Is Jewellery the Last Brilliant Investment?

by Ronald Wolf Business Consultant

Investing is always a good idea if you know what you are doing (or find someone who does). Sure, it actually does require some work, and some luck, but it’s still a good way to make money. And let’s not beat around the bush here – it’s very, very exciting. But, all the market is saturated, everybody is investing nowadays. It seems every other person on the street has invested some money into the newest tech start-up, artisanal coffee place, and microbrewery. And of course, grain, sugar, salt, all these have been taken by the big cats for decades now. But, what about jewellery?

Jewellery has been one of the better investment opportunities for years, but it has fallen out of the spotlight. However, we believe that it’s making a comeback. There are many reasons behind this line of thought, and we will note them below, as well as some quick advice on how to invest in jewellery, if you opt to do so.

Do your homework, understand the benefits

If you truly want to make a serious investment into jewellery, you simply must do your homework. This means that you need to, at the very least, be familiar with the basics of jewellery categorization and quality.

First of all, carats and points. A metric carat amounts to 200 milligrams. For diamonds, more often you will hear a points system, which makes one carat into 100 points. This leaves a lot more room for precise measuring. So, this one is obvious – the bigger diamond, the better.

Next, you have quality. Now, quality can be divided into colour, clarity, and cut. Without going into too much detail, clarity is essentially how clear the diamond is. If it’s cloudy and opaque, you can be certain that it will be worth less than a nice clear one. There are many colours of diamonds, but the most valuable ones tend to be white. Finally, cut is the shape of the diamond, how finely has it been cut, and how well does it reflect light. Investing in a high-quality coloured diamonds portfolio can be a good option, if you know what you’re doing.

Then, if you’re investing in jewellery, decide what kind of precious metal you want to go with. Obviously gold has the highest value, but silver is nothing to scoff at. Furthermore, decide whether you want to invest in modern or vintage jewellery. You need to research the market, figure out whether people who buy jewellery in your chosen area have a tendency towards nostalgia, or are they completely forward focused.

Furthermore, know that because jewellery is highly durable and portable (more on that later) it offers a great safety net. You can essentially use it as backup, as insurance, a rainy day emergency cash injection, and even a way to consolidate your debts if there comes a point where you need to do so.

Diamonds (and jewellery) are forever

Unlike most other investments, diamonds and jewellery can last for pretty much forever. They are an excellent way in which investors and the wealthy can preserve their wealth. Many buy diamonds and gold instead of stock and bonds. Not only because you can’t really set fire to a diamond, and melting jewellery is rather difficult, but also because they are tangible. Jewellery and diamonds, as investments, are things people can hold in their hands, they can see, touch, and feel them.

Practice due diligence

Now, before you decide to invest in jewellery, before you actually want to get a piece you have been keeping your eye on, understand that you need all the proper documentation and expert opinions on it. The sad fact is that you can’t really trust everybody. There are many dishonest and downright fraudulent sellers out there, and a simple error can cost you thousands upon thousands of dollars. The entire jewellery market is chock full of fakes, replicas, and knock-offs.

New markets

As a country prospers, so too does the market for luxury items increase. The best examples for these two are India and China. The market is becoming more and more powerful for these items as their countries have become richer. And while they are not without their problems, China and India has seen a strong improvement regarding the jewellery market, especially gold. And since both of these countries are the most populous places in the world, you obviously see an almost untapped new market that is still growing.

Convenient

The tangibility of jewellery is an aspect people really enjoy about it, it’s what makes it a good investment. And while we mentioned how people just enjoy knowing that these are real, physical things, there are other aspects too. Namely, jewellery is a way for people to conserve their wealth, and it’s incredibly convenient because you can simply pass it on, from father to son, from mother to daughter, quite literally. This portability, this mobility of jewellery is unlike any other investment. You can pretty much carry a million dollar diamond in your pocket around with you for days, and no one will notice (though we don’t advise this, for the sake of your mental health).

Keep it to yourself, know where to sell

You should keep a low profile if you want to invest in jewellery. As we’ve mentioned earlier, you can carry a million dollar piece of jewellery in your back pocket, and nobody will ever know. This also means that you may be an easy target for criminals. Investing in security is pretty much a must. This also means, you should keep the jewellery you invest in within a very strong and trustworthy bank. And do not sell your jewellery online (yes, we need to say this). Any piece of any higher value will either be a fake, or seem like one online. Higher a jeweller, or a broker, if you want to sell.

Conclusion

Investing in jewellery may just be the best new investment option out there. However, you need to stay careful, and to know where to sell. You also need to practice due diligence and do your homework. Once you get all that out of the way, jewellery will prove to be a worthy investment thanks to its convenience and portability, and the durability it offers.