Well, it’s been a
while since my last blog, and I thought that I would cover as much ground as
possible. Gemology is not my only interest and as you can tell by the title of
the blog, I have a love for music, too.
Over the next twelve months I will be conversing with you about my
interest and learning about new things that I pick up along the way.
For this post I
will share with you four topics that I have an interest in and those interests
will eventually turn into a business plan.
The business plan ideas are wholesaling diamonds, gemstones, and pearls;
online commerce; jewelry making or jewelry manufacturing; and my
favorite—songwriting. I think that all
of them are pretty cool, and you never know.
I may do all four. I aspire to
have a brand such as LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) or the Swiss owned Compagnie
Financiere Richemont SA.
Let’s start with
the most gemological oriented business plan.; selling diamonds, gemstones, and
pearls.
For this topic I want to make
sure if there will be a trade for me to participate in by the time I receive my
GG certificate and PG certificate from GIA. I would like to know if the
products would be in high enough supply to start a business. I would really
like my major product to be diamond and from the sound of
it, by the time I get into the trade the
supply will be low.
De Beers warns diamonds aren’t actually forever, in a Time.com
article by the same name.
China has a
booming demand for diamond jewelry sales. “De Beers which accounts for about one
third of all sales, said production is expected to decline beginning in 2020
unless new mines are discovered.” I guess I better get out there and discover
some diamond mines or stockpile.
Stockpiling is buying diamond in bulk and then selling when the supply
gets low.
I’m pretty sure that someone
out there is working on looking for some new mines and when they start digging
and producing diamond rough, we will certainly find out about it.
Then you have to think about the popularity
and surge in sales of, semi-precious and colored stones, as well as
pearls.
The yellow and pink diamond has
been so popular and the precious stones in the complimentary colors or
Mother Nature’s Gifts, such as the pink
and yellow sapphires which have been a substitute for the colored diamonds; to
avoid buying the more expensive, yellow and pink diamonds. I don’t see much
trouble arising when I eventually dabble in the diamond, gemstone, and pearl
trade in about six years. My key move would be to stockpile.
But you never know, it’s always good to have
a plan B.
Which moves me on
to my next topic online commerce.
You
would think online commerce is productive and even popular on Black
Monday.
I was thinking something in the
sorts of bridal wear and the advantages of selling it by e-commerce.
Most bridal designers had their own boutiques
and then went into mom and pop stores such as David’s Bridals and Manhattan’s
own, Kleinfield’s. “In 2013, in New York, Alberta Ferriti’s
made-to-order bridal collection was
launched with 23 styles wholesaling form $1,820 to $5,200…”many stores sell 350
to 500 wedding gowns a season.”
Designers have there own websites and blogs selling their bridal
collections.
Monique L’huillier and Vera Wang are favorites with
soon-to-be-brides, all the better with e-commerce, which help in the selling of
these luxury designers. The consumer can see the brands’, bridal runway shows
on their websites and know what designs they want before the new season.
Another business
plan that could help me in my conglomerate is jewelry making or jewelry
manufacturing.
The predictions of a
jewelry brand in a recession will only last temporarily and as soon as the
economy picks back up, jewelry buying will bounce back, just as quickly.
One thing about selling fine jewelry is that,
when a recession hits, the jewelry business takes, a toil too.
When there was “a noticeable slowdown in
consumer spending” with “high-end retailers like
Blue Nile” there were more conservative predictions in their
financial forecasts. Then there’s a mom and pop jewelry firm named
betsy & iya.
Betsy & iya does rather well for
themselves (financially) and gets close to their nationwide customers through
their “website, blog, Facebook page and face-to-face encounters with customers
visiting their shop...”
Opening a
brick-and-mortar shop seems to do wonders with getting close to consumers and
having them support you, nationally, when you have your jewelry knocked-off, is
great for business and demand for a product. I know that I kind of contradicted
my self when I said that betsy & iya is doing well as a brick-and-mortar
and I want to open an e-commerce bridal boutique, but like I said, ‘It’s a
learning process.’
Last but not
least before I let you go from reading this post I’ve come to the good ‘ole way
of songwriting.
How can it be that I
make up little songs around the house about food and all of a sudden; I want to
become a songwriter.
Since, I have been
attending Full Sail, I believe that the unbelievable is believable, and the
impossible is possible.
So, I am looking
to songwriting to chronicle life.
Whether the song are about my life, the life of family, friends,
strangers, and lovers.
Isn’t this is
what modern day songwriting about, as well as songwriters from our past. An old
songwriter in American history is
StephenFoster.
His works include “Oh!
Susanna,” “Camptown Races,” “Swanee River (Old Folks at Home, and “ My Old
Kentucky Home.”
“Foster’s subjects
captured broad swaths of American society played out on riverboats,
battlefields and slave plantations.”
He
is a legacy and an inspiration for my developing talent.
When you are
learning to write songs “so many
concepts and standards that are being taught: tempo, pitch, rhythm,
form, etc." I learned this from a teacher in a charter school in Florida; by the name of Kathy Kerstetter.
I want to take all of this
into consideration while I am teaching myself to write songs, and play the
guitar, and while I am learning to read music. And just think I got this idea
by frequenting the BMI website!
All of these topics are interesting and interest me. In the entertainment industry music is a key
element. You hear it in movies, you see music videos; there are TV shows that
showcase people and their singing talents.
Rarely on these shows does the singer showcase an original song that
they have created and I think that on some of these shows they would be better
if people sing their own songs or share their own creativity. I love music and
I feel as though I can develop an internal gift that has been hibernating. What do I have to loose. Developing this talent may enable me to
increase my business sense in gemology.
As you know, jewels of all sorts, are
not just accessories in the music industry. Some of them should have their own zip code,
just think of the
Hope Diamond. Celebrities showcase jewels and gems on the
red carpet at award ceremonies, on videos, and at luxury brands’ red carpet
events. They are not only nice things to
look at but, these gems leave an imprint in history, when you see celebs being
photographed with their them. It’s what
makes Hollywood,…Hollywood.
