RAPAPORT... During BaselWorld, Martin Rapaport discussed diamond jewelry and the luxury market with Saul Goldberg of New York’s William Goldberg Diamond Corporation.
Martin Rapaport: What’s happening here? How is the show?
Saul Goldberg: Everything’s good. The Basel show is far exceeding our expectations. We came in a good mood, we thought luxury goods were excellent and we’re going to remain strong. But there was a lot of nervousness. We came with a committed inventory of beautiful, important jewelry and we’re very happy with ourselves. We’re very happy within our
meetings and we’re very happy with the mood. It’s a very, very upbeat show.
MR: What kinds of things are selling?
SG: Important suites of jewelry. We’re a dedicated jewelry company now, we’re not here to sell loose diamonds. We’re selling important jewelry — necklaces, earrings and bracelets — important suites to various markets.
MR: Where are the buyers from? Are they Russians, Arabs, Indians?SG: There is a big Middle East presence. Middle East business is excellent, as expected. There are some new faces, which is very rewarding, and people we’ve known for five, six, seven years. Every year we’ve come, they would buy one suite; now, they are buying three suites, four suites. People believe in the product, people believe in what we’re making. It’s classic, beautiful jewelry, and Basel is a great showcase for our jewelry. Across the board, in all price points.
MR: There’s a lot of excitement here with fancy colors and some of them are really reaching very high prices. Are you concerned that prices might be becoming too high for some of the bigger, more expensive diamonds and jewelry?SG: The total money on certain products is pretty scary, I will admit. You look at certain items today and the amount of money that they represent — it runs into such serious millions. Yet, it seems there is money out there. Blues have gotten quite strong. I believe there’s a chance that certain pinks are undervalued. The discrepancy of great blues and great pinks is much too wide. Great pinks are still very rare and blues have gone through the roof. I think pinks still have some room to move.
MR: Give an example of an amazing blue diamond price.SG: I’m hearing talk of people asking $2 million a carat for 7- or 8-carat blue diamonds.
MR: Two million dollars a carat?SG: That’s what I’m hearing.
MR: I heard someone was asking $100,000 per carat for a Vivid yellow. Do you think that’s a good idea for a Vivid yellow?
SG: No, that’s not crazy.
MR: But $2 million a carat for a blue?
SG: So I’m told, for a big, vivid blue.
MR: So this is a great market. How’s the atmosphere?
SG: The atmosphere in Basel — it’s exhausting, it’s energizing, it’s exciting. In the overall picture, there’s no show like it. We’ve been coming here for over 20 years. I think we’re probably one of the first Americans that had a good presence here. We weren’t sure strategically when we came here 22 or 23 years ago. We were sharing a booth with Thomas Farber, who was a great friend of ours from Geneva, and we weren’t sure what it was all about. But for an international corporation such as ourselves — or anybody in the world nothing is like Basel. Nothing can compare to Basel, in my opinion.
MR: Do you think the price of oil has something to do with the strong buying in the Middle East?
SG: 100 percent, it certainly does.
MR: It’s not a wealth thing?SG: It’s wealth. They’re making a lot of money, hard assets — platinum, gold, oil and diamonds. Whether we believe it or not, we are a commodity. We both have a lot to discuss on that matter, but regardless, people believe in diamonds.
MR: Do you think diamonds are going to keep going up?
SG: That I don’t know.
MR: Are you worried that prices may come down because of a lot of dealer speculation?
SG: I’m not worried. From what I see, I repeat, it seems like there’s a lot of money around, a lot of money. The wealthy of the world have a lot of money, and our product is in demand. We didn’t know that ten days ago, and everybody came to Basel wondering, but I see here that there’s strength in the business. The people who have the goods are strong people, good people and they network a lot here. Call them my competitors, call them my friends. We talk a lot, we share information and I think the business decisions being made here are on solid ground. I mean even if you — this is more speculation,of course — see some inner trading here or there, I’ve seen some serious consumption purchasing. That’s very rewarding. I mean we don’t come here for privates, but we have important retailers who bring their clients with them. So we see, it’s ending up on people’s necks, it’s ending up on their ears, it’s ending up on their finger. That’s good news.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - May 2008. To subscribe click here.