Founder's Story - The Untold Truth About Diamonds: Daniela Sokolowski on Redefining Luxury | S2 Ep. 172

Episode Date: February 9, 2025

In this episode of Founder's Story, Daniela Sokolowski, founder and CEO of DiCuore Diamonds, shares her journey from working with industry giants like De Beers to starting her bespoke jewelry brand. Daniela opens up about her entrepreneurial spark, the emotional significance of her work, and how her journey as a cancer survivor has fueled her mission to empower others.Key Takeaways:The Spark of Entrepreneurship: Daniela reflects on her early career in the diamond industry and how her passion for jewelry design and customer relationships led to the creation of DiCuore Diamonds.The Name Behind the Brand: "DiCuore," meaning "from the heart" in Italian, reflects the emotional essence of her custom jewelry pieces.Bespoke vs. Retail Jewelry: Daniela explains the personalized process of creating bespoke jewelry, emphasizing customer education and collaboration as key differentiators from mall retail experiences.Challenges in the Diamond Industry: Daniela discusses how these shifts are reshaping the industry from the rise of lab-grown diamonds to market volatility.Motivation Through Adversity: As a six-year cancer survivor, Daniela talks about how her experience inspired her to pursue her passion, uplift others, and build a brand rooted in resilience and authenticity.Connect with Daniela:Visit her jewelry studio: 1460 Broadway, Manhattan, New YorkWebsite: dicuorediamonds.comSocial Media: @DiCuoreDiamondsOur Sponsors:* Check out CoinFlip and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://coinflip.tech* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Kinsta: https://kinsta.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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Today we have Daniella Sokolowski. And Daniella, you are the founder and CEO of Decore Diamonds, which I love the name. I really love the name. So I want to first start off with understanding about what was the spark in entrepreneurship for you and why did you go into the diamonds but can you explain also the name because it's a beautiful Italian sounding name and I really want to understand what does it mean. Yes it is Italian actually it means from the cart and it's interesting how I got into this. I've been working in this industry for quite a long time. I moved to the U S in 2009 and that was pretty much my first serious job.

I started to work for a diamond dealer. Then I moved on to work for, uh, the beers. I'm not sure if you're familiar, but the beers is pretty big diamond mining company. And over the years, I discovered the passion for making jewelry and designing company. And over the years I discovered the passion for making jewelry and designing pieces. Decoré, I didn't really plan on opening Decoré in the beginning. I mean it wasn't like a plan, okay, five years from now I'm going to open Decoré. It wasn't anything like that. I was working as a chief operating officer for another jeweler here in Manhattan. I'm actually based in Manhattan. And things don't work out at my job. So I just decided to go on my own because like I said, I love jewelry,

I love making jewelry, and I had very good feedback from my customers over the years. and I opened the core in January 2024. So it's a little over a year now. And the reason for the name is it actually reflects how I look at Joy. I know it's a very emotional process, you know, getting engaged, buying something for, you know, for your wife and your anniversary or even the other way around for your husband as well.

And it's a business that is very emotionally charged and this is how I look at it from the heart. So this is how I came up with the name. I love that from the heart. So in my short experiences of buying diamonds, I can relate to this, the emotional attachment just in the buying process, but then in the piece or product that you have that could last, you know, a lifetime. And are you seeing a big increase in people that want something that's more custom or bespoke versus the cookie cutter stuff that you might see at the mall? Yes, but it depends. I mean, there's people who just want to have something

special, something different. In fact, a lot of customers do say that they want something different, but at the end, they settle for buying something from the mall. However, it just so happened that I get referrals from a lot of people, and then I make that process very easy and I explained to them and I explained to them that no it's not more expensive no it's not that going to be something you

won't like in fact you're very much involved you're a hundred percent involved in the process first of all there's no pressure like at the mall. Nobody pulls a tray in front of you, shows you 10 pieces and okay, choose. No. We sit, in the beginning I don't have anything, not one piece, nothing. We just sit, we get to know each other. I ask you, so what are you, first of all I want to know what the occasion is, right, because it's very important. And then I start asking questions about the partner and I start asking, sometimes they come with a friend or, you know, and I gather information

and we come up with some ideas. Sometimes they also already know what they want. And they say, I want something that nobody has. And I said, okay, listen, we cannot reinvent the wheel. We have to understand what's the shape, what she likes, does she want the big stone? Is she, does she have a metal preference? And we do a process of education.

Mainly the main difference between bespoke and regular jewelry is that there's a lot of education involved. When you sit with me, I spend about an hour, an hour and a half with you, even two, if necessary, nobody pays anything. Nobody has any kind of obligation to pay anything. And they get educated.

And they understand, first of all, they understand, OK, so what would I like to get my significant other? What does she like? If she's also involved, I mean, the partner is also involved, it's always easier. But I also like the surprise elements. So I help my customers feel at ease, not only by, you know, not throwing money out the window,

but by knowing that the piece we deliver, the partner or whoever receives that will love it. And that's the main difference between seeing it at the mall. And I'm not going to get into like, of course, it's better quality because that might be a little subjective, but it is. But when you know what you want, when you know that, you know, that's the metal you prefer. I talk, I talk about metals, for instance, what's the difference between 14k and 18k? Why should you choose platinum? A lot of people come and say, oh, I'm gonna choose platinum

because platinum is more expensive. And I tell them, oh, actually it's not like that. So that's the main difference is that I sit and I educate them and they learn about lab grown diamonds, natural diamonds, metals, materials. And then we design together with based on ideas, and they seem to love them. I think it's a great learning experience. I went the route of more the custom bespoke,

what you're referring to, what you guys offer, and I really learned a lot, and I spent many days learning to understand, and I find it very interesting. So people that are out there that are looking to purchase diamonds, is there two or three tips or things that they should know

before they even start the process? Well, you know, I prefer clients that don't know. Not that they don't know anything because when you think you know something, there's a lot of misinformation on the internet. Everybody can write everything and we, you know, so tips, of course, you also have to check, you know, if the person is legit, right? The people check on me like they think you Google my name, there's a lot of information. There's

you know, reviews, there are reviews, there's, there's some written material about me. So you want you want to feel like that you're working with somebody that's who's legit Somebody who knows at the same time? It's you know, it's also a matter of common sense. I if I buy something myself I You know, I check reviews. I look up online. I go see in person I invite my clients a lot of my work is done remotely But I invite my clients if they're local to work is done remotely, but I invite my clients, if they're local, to come in, see the stone, not only rely on the videos, of course, I give them videos and very high end, you know, realistic renderings and all that. But I invite them, I said, come and sit with me in my studio, see that I'm, you know, I'm the real deal, ask me questions. But to tell you tips, I don't I don't know. I mean, I cannot say, okay, buying at the mall is not a good route to go. It all depends on what's easier for you. If it's easier for

you to just go and pick one of the five pieces that they show you, yeah, absolutely go to the mall. If it's easier for you to be more educated like yourself, you said you learned a lot and you like the learning process and you feel like okay my god I learned so much about it now. I feel ready to Do to purchase I think going with somebody like me is very important It's it's easier and it actually delivers a result that is better than just picking something under pressure In a mall because you are kind of under pressure, especially if you're pressured by time. I don't know, I find bespoke jewelry very interesting and very special. I did

my own ring like that, well I did my own ring because obviously I'm a jeweler, but I feel like knowing about what you're purchasing and, uh, you know, designing together with your designer, we coming, even if you, you know, came across a picture or you have something already that you inherited from your grandma, but you want to turn it into something else, you know, it's working with me is the, is the route to go. But again, to give tips. I mean, I, it it's it's very very

personal. Yeah no that's great thank you for that. I think that that lays a lot of the groundwork for people to understand where to get started and how to get started. So as somebody who's been a six-year cancer survivor I know you immigrated from Romania which we were just talking about because a lot of my family comes from Romania and I'm very interested to visit one day. What has continued to keep you motivated? Well, you know, when you face a diagnosis like that, you know, it puts your entire life into perspective.

And one thing I learned about myself is that I'm stronger than I thought I was, obviously. And this was one of the reasons that why I did open decor, to be honest, was like, I want to do what I love. I just want to do this jewelry, this passion. I want to cultivate it on my own. I don't want to work for anybody else. And I know that I can deliver an experience that people will love. I also look to uplift women that have been in my situation and are undergoing treatment. And I work with the nonprofit organization

to help women that are going through cancer because there's a lot of stigma around this disease, unfortunately. A lot of people, when they found out, even my own friends, when they found out I was sick, you know, their reactions were very mixed. So people think that once you're, you know, you're diagnosed with something, not everybody obviously, some people don't think that, but your life is over. And I want, I want to be a story of, you know, inspiring other women. I want to show women that you

can still do what you love, you can still do what you're passionate about it. And then this diagnosis should not deter you. And it did not deter me. So how do I find my motivation? Of course, every now and then, I may also feel a little like, oh wow, there's always that question looming. What if I get sick again? But you can't think like that. You gotta, you gotta live life and you gotta see all the positives in life, and I love what I do. And I love what I do. And it's so interesting that people, my customers,

a lot of them relate to my story, and a lot of them tell me, you know, my mother had cancer, or, you know, my aunt, and then they relate to my story, and then we talk a little, and then we find common grounds, and they get so comfortable. You know, they all of a sudden, it's not like they trust me more, but they look at me as,

you know what, this person is a strong person. She loves what she does. She wants to succeed. And in a way, it helps my business as well. So yeah, I'm staying motivated because I don't think I don't think you have any other choice, you know You know have you realize you needed to hire someone yesterday? How do you find quality candidates fast use indeed because when it comes to hiring indeed is all you need Sponsored jobs stand out and bring you 45% more applicants according to indeed data

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Ba-da-ba-ba-ba. I'm participating in restaurants for a limited time. No, thank you for that. And thank you for being vulnerable and sharing. So I am curious about the challenges in the industry. I've seen a lot of documentaries recently about lab-grown diamonds, and I don't fully understand everything. But there's been a lot of talks, at least from what I've seen so far, around this specific thing and then other things that are happening within the diamond industry. Can you speak to what some of the challenges are? Well, first of all, the market is very volatile.

So indeed there is not sure how many years this I mean, the lab room diamonds have been around for a while, but in the past five to six years, and especially in the last two or three years, they kind of took over. I'm not saying that everybody opts for, like everybody wants a labrador diamond. No, it's very generational, I would say. The younger generation thinks that they're more sustainable and there's no controversy around it, around the labrador diamond.

And the main challenge for me as a jeweler is that, you know, the supply doesn't meet the demand. So there's too much supply and less demand, which obviously impacts, because we all know a little bit of economies, right? Impacts due to prices, margins, the margins are very low. And it's also, it's not that, lacquer and diamonds are diamonds, they're real diamonds. So let's start by that. But it all depends on what matters to the customer. Some people, you know, value that story, value the fact that the diamond was in the ground, you know, for 30,000 years and somebody, you know,

mind it and brought it to the surface and polished it, blah, blah, blah. And somebody says, says oh you know what I don't want to spend a lot of money on something that I could get for like five times less and it all depends I mean I cannot give you real numbers because it all depends on the piece and everything but that's one of the challenge there's a lot of merchandise so to speak you know like what was very rare is no longer rare. And obviously it affects us as jewelers too, because you have to reinvent yourself. And how many times can you reinvent yourself? At the end of the day, making jewelry is making jewelry. And even what I can do is just

provide the best customer experience that I can, make the nicest nicest designs and explain to customers when they ask me about the differences or what's the difference in between the lab grown diamonds and natural diamonds because there is a difference. It's how they came about, right? Nobody went in the ground for the lab grown diamonds. They just put them in this machine under a lot of pressure and a lot of high temperature.

And there's a lot of energy involved and it's completely different story basically. There's no romanticizing as the natural diamonds. Thank you for sharing that because I was really curious about how this is changing the industry and how this looks. So, Daniela, if people want to get in touch with you, they want to find out more information, maybe they want to visit you, how can they do so? Well, I'm located, I have a jewelry studio

in 1460 Broadway in Manhattan in New York. And I have a website, Dequora Diamonds, D-I-C-U-O-R-E, diamonds. It's gonna be hard for people.com. And of course I have my social handles that also decoded diamonds. Well Danielle, this has been great. Thank you for educating me.

Thank you for educating the audience on what you're doing, the motivation, inspiration behind the organization that you founded here. I can't wait to follow up in a year, two, few years and see where you are at at that time because I can tell just how inspired and motivated you are. So thank you for joining us today and Founder's Story. Thank you for having me. and natural gas means more jobs, more security, and more innovation. America's

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