interesting combination of Estate Agent – 15 years in Central London – and then internet marketing for a few years before starting The Diamond Store.
There is no question that both parts of my background ahve played an important part…Internet Marketing for understanding how to get the best from the web and Estate Agency for how to look after our customers and make sure we focus on customer service.
We have the largest selection of jewelry you can find online in the UK….somewhere in the region of 6000 items.
We also have the largest collection of product videos, by this I mean actual videos of items shot on a model with a voice over to describe the item being watched.
What do you see are future trends in the jewelry industry?
We are starting to see yellow gold making a comeback…which I like, I think a yellow gold setting really shows off the diamond. We have also seen a small move away from single stone diamond engagement rings into more single stones complimented by diamond surrounds and on the shoulders of the band. I think both of these changes will become future trends.
What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners?
Keep your overheads low, put in the hours and learn as much as you can about whatever you embark on…the internet is a great tool for learning things…but you must put in the time and energy – there are no shortcuts!
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That’s great to hear. I think some of the best businesses start out of being frustrated as a customer and wanting to provide a better solution. In many cases the customer can see things that the employees and managers cannot and if they don’t listen to their customers or improve their products/services then its likely only a matter of time before someone else begins to offer a solution.
That’s great to hear. I think some of the best businesses start out of being frustrated as a customer and wanting to provide a better solution. In many cases the customer can see things that the employees and managers cannot and if they don’t listen to their customers or improve their products/services then its likely only a matter of time before someone else begins to offer a solution.