Five questions for: Tobias Kormind, co-founder of 77Diamonds.com
77Diamonds.com is an online diamond jeweller that designs and crafts fine jewellery and sells it directly to clients.
What does your business do?
77Diamonds.com designs and crafts fine jewellery and sells it directly to clients. We are an online, contemporary diamond jeweller that has disrupted the fine jewellery industry.
Our technology brings the world's largest selection of diamonds directly from the source to the fingertips of the consumer (with a 360-degree view of the diamond) and allows them to create their own unique piece of jewellery, all at an accessible price. Our clients simply hand-pick the diamond or gemstone and combine it with one of our exquisite designs, or work with our bespoke team to create a newly imagined piece. It's all made to order, fully transparent, and completely ethical.
What's been your greatest achievement?
It is hard to identify a single greatest achievement, as every year has many battles fought and mostly won. We have been privileged to win multiple industry awards (the first are always the sweetest!).
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
And we have reached many major milestones, such as moving our headquarters to Mayfair, opening our own workshop, and successfully launching multiple showrooms. We now have an international footprint.
What has been your biggest challenge?
Dealing with the paradox of offering best-in-class products and customer service while significantly undercutting traditional jewellery pricing.
This has been exceptionally difficult because we had no outside investment until the middle of 2018. The process has involved rigorous prioritisation, a great deal of compromise on projects and timings, and sometimes lots of frustration.
What are your plans for hitting your targets this year?
Making the business more efficient, continuing to improve the process for customers, and further embracing social media.
What's the one piece of advice you'd give fellow entrepreneurs?
It's always going to be much harder than you think and it will never work exactly as expected. Be flexible, formulate contingency plans, and apply the 80/20 rule (get it live and fix the kinks later).
Sign up to Money Morning
Our team, led by award winning editors, is dedicated to delivering you the top news, analysis, and guides to help you manage your money, grow your investments and build wealth.
-
Christmas at Chatsworth: review of The Cavendish Hotel at Baslow
MoneyWeek Travel Matthew Partridge gets into the festive spirit at The Cavendish Hotel at Baslow and the Christmas market at Chatsworth
By Dr Matthew Partridge Published
-
Tycoon Truong My Lan on death row over world’s biggest bank fraud
Property tycoon Truong My Lan has been found guilty of a corruption scandal that dwarfs Malaysia’s 1MDB fraud and Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto scam
By Jane Lewis Published
-
Vietnamese tycoon Truong My Lan on death row over the world’s biggest bank fraud
Property tycoon Truong My Lan has been found guilty of a corruption scandal that dwarfs Malaysia’s 1MDB fraud and Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto scam
By Jane Lewis Published
-
Trump picks Scott Bessent to lead Treasury – will he succeed?
Hedge fund manager Scott Bessent is an odd pick for Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary, but he is seen as the more reasonable and pragmatic of the candidates
By Jane Lewis Published
-
Justin Sun: China’s revolutionary crypto visionary
Justin Sun, founder of the Tron blockchain and cryptocurrency made his fortune young from bitcoin trades. Now he wants to change the world
By Jane Lewis Published
-
Rouble hits two-year low against the dollar – what does it mean for Russia's economy?
New US sanctions have plunged the rouble to its lowest level since 2022. Why are investors spooked and how will this affect Putin's economy?
By Alex Rankine Published
-
Why Gary Lineker's Match of the Day exit matters
Former England captain Gary Lineker is stepping down from hosting the football programme Match of the Day, after 25 years.
By Jane Lewis Published
-
Henry Keswick: the plutocrat who fell for China
Profile Henry Keswick, a scion of the Jardine Matheson trading company, rebuilt the firm's fortunes after the upheavals of the 1990s. He died aged 86.
By Jane Lewis Published
-
Has Javier Milei succeeded in transforming Argentina's economy?
Javier Milei won an election last year on an “anarcho-capitalist” platform, promising to take a chainsaw to the overbearing and bloated state. How’s it going?
By Simon Wilson Published
-
Brazil booms – but why do investors remain wary?
Brazil is booming, but you wouldn’t think so from looking at the stock market. What's behind the market paranoia?
By Alex Rankine Published