The Jewellery Ultramarathon
Humans have always had an affinity for jewellery. Its allure captures the eye, and pieces often become heirlooms, passed down through generations. They are sought after, envied, loved, and coveted in equal measure. The jewellery business, as ancient as the first cut stone, is not one for newcomers or drastic changes. Ilya Podnebesny, owner of the Gemstock brand, shares his insights on becoming a trailblazer, setting the rules on an international scale within this closed and conservative industry, and elevating it to a completely new platform.
In 2010, I became a partner in our family jewellery house, founded and led by my sister, Ksenia Podnebesnaya. She is our creative director. In the early years, we focused on marine pearls, sourcing the finest specimens from Australian auctions and entire harvests of rare Japanese golden pearls from Amami and Biwa. For many years, we have remained leaders in the Russian jewellery market in selecting marine pearls and producing the highest quality pearl-adorned pieces. Today, we have established a full-cycle production facility in Moscow with a large team of skilled craftsmen and a jewellery boutique at the Lotte Hotel Moscow.
2014 was pivotal for us — we launched jewellery production and ventured into coloured gemstones, for which I took full responsibility. It took me several years to delve into the specifics of the global coloured gemstone market, travelling to all leading mining regions and studying at the most reputable Asian gemmological institutes.
In May 2017, Gemstock was born, specialising in the sale of coloured gemstones. From its inception, Gemstock stood apart from anything else in the niche. Firstly, it focused on selling coloured gemstones online through its own platform. Today, our stock boasts over 2,500 stones, with new additions daily. Secondly, we chose to specialise in the rarest, most valuable, and expensive stones. Before us, there were numerous websites offering cheap stones, but the costly and rare ones were seldom sold online or displayed openly with their prices. Thirdly, our key clients became jewellery houses and prestigious international brands. Additionally, we provide a comprehensive service for acquiring coloured gemstones to end consumers, operating in both b2b and b2c formats.
Over seven years, Gemstock has grown into one of the world's largest online platforms for coloured gemstones and a reliable pricing benchmark for the entire industry. Today, the company ranks 11th for key search queries on Google and aims to break into the top ten by the end of the year.
The geographical distribution of our website's visitors dictates the map for opening new offices. In 2022, our headquarters moved from Moscow to Bangkok, the global capital of coloured gemstones. In 2023, we opened a showroom in Dubai, and in 2024, we plan to establish an office in Sri Lanka for analytics and procurement. The highest percentage of our website traffic comes from the United States, which is why I am currently in New York, working on launching the company in the American market.
An interesting fact about the company and myself: I am the first in my family to engage in the jewellery business at an international level. This surprises many of my partners — hereditary gemstone dealers, some of whom represent companies with histories spanning over a century. In the jewellery world, the experience, assets, and even clients accumulated by previous generations are traditionally passed down. Undoubtedly, starting from scratch is exponentially more challenging, but there is a significant advantage — you are the first to set the rules of the game, which can sometimes give you a considerable head start.
Globally, our mission has remained unchanged over time. We genuinely believe that we can make the trade of coloured gemstones entirely transparent and safe for end consumers worldwide. We understand well how conservative and closed the coloured gemstone market is, and how, due to the multitude of pricing factors, the end buyer is often unable to navigate this independently. Consequently, I still witness a vast number of unscrupulous deals in the market, with deceived and disappointed buyers. Thanks to our educational courses on a modern online platform and our proprietary GS Index for gemstone evaluation, I am 100% confident that we can achieve our mission.
In 2023, we participated in two international jewellery exhibitions in the UAE. It was crucial to understand the local consumer in this new market. We realised that in Dubai, as in Russia, we would advance through education, but this time focusing on end consumers. We developed educational materials and adapted professional expertise into accessible content. We launched a lecture series that was highly successful and fully booked for all sessions. In the new season, we will continue to promote this direction, making it even more engaging and interactive. The material will not be repeated.
Simultaneously, we are searching for premises for a jewellery boutique. The process is not swift, but preparations are in full swing. With many years of experience in the precious stones sector in Russia, where this field is highly regulated, I can say that Dubai offers many significant advantages for us. Firstly, there is a more favourable tax system and a growing market. Secondly, there are simplified logistics processes for coloured gemstones and jewellery, quick customs clearance, and lower customs duties. Thirdly, Dubai is one of the few places today where people feel completely safe wearing expensive jewellery. Lastly, the number of events constantly taking place in Dubai makes it one of the best venues for showcasing our jewellery.
In Dubai, I clearly realised and felt that it is a city that accelerates everything. Businesses are launched quickly here, and you receive feedback on what you are doing even faster. The high concentration of active and talented individuals from around the world allows for the swift establishment of new business connections and partnerships. It is one of the best places to test international business hypotheses.
At this very moment, I am embarking on the transformation of our company from a seller of coloured gemstones into an IT enterprise with a unique technology for gemstone evaluation, the GS Index. For the past two years, we have been laying the groundwork for conducting international business with this aim in mind. I relocated nearly the entire team from Moscow to Bangkok, where we launched cutting and jewellery manufacturing operations involving our Russian technologists and craftsmen. We established a development and analytics department, as well as an international sales department, effectively tripling our staff size. Moreover, over these two years, we have maintained momentum in developing our index, which has been approved by several international jewellery associations, including the ICA (International Colored Gemstone Association). Since March of this year, our gemstone value index has been included in the certificates of the ICA GemLab international laboratory, signifying the industry's acceptance of our standard. For my team and me, this achievement opens up entirely new horizons for development.
Personally, it was important for me to realise my idea. I vividly remember how, in the summer of 2022, after yet another training programme at Skolkovo, the concept of this index came to me, and I couldn't sleep all night as I outlined the project's concept. I had great faith in my vision, although initially it seemed unachievable even to my team.
There were numerous challenges. These included a lack of funding for developing new projects, launching operations in Bangkok, difficulties associated with relocating a Russian-speaking team to Bangkok, and obtaining all necessary work documents. Additionally, there was the lengthy process of training Thai employees, who now number 30 in the company. Personally, the most challenging aspect was finding highly qualified personnel. Such individuals are not readily available on the market and need to be cultivated, which takes time — typically one to two years — and we did not have that luxury. We had to develop our own training system and recruit people without prior experience.
At this stage, we have not yet sought external funding for our business, but the project with the index has garnered significant interest from several investors and venture capital funds. In the new season, we will revisit financing options. Currently, we are in the final stages of packaging our project.
I am greatly motivated by the challenges I set for myself. At this stage, these include scaling up, exploring new markets, and transitioning into roles that are new to me. It's always about stepping out of one's comfort zone. My team inspires me; they believe in me, in our company, and in our vision.
Moreover, I firmly believe that one can find support and sound advice within the family. Working with family members is not easy, but you can trust them completely, rely on them as you would on yourself, and receive honest feedback. Many decisions are made during such family councils.
It may sound like a cliché, but I like to repeat that a crisis is a new opportunity. A natural flexibility of mind and the ability to quickly adapt to surrounding conditions allow for breakthrough solutions. Several of my projects would not have come to fruition if not for the latest crisis. A crisis offers the possibility of very rapid growth, the likes of which are impossible under stable conditions.
I would venture to compare business to running. There are different types of running: sprints, middle and long distances, marathons, and even hurdles. Each type requires entirely different physical attributes and preparation. Similarly, an entrepreneur, in choosing their business, gradually acquires various skills and levels of endurance. I am one of those who can endure, having developed the stamina for a very long race; hence, I opt for a sand marathon — a six-day ultramarathon spanning 250 kilometres across the Sahara Desert. At times, when everything is against you, time becomes your only ally; the key is to persevere.
I would like to continue changing the rules of trade in the coloured gemstone market by implementing our evaluation system across all markets. I clearly see the prospects — becoming one of the companies that sets new standards for the entire global gemstone industry. I have no doubt that we will succeed because the key to success for an entrepreneur is belief. Belief in oneself, in one's team, mission, and purpose. And of course, a love for one's work — you must live for it.
