Founder and CEO of Nivoda, David Sutton, got his start in the industry working for a family friend in South Africa where he gained in-depth knowledge of a wide array of categories in the trade, from diamonds to gems to branded chains to findings. He went on to start his own diamond wholesale business before moving to the UK to launch an online retail business for bridal jewelry. It was there that he recognized the many inherent challenges to staying competitive in the marketplace. “We needed to stock hundreds of thousands of diamonds, that’s how we were able to be competitive and have the best margins we possibly could so we could cover our advertising costs to grow the company and attract more customers,” he explains. “That was cool, and it was working, but then you get sent to buy from different manufacturers; in a single year we worked with 451 different manufacturers!”
With each of those purchases, the company had to navigate a long list of logistics, negotiations and paperwork. Adding to the stress of sometimes having to work with—and send sensitive company information and money to—businesses they didn’t know, were the multiple fees that they would incur for each purchase. “On a $2,000 order, we’d have to pay $150 in shipping costs and upwards of $50 for a bank transfer fee; spending an additional $200 on a $2,000 order is crazy,” he said. Clearly, absorbing 10% on each sale wasn’t promoting sustainable growth, but limiting their vendors or their inventory meant they simply couldn’t be competitive. “We basically said, we understand the problem at a deep level, we know how to solve it,” he explains. “So, if not us, who? And if not now, when?” And in 2017, the idea for Nivoda was born.
David applied for the Entrepreneur First program, an international talent investor that supports individuals building technology companies in finding their ideal founder. Out of 1,800 applicants that year, David was one of only 86 who were chosen, and at the end of the program, in March 2018, following a pitch in front of 500 live audience members and over 1,500 streaming viewers, they were able to raise the capital to launch Nivoda. The company now has a team of 160 people and they’ve sold to over 35 countries. “Our retailers know they are getting the best diamonds at the best margins, and we’re able to quote from 1.6 million diamonds on the site so they’re guaranteed to have exactly what their customer is looking for,” he says. “We are helping them increase conversion rate, make sure they make the maximum possible margin, and be as competitive as they need to be to win a sale.”
Understanding the nuances and the varying needs of the industry, Nivoda caters to its customers with a variety of solutions to diamond sourcing. Their sales associates can help their clients cherry pick the best diamonds to suit their inventory needs to purchase outright, which are then shipped in one consolidated shipment. They also offer short and long-term memo, as well as embedded financing via Nivoda Capital. Their return option provides their clients with additional peace of mind, so if for any reason a sale falls through, they’ll take the return. All diamonds purchased through Nivoda are routed through Nivoda facilities where diamonds are checked for quality before being packaged and shipped directly to their clients.
In the near future, Nivoda is planning on applying their streamlined service to rubies, emeralds and sapphires, which also figure prominently in bridal jewelry, and expanding their footprint in the U.S. market while enhancing their already established reputation throughout Europe and the U.K. “Our goal is for our retailers to take away the pain of administration and logistics in developing sales, and increase their top-line business to make more profit and have more fun,” David says. “That’s how we measure our success—our clients are making more money and smiling more often.”
