It wasn’t that long ago that the thought of buying a $10,000 or $20,000 engagement ring online was unthinkable, and yet today, thanks to advances in technology and increasing comfort with digital transactions, a growing number of consumers wouldn’t have it any other way, especially when a trained professional escorts them through the entire process.
It’s exactly why, in less than five years, D2C diamond and jewelry brand The Clear Cut has been able to carve out a loyal niche of customers who were either drawn in by its low-pressure presentations on its Instagram and TikTok pages, or sent there via word of mouth.
“We are like a diamond concierge service,” The Clear Cut Co-founder and CEO Olivia Landau told PYMNTS Editor-in-Chief Matt Nesto in a recent conversation, explaining how customers start with a simple one-on-one telephone consultation and finish with a digital portfolio of tailored diamond or ring suggestions that they can peruse and read at their leisure.
“We are going from, ultimately, what a wholesaler would be to a retailer, but direct to the consumer,” Landau said, “but with that added level of customer service and expertise that typically you can’t find unless you go to a really specialized retailer.”
Roots as a Blog
In addition to her status as a fourth generation GIA-certified gemologist, Landau is also a digitally native consumer who readily admits that she’s personally more comfortable shopping on-line than in person, without the pressure or awkwardness that can cloud a high-end retail experience.
According to husband, Co-founder and COO Kyle Simon, The Clear Cut’s origins as an informational blog and hand-holding consultation and advice for friends spawned what today has become a $1M+ per month digital jewelry operation with customers education at its core.
“This all began as a blog and I think it’s important to always look back to that because a lot of what we do is educate the customer through social media,” Simon said. “In this world, our customers who are followers of ours, are actually more informed than the traditional salesperson in your local jewelry store because they’ve been so empowered through that educational content,” he added.
Simon also points to the brand’s virtual “GEM” Service that serves as a private dropbox of sorts with a basket of items that match customers’ needs and budget and can be visited 24/7 to study or ask questions, and ultimately purchase when they’re ready to buy.
The Digital Diamond Shift
To be sure, The Clear Cut is not alone in tracking the digital diamond uptrend as has been amply illustrated by the strong earnings results reported by Brilliant Earth as well as the recent acquisition of online site Blue Nile by the jewelry industry’s physical store leader Signet.
In likening their consultative role to the increasingly common buyer’s agent used in real estate transactions, Landau said the company’s consultative approach has appealed to tradtional engagement and wedding ring buyers as well as newer market segments like self-purchasing women who might by marking a milestone birthday or major job promotion.
“Our whole goal is to create an experience and pieces of quality that you want to invest in and continue to come back to,” she said. “We want to be there for all of our customers’ big life moments and celebratory events.”
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