Diamond sellers push inventory
Arctic Jewellers sees strong demand
Walter Strong
Northern News Services
Published Tuesday, December 16, 2014
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
After almost 16 years in Yellowknife's Centre Square Mall, Arctic Jewellers owners April Tran and Hau Thanh Huynh have no intention of slowing down.
April Tram, left, and Hau Thanh Huynh, owners of Arctic Jewellers in the Centre Square Mall, are having a liquidation sale to make room for new inventory in the new year. Demand for diamonds certified as being mined in the North remains strong, Tram said. - Walter Strong/NNSL photo
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Instead, they've unrolled a store-wide liquidation of inventory to make room for new products and styles next year.
Huynh, already a jeweller apprentice in Vietnam at age 14, came to Canada still in his teenage years. He went straight to work for different jewellers in Vancouver.
Tran said it was the Northern diamond industry that drew them here to open their store in 1999, shortly after Ekati began operations.
"We heard about the diamond mines, and we though it was a very good opportunity to come here and open a store," Tran said.
"A lot of people want to buy their diamonds here, this is the home of the diamonds."
A mainstay of the business are tourists from Japan and China, although she has clients come into their store from Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton and other southern locations.
"Lots of people ask for the Polar Bear diamond," Tran said.
"It was the first one, but now we have others."
Tran said Arctic Jewellers has a good supply of Polar Bear branded diamonds in inventory thanks to strategic purchasing over the past few years.
"We knew something was happening (with the diamond manufacturing facility), so we bought a lot," Tran said.
"Last year, there was still some left, so we bought them all."
It's a bit of double good new for consumers who are still looking for some of the original Polar Bear diamonds. Not only does Arctic Jewellers have them, but they're not marking them up more than other, perhaps less rare, diamonds.
"We try to sell them at a regular price," Tran said.
"They cost a little more because we paid more when we got them, but we try to keep it the same."
Arctic Jeweller specializes in custom jewelry, but carries a large inventory of stock ready to purchase jewelry and watches. Depending on the time of the year the store employs up to eight workers.
As for next year's new inventory and product lines, Tran said they're keeping that a secret.
