Orly Diamonds

Dec 12

In their own words

“We have a super sparkly store. We have gemstones stuck on our wallpaper—everything sparkles here. People get engaged in our store. We set everything up—he sends flowers, we have champagne, and we make it really pretty.”

-Orly Berger

Jason’s Interview with Orly

Jason

Today, we're talking to Orly Berger from Orly Diamonds. How did you get into the industry?

Orly

The short version is, I was an accountant by trade, and had a midlife crisis, and decided to change my career to the diamond business.

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Jason
What was the inspiration there? Did you have family members in the business?

Orly
I do. I was born and raised in Israel. And clearly, the biggest diamond bourse in Israel is the Diamond Exchange. When I was small, my grandfather was a businessman in Israel but also traded diamonds. When they built the first building, the Diamond Exchange, it was called the Shim Shom tower. I think I was about six when I went with my grandfather to pick out some diamonds because he was making a diamond band for my mom and my grandma. I saw everything nice and sparkly, and that's where my love for diamonds began.

Jason
How do you feel when you come to Orly Diamonds?

Orly
Every day is a blessing because I love what I do. I wake up in the morning, and I go to a place where people are happy. People are getting engaged; people are buying jewelry. There's nothing really negative in my world. Every day is happy.

Jason
What's the feeling like when clients come in?

Orly
We're a family-run business. It's myself and my son and two daughters. You will never see an employee that's here today, gone tomorrow. We all design, we're involved in the financial aspect, and we try to interact with whoever comes in. At the end of the day, when the client comes in, they’re our friend. It becomes a warm and inviting environment. We have a super sparkly store. We have little gemstones stuck on our wallpaper; everything sparkles here. On Saturdays, clients come, and we have afternoon wine with friends and clients. We focus a lot on custom design. If you have older jewelry, we recreate it. We don't copy; we like to invent and reinvent. People actually get engaged in our store. We set it up really pretty. We set everything up, he sends flowers, we have champagne, and we have engagements done at our store. After a few years of that, my son became ordained. The whole wedding can happen here.

Jason
Wow, how big is the store?

Orly
It’s 1,750 square feet of everything sparkly. We actually had a great 80th birthday party in our store. One of our clients found a ring that had seven diamonds in it. It was an antique ring from an estate, which I guess represented all this woman's great-grandchildren. They had a surprise party for her here. We had bubbly and flowers and chocolate-covered strawberries. We love parties here.

Jason
Tell me a fun, memorable proposal experience.

Orly
One day, a gentleman came in with his soon-to-be fiancé. He came in and said, “Listen, today I think I want to get engaged. I want this beautiful woman to come in and pick out any ring.” She came in, picked a ring, he proposed to her, and I think now they're married for six or seven years. So a bit more about our store. I can tell you that in Israel, my cousin is a master cutter. He cuts exclusive sounds like the August vintage cushion.

Jason
A very rare stone.

Orly
Yes. And the Octavia diamond. A brand of stone and really what is known today as the Tiffany & Co. legacy cushion. He's also the cutter for that stone.

Jason
Why do you think it is that people trust you so much?

Orly
We're transparent. We're upfront and personal. You're not pressured to make a decision. I believe that our main ingredient is making our clients feel comfortable.

Jason
What are some charities and nonprofits that Orly diamond has supported?

Orly
We have supported Child Inc., which was founded by a dear friend of mine who has passed away, Mrs. Martha DuPont. It was an organization that supports battered women and children in need. We support a lot of local charities. We go to all types of events. Wilmington is not a very big town. Everyone knows everyone, and you feel connected to these different charities.

Jason
Five years from now, where do you see Orly diamonds?

Orly
When I started out, I started by myself. And then, my son joined me. We were the first jewelry store in town to actually have a website. Then one of my vendors called and said, “We just saw that you were America's coolest website on InStore magazine.” I see us as a new-age jeweler with a strong personal appearance, more so than advertising. Social media is where we make connections with people.

Jason
You can say whatever you like to Meet the Jewelers; what would you like to tell us?

Orly
I don't think that I could teach you a lot, but treating your clients like your friends is probably the biggest asset that any store can have. People like to feel comfortable. I think people like to feel special. And again, when you come to the jewelry store, it's typically for a special reason. It's a life-changing moment.