Rob Bates
Rob Bates travels around the world meeting dignitaries, climbing in and out of diamond mines, and analyzing the impact of politics and policy on diamond prices and availability. He is one of the few journalists who actually visited strife-torn Sierra Leone to get a first-hand look at the ravages from the conflict diamond situation. Rob oversees both the UpFront news section and the retail-focused Jewelers' Notebook section of JCK. The grandson of a diamantaire, Rob is also a popular speaker and a winner of the prestigious Richard T. Liddicoat award for outstanding journalism in the jewelry industry.
Title: Senior Editor, Diamonds
Email: robates@reedbusiness.com
Cutting RemarksLink This | Email This | Comments (0) Diamond Shavings: Your Friday Web RoundupAny week where we have heard about three bankruptcies of established independents, and a bankruptcy petition filed against another, is not a good week. And it’s November! I do believe business is improving, but January could be ugly, sorry to say. And here’s the news … Bankruptcy petition filed against Robbins Diamonds. NY... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (4) "Suggested Retail Prices" for Diamonds?The new Idex “manufacturer suggested retail price” (MSRP) list for diamonds, which was recently endorsed by , and will be disseminated by, the World Federation of Diamond Bourses in Antwerp, is intriguing, but I can see it being controversial as well (as, to be fair, virtually all price lists are). Idex CEO Abraham Stern spoke with me about it today: - The MSRP will be... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (1) The Bernie Madoff Premium?The recent Bernie Madoff auction included several jewelry items, including these diamond earrings . Most of the jewelry was apparently purchased by a St. Louis millionaire . But as Gawker says : Many of the bidders were jewelry dealers and other auction veterans. Outside the ballroom, I overheard them discussing the theory that the Madoff items would fetch a premium because of... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (4) Update: All Finlay Sales PostponedA source who was at yesterday’s hearing regarding the sale of Finlay assets tells me this: Zale had objected to the winning bid for the intellectual property of Baileys Banks and Biddle, which went to a recently created company called Synergies. In court papers, Zale claimed the auction was conducted unfairly, and offered to up its bid by $200,000. (Why Zale wants the IP... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (0) Diamond Shavings: Your Friday Web RoundupI know it’s still not a party out there – I like to say, “the worst is behind us, but the best isn’t ahead of us just yet” – but the fact that people are actually buying things – such as Kwait/Fred Leighton and all the people buying former Finlay stores – seems a sign that people are more confident about the future. You... More |
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