Waldman Diamond Company

The New Marketing Imperative by Karen Nestlebaum
Rapaport Diamond Magazine
May 5, 2001

INVENTION
Another diamond company - Waldman Diamond Company - has found its way in the evolving market by staying inventive. Kenny Friedman, president of Waldman Diamonds Complete, explained a strategy that combines new diamond products with new ancillary products that give consumers a more convenient way to appreciate their diamonds. For instance, the company has come out with an “inscription loupe,” a mechanism that allows the customer to view a stone’s inscription using one hand. It also brought to market an “arrows loupe” that fits over the ring so the customer can view the arrows of a the diamond cut with the stone facing up, mounted. The customer can take the loupe home with the diamond.

“It’s offering simplicity to help the customer appreciate the complexity of the cut,” said Friedman.

Waldman has also gone full-steam-ahead with diamond brands. It has an Ideal Collection created with only ideal cuts, and its new 1 & Only — a collection using only Sarin 0s and 1s. Hearts for Eternity is Waldman’s loose diamond brand that is cut to Hearts & Arrows proportions. Then there’s the new Reflexions Collection, which it recently began marketing to couture and high-end retailers.

But Friedman notes that innovation and branding can’t succeed in a vacuum. The company creating the brand must have an established reputation and credibility. Once customers recognize the company’s name and relate to it with trust, it can put forward a brand and expect a positive reaction. The Reflexions Collection, after just a short time on the market, has gotten requests from as far a way as Australia and Hawaii.

Once the trade becomes aware of the new product and begins to stock it widely, then, Friedman said, there’s sense in advertising it to the consumer, trying to build demand from the ground up. But that kind of advertising can’t be premature. “You don’t want people to be asking for it and it isn’t in the store,” he said.

Geographic reach has also been a big part of Waldman’s plan. It cuts most of its stones in Israel and a few other locations. It has offices in Japan, China and New York, and affiliate offices in Antwerp and London.

Most of its business is in ideal cut loose stones from 1/5- to 3 carats. But two years ago, it opened a jewelry division, and that, along with AGS and certified loose stones, is where Friedman hopes to see a lot of growth.

Although each firm has to find the strategies that fit its personality, its inventory and its own vision of the future, there is one basic that characterizes all the new efforts: Find what you can do well, and do it.

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