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DeBeers Diamond Syndicate Vows to Uphold Mission
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Setting-up shop on the Internet can be done with as much fanfare or as few frills as necessary said diamond company entrepreneur Marvin Rosenblatt.
"I could become the Wal-Mart of diamonds," he told Rapaport News, but he used
the description to mean, "keep it simple, no frills, and [address] price as the
primary concern." Operating costs online are low compared with brick-and-mortar,
so Rosenblatt contends that not only is the web a place to "survive, but
thrive."
For the time being though, Rosenblatt, president of the DeBeers Diamond
Syndicate, vows to fight for his mission against De Beers in court. On June 2,
2006, United States District Court ruled that he could not use the name DeBeers
to sell diamonds online. Rosenblatt plans to appeal the decision.
"I am disappointed in the result, of course, but the court did agree with me
that the plaintiff, De Beers LV, did not show that the name DeBeers qualifies
for protection under the famous marks doctrine," he said.
As part of Rosenblatt's defense it was argued that the United States' retail
partnership De Beers LV, had not applied to use its name for selling diamonds.
"The name DeBeers Diamond Syndicate was approved for publication by the U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office," he said.
As of press time De Beers would not comment on the case. When the issues are
finally sorted out, Rosenblatt plans to move forward and has already purchased
some 30 website addresses to use for his venture.
Rosenblatt considers that diamonds fit the definition of a commodity. "The
commodity is what they are buying and not a luxury item...I don't care about the
box, mine is a totally different concept," he said.
Diamonds increase in value and they are not easy to find, Rosenblatt said. In
the long-term as the dollar grows more vulnerable to world economic pressures,
he views the diamond as a basis for investment. "Diamonds have a good future and
the markets will follow with investment funds."
Rosenblatt believes that the sales potential on the open market, using the
Internet to sell diamonds, is between $10 million and $20 million the first year
of full operations.
While Rosenblatt considers BlueNile is somewhat of a potential competitor, his
operational model is more aligned to a wholesale business, which would offer
diamonds to all buyers. |
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