Interview | Get To Know The Wedding Pro: Solitaire Jewels
Written by on November 14, 2016.
Tagged under: Engagement Rings, Jewelry, Solitaire Jewels, wedding rings
Get To Know The Wedding Pro: Solitaire Jewels
Each week, we shine the spotlight on Bride Club ME vendor club members, allowing you, our reader, to get up close and personal with some of the best wedding vendors in town. Here, you can learn more about the people behind some of the businesses you may be using to make your wedding day perfect!
This week we have the privilege of showcasing Alok Krishnani, President of Solitaire Jewels. Below, Alok provides us with an exclusive insight into the company, tells us all about why he works in this industry, and shares with us what he loves the most about his job.
How long has Solitaire Jewels been established, and what sets you apart from other jewelers in the region?
Solitaire Jewels is a family owned business which originally started in New York in 1976. With our New York roots, you can see that our collection is very different from most jewelers in the Middle East. Our collections have a modern trendy twist to classic designs.
We manufacture and design all items in house, and purchase loose diamonds directly from Belgium, New York and Mumbai. This gives us the ability to offer the best possible pricing to our clients. There is no middle-man in between our clients and us. Nine out of ten clients have confirmed that our pricing beats our competitors.
What do you love most about your job?
I love it all. If I am forced to choose, it would be working with my clients and being able to exceed their expectations in every order or sale. In today’s global economic environment, it is tougher for families to manage wedding expenses. Since jewelry is usually a large part of that expense, I love the challenge of making the perfect piece of jewelry within their budgets. I think this is a great job to have – to be able to help someone by designing and manufacturing their dream jewelry. Working with female clients in particular is a blessing, as they are emotionally attached to their jewelry, which makes me work to achieve the desired results.
What made you decide to work in the jewelry industry?
Solitaire Jewels is a family business; my Grandfather started the business in 1976. Originally I was working as an investment banker on Wall Street, but I joined the company in 2002 to see whether I liked this industry, and since then I have been a jeweler.
Honestly, I did not know anything about jewelry 14 years back when I started, and I did not know that I would last so long. However, I love the creative expression and the design process in jewelry. It has now become an important part of me and I love my job.
Tell us about the range of jewelry stocked by Solitaire Jewels, and how engaged and married couples could use your services. We all know that it doesn’t end with the engagement ring!
Everything is designed in house, and manufactured by us. We do not buy from anyone else, so the whole process, from the loose diamonds to the finished product, is managed by us.
Solitaire Jewels showcases everything from daily wear jewelry (diamond tennis bracelets, solitaire stud earrings and hoop earrings) to fashion jewelry (ear-climbers, pendants, fancy bracelets and necklaces). Our niche and specialty is modern bridal, which includes a vast range of engagement rings and bridal necklaces within different budgets.
We have in-house designers who make over one hundred designs per week. As a team, we choose which ones to manufacture and also custom-make many designs as per the client’s request.
Our latest collections include the ‘Messie Collection’, which is a modern concept with diamonds hand-made in messy patterns. Another exciting line introduced in February 2016 is ‘Floaters’ which are diamonds set on a special invisible floating thread. It gives the illusion that the diamonds are actually floating on your hands. Innovation is a critical part of our business.
An engaged or married couple are always welcome to come and see our ready to buy selection of items. Or, if they have a concept in mind, we can hand-draw designs for them within a week and provide a quote. We never say no to our clients.
Describe the experience a couple / potential groom will have when purchasing jewelry for their wedding or anniversary from Solitaire Jewels…
Above all, SJ stands for transparency and customer service. We strive to be casual, straightforward and serious about delivering a high quality and well-designed piece of jewelry.
You can expect a full disclosure on the quality of diamonds, including certification from an independent diamond laboratory. As for the customer service, we will work very hard to exceed your expectations – you have to come and try it and tell us how you feel.
How do you manage trust from your clients? After all, it is the most important day of their lives, and their wedding rings are not only an investment but something that should last forever… How do you keep them returning for future purchases?
Isn’t trust the most important thing, whether its jewelry or your family. We treat this with a lot of seriousness. Our transparency with our clients is one hundred per cent and all items are certified by an independent lab which is a separate entity from us.
We just do our best everyday with each and every client and with God’s grace they keep coming back for more.
What budgets do you cater for?
For our bridal range we can cater to all budgets from 5000AED and above. For fashion we start at around 3000AED and up.
If you could give one piece of jewelry-related advice to brides-to-be in the UAE, what would it be?
I think it’s important to shop around if you don’t have a jeweler. At the end of the day, it’s important to buy where you feel comfortable. Trust comes with time; however, trust your own intuition, it never lies.
Lastly, why did you choose to list with www.brideclubme.com?
I think it’s a brilliant and personalised platform to connect with people looking to get married. When I first met Rhiannon, I realised we both shared the same passion of fulfilling a need in the market for brides to be. Her outlook on working closely with brides is similar to how we do things. She also has a knack for simplifying things which I love about the website. It is very easy to use, focuses more on pictures than text and tells stories. I felt it was the perfect place to showcase our jewelry.
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