Origin stories: calling all trade accounts! How did you begin?

[diamondyes]

I once read about how @Wink got his start in the industry, and I’d love to hear how @Rockdiamond and @Texas Leaguer and @Garry H (Cut Nut) and others found this industry! Please share your stories, you superheroes of the gem world! And tag anyone I’ve missed?

 

[Modified Brilliant]

My family owned two retail jewelry stores in the 60's, 70's and 80's. We sold toasters and stereos, greeting cards, and imported gift ware, and jewelry too! I became a GG in 1986. Dad retired. We closed the stores. I worked in the wholesale diamond and estate buying business for a few years, then District Manager for Sterling for a few years, then started my own appraisal business in 2003 (still in business) and owned an estate buying company for 5 years also. I studied City Planning in college, also have a B.A. in English but took the easy way out and went into the family business. After 40 years in the biz, I'm now semi-retired and still learn something new everyday!

 

[Rockdiamond]

There I am.
On the corner of 56th and Fifth...standing outside my first "diamond" job.
My mom was a secretary for a guy running the JC Penny Division of Harry Winston. Betcha didn't lnow that back in the '70's Harry Winston, at the time, the largest seller of polished diamonds in the world, supplied ALL JC Penny jewelry counters.
My mom was able to get me an interview with "Abe"...who ran "the School"
See, HW needed to grade all the diamonds they were cutting.....so they instituted a school teaching diamond grading.
So, Abe hired me ( it also helped that my grandfather came from the same town in Turkey as Mr Ashkenazi......the head of all loose diamonds at HW.)
When, the next day, Abe found out I was a lefty ( Abe was superstitious)....well, let's say Abe and I never really found much common ground ( he also hated me dating one of the girls in school...ah to be young again)

Anyway, who knew where it would lead???
Yet here I am. An old Fart. An old Diamond Fart....lol

ETA...man, that hair......now it only grows where I don't want it to

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

Great thread! I hope more post, I love reading these kinds of stories

 

[diamondyes]

Great thread! I hope more post, I love reading these kinds of stories

Same!