New
York. One word that brings to mind
all the sights it is famous for, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State
Building and the famous Rockefeller Centre. Little does one know that this city
of nearly 13 million people is also one of the world’s leading centres of the
diamond trade. Along with Antwerp in Belgium, London, Paris and Munich, New York is one of the leading cities in terms of buying and selling diamonds.
Before exploring the city’s diamond district, it would be quite beneficial to
understand the way in which the diamond business functions.
From
the mine to the bourse:
We
all know that diamonds are nothing more than carbon atoms that have withstood
tremendous pressure for millions of years. Now for the more ‘practical’,
business part of the transaction. De Beers is one of the world’s largest
diamond manufacturers and the foremost diamond mining and supply house.
Commercial jewelers and others purchase their diamonds from wholesalers like De
Beers. Most of the world’s rough diamonds pass through bourses in Antwerp. This
is where representatives of most of the commercial jewelry houses seek out
traders and settle business with them. The entire transaction takes a short
time and is completely based on the rapport a representative shares with a
trader.
From the
bourse to the polisher:
Once
purchased, rough diamonds need to be polished and cut in order for them to be
set in pieces of jewelry. Most of the world’s diamonds are cut and polished by
skilled artisans in Surat, India and some other places in Europe. Surat is one
of the world’s most precise and sought after diamond processing hubs, because
of the high level of skill and finesse of its artisans. It is said that the
fashioning of a diamond into a gemstone is a science and an art, that is handed
down from one generation to the next here.
From
the polisher to the jeweler:
Once
polished the diamonds are dispatched to jewelers who fashion stunning ornaments
for the consumer. Based on trends, popularity, demand and customer requests,
design of the jewelry is determined. The rarity of the diamond, its size, the
clarity and cut of the stone and its carat weight, determine the price of the
piece of jewelry.
New
York’s diamond district:
New York City's Diamond District, also
known as Diamond and Jewelry Way, is located on 47th Street between 5th and 6th
Avenues. It's hard to believe, but the area is home to over 2600 diamond
businesses, many of which are located inside of the street's 25 jewelry
exchanges. Each exchange is home to about 100 different merchants, each
independently owned and operated, but there are also larger stores along 47th
Street for shopping as well. In the Diamond District, you can find just about
any type of fine jewelry you desire, which makes it a great place to shop, and
prices can be as much as 50% off of retail. The shops cater to both wholesale
and retail clients, but you'll have the best success shopping if you've done
your research and know what you're looking for.
History of New York’s Diamond District:
New York's first diamond and
jewelry district was actually located on Maiden Lane, beginning around 1840.
Today, the Diamond Dealers Club, the largest diamond trade organization in the
U.S., is headquartered on 47th and Fifth Avenue. Originally located on Nassau
Street, membership grew after World War II as many diamond dealers immigrated
from Europe, necessitating a larger location, and thus its move uptown to 47th
Street from its original downtown location. The move established 47th Street as
New York's Diamond District, where businesses handle everything from the
importation of rough diamonds to production and sale of fine diamond jewelry.
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