Waldman Diamond Company

Waldman Diamond Company to open sales office in Vancouver, Canada
May 16, 2005

RAMAT GAN - Starting in July 1st 2005, Vancouver, British Columbia will welcome another international diamond player to enhance the city’s status as a diamond trading center for the sale of Canadian-sourced diamonds to the Canadian retail market. That’s when the Waldman Diamond Company (WDC) has announced that it will open a polished diamond sales office there to market the company’s run-of-mine production from the Diavik Mine in the Northwest Territories. WDC is a core client of Rio Tinto and Aber, the two companies that jointly own the Diavik Mine and market its production of gem quality diamonds.

“The opening of our Vancouver office is, in fact, a part of a larger effort that WDC is undertaking in the Canadian retail jewelry market,” said Alexander Waldman, the firm’s founder and CEO. “Our company is one of only five diamond companies that have been asked by Rio Tinto to take part in a pilot project to supply polished diamonds originating in the Diavik Mine to the Canadian and North American retail jewelry retail markets. The roll out of that campaign will take place in September of this year.”

Craig de Gruchy and Neil Matkin have been named to head the WDC Group’s new Vancouver office. Both men have more than 20 years of experience in the Canadian diamond industry, as well as in the country’s wholesale and retail markets. Before joining WDC, de Gruchy and Matkin worked for the Sirius Diamonds.

Waldman said the opening of the Vancouver office will enable the firm, which is headquartered in Israel, to upgrade its marketing efforts across Canada. “Our group’s jewelry manufacturing and marketing arm, Waldman Diamonds Complete, will also begin operating in Canada from our new office in Vancouver. Waldman Diamonds Complete will market diamond jewelry set with both Canadian and non-Canadian stones throughout Canada.

“These new initiatives are all in line with our endeavor to further grow as an integrated marketing body that accompanies the diamond product from mine to market, and become a preferred supplier of both loose diamonds and mounted diamond jewelry,” Waldman added.