I was in a retail store the other day with some friends, and we were shopping for hats – not inexpensive ones at that. The deadpan salesperson paid us little attention, but then finally asked, "Do you need some help, or are you just playing?" I couldn't believe what I heard. He had no apparent interest in us before then, and never volunteered information about the hats that had caught our eye. He was clerking, not selling. We soon left the shop and entered another store, where the three of us spent nearly $600 on hats and shirts while being assisted by a salesperson who gave us great attention and service, including excellent information on the items in her store.

I'm sure my story is not particularly unusual. We’ve all had similar experiences in retail stores from time to time. Invariably, we tend to buy from knowledgeable, attentive salespeople who treat customers with respect and make every effort to meet their needs.

Unfortunately, many jewelry stores have employees like the first one we encountered. My experiences with retail jewelry concerns tell me that we at GIA cannot ignore the "softer" side of educating people about the importance of quality customer service in our courses, just as we can never overemphasize the value of product knowledge. In fact, we have an answer for these important aspects of the retail business. It's called the "Essentials” courses, which focus on diamonds, colored stones, and jewelry. Those who successfully complete all three courses earn the Accredited Jewelry Professional (AJP) diploma. This program combines important product knowledge and sales techniques with an emphasis on good customer service. The result is an outstanding sales associate, which translates into greater sales.

So, what's wrong with retail in our industry? Not only are many salespeople ignorant about the gem and jewelry products they are selling, but they also lack the knowledge (and positive attitude) of good customer service. At a time when consumers are insisting on accurate information from professional salespeople, this is guaranteed to cost you business. The fact that we are experiencing heightened enrollments in all of our courses tells me that many people know this, and are responding appropriately.

I encourage you to enroll in a program of your choice today. If you are a retail owner, there is no better investment you could make than to educate your people through GIA. It will give them the product knowledge they need to better serve your customers. “Do you need help?” will quickly be replaced by “The item that caught your eye is truly unique.” When this happens, your salesperson stops clerking and starts selling.

Exhibitors at the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA), Gem and Jewelry Exchange (GJX) and Gem and Lapidary Dealers Association (GLDA) shows held during the period Feb. 4–10 in Tucson reported that demand for colored gemstones was the strongest in five years, with much of the demand centered in natural, untreated gems.

“This is what most retailers want today,” said Joseph Menzie, of the eponymous dealership exhibiting at GJX, who was offering such guarantees on blue and pink sapphires.

Several dealers were promoting mine-to-market guarantees. Columbia Gem House, at AGTA, offered its “Fair Trade” Gems package, which tracks gemstones from the miners though the cutting process to guarantee that the stones are not subjected to enhancements and that producers adhere to fair labor and environmental standards.

“This is a way for consumers to know exactly what they are buying,” explained Earl Allen, of Columbia.

Dealers at the major fairs agreed that treated gems are often beautiful, desirable products, but the recent controversies over emerald treatments and Be (beryllium)-diffusion of ruby and sapphire have confused the issue for many retailers who would prefer to err on the side of caution.

While rising demand for untreated gemstones helped buoy business at the fairs, dealers and retailers alike are concerned about the short supplies of such goods.

“The raw material is really scarce,” noted Ron Rahmanan of Sara Gem at AGTA, referring to pink and yellow sapphires, which were his strongest sellers. “So we worry whether we’ll be able to meet the demand if it keeps rising.”

Such scarcities, coupled with the steep decline in the U.S. dollar, kept Tucson prices very firm. The “let’s make a deal” atmosphere of the previous three years was notably absent this year. Some dealers and retailers also worry that a coming challenge will be selling untreated goods in competition with their treated counterparts, which are often more attractive and less expensive.

“We’ll really have to work on educating retailers about how to explain these differences to their customers,” noted Richard Hughes of Pala International at AGTA.

This edition of the Tucson shows offered few of the new gem source finds that often generate buzz. Several dealers in GJX featured pezzottaite, a recently discovered purplish pink member of the beryl group, but quantities were too limited to attract strong interest beyond collectors.

A new diamond cut, named “Star of the Shepherd” by its creator, Gabi Tolkowsky, made its commercial debut in Tucson. Gem dealer Peter Kaplan at the GJX said the cut closely followed the natural shape of the “glassy” octahedral rough from which it was made.

The strongest sellers at the shows were pink and yellow sapphire and “bread-and-butter” gemstones in mid-price ranges. Despite the demand for natural, untreated stones, there were few calls for very high-end stones of any type. Retailers did not want to tie up large amounts of capital on single items this early in the year unless they had a specific customer in mind.

In other venues, buying at the Centurion Show, held at the Westin La Paloma Resort Feb. 1–5, was very strong. Exhibitors at the show, which serves high-end retailers, found strong demand for classic-but-distinctive pieces featuring smaller diamonds and/or colored stones. At the highest end, pieces featuring small pink and yellow diamonds in combination proved quite popular. Even here, though, buyers were reluctant to make large expenditures on major gemstones.

Business at the new JCK Show, held 100 miles away in Phoenix Feb. 7–9, was generally slow. Although a number of exhibitors reported that buyers from major chains and mass merchandisers attended, traffic was light all three days of the event.

JCK Show officials said that next year they will coordinate more closely with the Tucson activities, which should help improve buyer traffic.

Among the seminars held in conjunction with the various shows, the Feb. 3 Accredited Gemologists Association event, which took place at the Marriott University Park, focused on synthetic diamonds. 

Tom Chatham, of Chatham Created Gems, reported that he has begun marketing synthetic colored diamonds produced by an undisclosed Asian manufacturer. Production is about 400 carats per month of “raspberry” pinks, “marigold” yellows and “sky” blues. The majority of the synthetic diamonds are about one carat, with prices ranging from $1,000 to $3,000 per carat.

Dr. Robert Linares of Apollo Diamonds, which produces colorless-to-brown synthetics by the chemical vapor deposition process, said new machines are in place that will have four times the capacity of its existing units. He recounted production methods for the diamonds and explained that both the technology and gem industries require high-quality diamonds.

Gemesis’ marketing director, Carlos Valeiras, outlined the high pressure/high temperature process his company uses to produce fancy-color yellow synthetic diamonds, noting that the finished rough was being cut into princess, round and Asscher shapes. He also stated that every diamond larger than a quarter carat carried a laser inscription and an “ID card” disclosing its synthetic origins.

Alex Grizenko, of Lucent Diamonds, described how various colored synthetic diamonds are produced and showed both synthetic and natural diamonds that had been treated to red. He also noted that Life Gem, the firm for which his company manufactures synthetic diamonds from cremation remains, produces mainly blue diamonds.

He told the audience that synthetic and treated diamonds, properly disclosed, will become accepted in the market, in their own segments.

JCK’s CEO Forum, held Feb. 6 at the Phoenix Civic Center, featured Internet consultant and “Webby Awards” founder Tiffany Shlain, who told the audience that the Internet has transformed the way the entire world lives and works. She said that Web sites are essential today for companies to establish their image, enable consumers to research their products and reputation, and make contacts.

A good Web site, she said, has to present information in an inviting, easy-to-find way and be “humanized,” with emphasis on quick, friendly responses to e-mails and contacts. She also noted that some 75% of affluent consumers research products online before buying, and 55% of affluent consumers have made purchases online.

Also at the JCK Show, Martin Rapaport, publisher of the Rapaport Diamond Report, told seminar attendees that shortages of rough diamonds, and higher prices for that rough coupled with increased costs of doing business, will shake up the diamond market in years to come. He predicted that many middlemen will disappear, as larger players – particularly De Beers’s Diamond Trading Company sightholders – dominate the market.

Rapaport noted that the DTC controls 56% of rough diamond production, but a greater percentage in the 2 ct.-plus market. He told the audience that he believes the DTC’s Supplier of Choice initiatives can bring some benefits to the industry in the form of increased emphasis on marketing and business efficiency. In his opinion, however, the industry must not allow Supplier of Choice to become a vehicle through which the DTC controls the large stone market to the detriment of the free market.

Russell Shor
Senior Industry Analyst

Based on correspondence received following the original publication of this article in the Feb. 13 edition of the GIA Insider, the authors decided to clarify certain aspects of their description, and offer the following revised version.

In the course of GIA’s research into the effect of proportions on the appearance of a round brilliant cut diamond, we have looked at many aspects of this cutting style, including a number of diamonds with cuts that have interesting variations from what is considered standard. The round brilliant is typically described by its proportions and angles: total depth percentage, crown height percentage, pavilion depth percentage, table percentage, average crown angle, and average pavilion angle (along with girdle size and condition, culet size, and finish quality). In our article in the Fall 2001 issue of Gems & Gemology, we pointed out the significance of two other parameters – the lengths of the lower girdle and star facets (the latter determines the length of the upper girdle facets as well). These parameters define the positions and areas of the star, upper girdle, and lower girdle facets, which typically cover more than half the surface area of a round brilliant. The importance of these facets, which was noted briefly by Marcel Tolkowsky in his 1919 treatise on cut, is again being recognized after decades of omission from proportion-based diamond cut grading systems.

However, the above description does not include another important aspect of a diamond’s shape: the orientation of the upper and lower girdle facets (sometimes referred to as “half” facets). In a standard round brilliant diamond, these facets are evenly spaced around the diamond. Yet upper and lower girdle facets can also be polished so that they lean toward the bezel or pavilion main facets and away from each other (facets created in this manner are referred to by diamond cutters as “painted” facets). This change in orientation reduces the angle to the horizontal of the upper and lower girdle facets, and yields a shallower angle between the half facets and the adjacent bezels and pavilion mains. Alternatively, the half facets can be fashioned so that they lean toward each other, thereby creating steeper angles between each upper or lower girdle facet and its neighboring bezel or pavilion main facet, and steeper angles of the halves themselves with respect to the horizontal (in which case they are referred to as “dug out” facets). These techniques are well known in the diamond cutting industry, but seldom discussed outside of that group.

Another way to describe this effect is with a term primarily used by colored stone cutters, namely “indexing.” In the design of a given colored stone cut, the position of the center of each facet around the outline of the stone is described in reference to the index wheel used in cutting machines (see, e.g., G. and M. Vargas, Faceting for Amateurs, 3^rd ed., publ. by Glenn and Martha Vargas, Thermal, California, 1989). Such wheels come in a variety of scales, dividing the circular outline into, for instance, 64, 80, or 96 steps. “Indexing” is the practice of altering the “standard” positions for some facets – that is, moving their centers slightly in either direction, so that their three-dimensional position is changed. Index wheels usually are not used in diamond cutting because of hardness constraints on the positions and directions of cutting and polishing, but the indexing technique (“painting” or “digging out”) is still practiced (figure A).

Normally, the centers of half facets occur every 22.5° around the girdle. Full polishing of the facets in these positions gives the girdle its evenly scalloped shape (figure B, center). Without changing the lengths of the upper or lower girdle facets, their index positions can be altered by a few degrees, either toward the bezel or pavilion main (figure B, left), or away from them (figure B, right). These changes in position affect the scalloping of the girdle, because they change the area and shape of the half facets, and their angle to the horizontal. If the girdle were a circle with no thickness, crown and pavilion half facets with altered index positions would overlap, and the odd facet shapes that resulted would be glaringly obvious. Instead, the differences in facet shape are subtle, and are only visible from the profile view.

Such changes in the upper  and lower girdle facets also affect the weight recovery of the stone. As shown in figure B (left), leaning these facets toward the bezel or pavilion main facets – “painting” the facets – results in a thicker girdle scalloping at the junction between the halves, which yields a greater weight in the finished diamond for the same total depth. “Digging out,” or leaning the half-facet positions the other way (toward the junction between the “halves”; figure B, right), causes the scalloping to change in the other direction (the thickness of the girdle scalloping at the junction between the halves is smaller than the bezel/main girdle thickness) and yields a lower finished weight.

Changing these index positions also changes the angle between the two half facets, and the angle between each “half” and the bezel or pavilion main next to it. Such variations in the inter-facet angles significantly affect the movement of light through the diamond, and thus its overall, face-up appearance. Figure C shows three round brilliants with similar proportions (table 1). These diamonds were photographed in a viewing environment that uses both diffuse white light and a black area that emphasizes the face-up contrast pattern of a diamond (areas of contrast may look different in actual face-up views of diamonds in normal lighting and viewing conditions). Despite the similar proportions of the three diamonds, they display markedly different face-up patterns. These differences are mainly due to the placement of the upper and lower girdle facets.

The round brilliant on the left is a commercial diamond in which the upper and lower girdle facets have been displaced toward the bezels and pavilion mains (as in figure B, left). This diamond shows little contrast except for the dark appearance of the pavilion mains beneath the table. The diamond in the center, from the Hearts On Fire brand, has all its facets – including the “halves” – in evenly spaced positions (as in figure B, center). This diamond shows areas of contrast both under the table and under the eight bezels. The round brilliant on the right, called the Fabrikant Brilliant, has half facets that have been moved toward each other (as in figure B, right), which increases the number of areas of contrast seen under the table and adds eight semicircular areas of contrast around the edge of the diamond. In this case there is a noticeable difference in the location of areas of contrast, which changes its appearance.

The three diamonds in figure C are examples of different diamond appearances that can be achieved within this combination of proportions. Still, other distinct appearances can be created from these proportions by other variations in the placement of the upper- or lower-girdle facets. Truly, every facet matters.

This report was prepared by Dr. Ilene Reinitz and Tom Moses of the GIA Gem Laboratory in New York. For more updates from the GIA Gem Laboratory, see the Lab Notes section of Gems & Gemology. To subscribe to G&G, click here. Or contact Circulation Coordinator Debbie Ortiz, call toll-free 800-421-7250, ext. 7142, or fax 760-603-4595. Outside the U.S. and Canada, you can also call 760-603-4000, ext. 7142.

Revised Feb. 27, 2004

Over the past several months, there has been considerable concern in the gem and jewelry industry about blue sapphires with unusual color zoning. Typically these blue sapphires have a dark blue billowy core that is outlined by a fine, colorless band and then surrounded by a light blue to near-colorless zone that extends to the surface of the stone. Both the AGTA Gem Testing Center and GIA Gem Laboratory have studied numerous samples of this material with a variety of methods. Following is an update on their research to date.

Background

Gemologists at both laboratories began to notice sapphires with this unusual zoning in early 2003 – first in small numbers and then in sizeable quantities. In overall appearance, they were generally medium blue in color and would be considered better-quality commercial stones.

Sapphires subjected to this treatment typically have a dark blue central zone that is separated from a paler outer zone by curved edges, as can be seen by these stones at 10x magnification with immersion. Photos by Shane McClure.

After extensive examination of these stones in the two laboratories and consultations with members of the trade, it was established that these blue sapphires originated from a single heat treating operation in Sri Lanka. The proprietor of this operation came to New York to share samples and information about his heating process. Among the samples he provided for examination were sapphires before treatment and several categories of treated stones.

Although this visit and the samples were helpful, they did not provide clear answers as to the cause of the unusual color distribution or the mechanisms involved in creating it. Possible scenarios included the presence of a synthetic overgrowth, the use of a diffusion process, the reaction of a particular type of corundum to heat, or even a new treatment process.

Analysis to date

In parallel, both laboratories have been purchasing samples on the market that show this color distribution. Many of these have been sawn into slabs to facilitate careful analytical measurements. In addition, heating experiments are being conducted in the U.S. to reproduce the unusual color distribution. Both of these programs are ongoing.

Plans are currently under way for a second trip to Sri Lanka to conduct more extensive treatment experiments. It is hoped that these experiments and continued experimentation with heating in the U.S. will lead to a better understanding of what is causing both the color and the unusual zoning in these sapphires, and ultimately provide clear reporting on them.

Findings to date

• After instrumental measurements and visual observations on hundreds of stones, both laboratories feel that synthetic overgrowth can be ruled out as the cause of the color zoning.
• Testing for a number of light elements and for more typical chemical elements that have been diffused into corundum has not, to date, revealed any foreign elements that can be designated as causing the unusual color zoning.
• Both GIA and AGTA note on their laboratory reports that these stones show indications of heating, but follow that with a comment that further research is necessary to fully characterize them.

Although the exact cause of the unusual zoning is not yet known, both laboratories feel that the aggressive research plan in place will provide conclusive answers in the next few months.

For further information on this research, read Gems & Gemology, Winter 2003, pp.319–321; visit www.gia.edu, GIA Insider, Dec. 19, 2003; and visit AGTA at www.agta.org, AGTA-GTC Lab.

Feb. 3, 2004

Wherever one turned in Tucson over the past two weeks, GIA was likely to be present and popular. From a new microscope and other attractions at the main booth at the AGTA GemFair, to the Treasured Gifts booth, gemology classes, Research updates, and a live auction and dance party, visitors took advantage of the Institute's many offerings and, by all accounts, came away very pleased

RTL Scholarship Winners and Industry Awards
The first two recipients of the inaugural Richard T. Liddicoat Scholarship were honored in Tucson during GIA’s Alumni Dance Party Feb. 6. See detailed article on all 2004 scholarship winners in this issue of the Insider.

Live/Silent Auctions
Initial figures for the Alumni Association's silent and live auctions held during the Dance Party confirm that at least $20,000 was raised during the event. Items such as GIA’s new digital-circuitry microscope, memorabilia from Richard T. Liddicoat’s estate, and a trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, were among the items up for bid.

Seminars
The Institute hosted several free seminars and Extension classes featuring industry experts in their respective fields.

• Dr. James Shigley, director of GIA Research, provided an update on GIA’s continued research on its study of diamond cut, which currently is focused on scintillation in relation to a round brilliant’s proportions. He also discussed GIA’s recent research into blue sapphires with unusual color zoning (see related article in this Insider).

• Andy Lucas, gemology product manager, provided a recap of the main articles from each issue of Gems & Gemology over the last year, including Be-diffused corundum, CVD synthetic diamonds, and the Gem Treatment Chart.

• GIA consultant Edward Balian, Ph.D., gave an interactive lecture on the value of marketing to a group of jewelry retailers. He stressed the importance of the "Four Ps" of marketing – price, product, promotion, and placement – and the importance of a business plan.

• Elise Misiorowski, director of the GIA Museum, spoke on jewelry through the ages. Surprising parallels between jewelry fashions from the turn of the last century and trends from today were shared.

Attendees took advantage of the opportunity to upgrade their skills by filling the Advanced Gemology Extension class, which included instruction on how to identify the latest treatments affecting ruby, sapphire, and emerald.