Trust Is the Asset: Olivia Landau on Building The Clear Cut

[00:00:10] What does it actually take to build trust inside one of the most opaque industries in the world and turn that into a real thriving business? How I've operated my life and business is know the hills you want to die on and know who you are. And that was the hill I was willing to die on. I was like, I'm not compromising.

[00:00:31] Welcome back to the Responsible Luxury podcast. I'm your host, Lauren Petrovic. Today I'm sitting down with Olivia Landau, founder and CEO of The Clear Cut, and one of the most trusted voices in the diamond and jewelry space. While working on the bridal floor at Tiffany, she started a blog and began breaking down how diamonds actually work, building trust with clients before they ever made a purchase.

[00:00:56] That blog turned into a community and ultimately a multi-million dollar company. In this conversation, we talk about what it really looks like to build inside of a legacy industry, how to stay clear on your decisions when the market pulls you in different directions, and why knowing your non-negotiables defines everything in business and in life. We also get into partnership, parenthood, and the reality of balance as a founder, and how Olivia is thinking about the next chapter,

[00:01:26] from AI to becoming a Columbia Business School case study. I'm excited to have her here for our first in-person podcast recording. And before we get into today's episode, please don't forget to like and subscribe. So let's get right into it. Hello, good morning, Olivia. Welcome to the Responsible Luxury podcast. I am so grateful to be sitting with you here this morning in New York City. I'm happy to spend this time with you today.

[00:01:55] Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to be here. Me too. Starting this podcast early on, it was always a vision of mine to bring together the brightest minds and leaders of the industry. And you are someone I've had my eye in for a while and admired. That's so sweet. And I think that your journey in entrepreneurship and business in the industry is something that deserves a spotlight. So today is about trust.

[00:02:20] And it's about creating trust as the asset and creating trust in business, creating trust in your personal life. Why don't we kick things off and tell us the founding story behind Clear Cut? Sure. So I grew up around diamonds and jewelry. My dad's side of the family were all diamond cutters and dealers from Antwerp. My mom and my dad had an independent antique jewelry business.

[00:02:45] So I always grew up surrounded by it, but I never thought I would get into it myself, mainly because they always told me it was a dying, terrible business and I shouldn't get into it. They were like, you know, we didn't go to college. We didn't have any choices. This is like what we fell into. But I'm first generation American. They said education was a big focus and they were like, live like the corporate American dream. So that was the plan. But I graduated from NYU and I was a little bit confused on what I wanted to do as a career. I want to extend schooling a little more.

[00:03:15] So I asked if I could go to GIA to get my graduate gemologist degree. And it was kind of the best decision ever. While I was there, I fell in love with diamonds and gemstones. I also met my now husband and co-founder while I was there. So I was like, this is it. I will be in the industry. I probably won't do what my parents did, but I want to find my place. My first job was at Tiffany on the engagement floor.

[00:03:40] And that's where I really fell in love with diamonds specifically and bridal jewelry and working with clients to pick out their rings. But I wanted to get a little bit more hands on. So then I worked in the diamond district on 47th Street in a wholesaler and very different vibe. But I learned so much. And at the same time while I was there, Kyle went to business school at Columbia and all of his friends were like, hey, do you know a guy that can get me a good deal on my engagement ring? And I became like the go-to guy for everyone there.

[00:04:10] I helped educate them, pick out their diamonds, create their settings. And that's when I decided to start the Clear Cut. It was 2016 as an educational blog. And it was really just meant for like our friends, his classmates to read about like the four C's, what I would recommend do's and don'ts before coming to work with me. Then through Instagram, I started posting some of the designs I was making on social media. And it kind of blew up from there. People started following the account, asking if I could create their custom ring.

[00:04:40] So it turned into this accidental side business that I was doing before, after work, during my lunch breaks. And Kyle was graduating from business school and was like, I think you have business on your hands. Maybe we should do this together. Mind you, we weren't engaged or married or anything. We were just dating. But I was like, I don't know if this is my hobby. I really enjoy it. I don't know if I want to be an entrepreneur and do this full time. But there was clearly a white space in the market, like an opportunity.

[00:05:06] So in 2018, we got into a tech accelerator called Techstars. And I said we got in. I would quit my job and like give it a go and see what would happen. And that's where we like took that leap of faith and started doing our custom bespoke diamond engagement ring business that was like fully remote at the time. And during the time when you were doing the blogs and you were posting the designs on Instagram, no intention of starting a brand or a business. It really just organically sprouted.

[00:05:35] No, I was bored at work. And I just needed a creative, fun outlet. And blogging was more of a thing then, obviously. And I think Instagram was fairly new. There weren't even stories or anything. I was just posting some designs. So it was just a fun thing I was doing. And I was like making extra money on this side. And I got to work with clients. And that was really fun for me. But I never thought that was going to be a full time thing.

[00:06:01] I, being in the business, there's such special nuances to the industry that people outside the industry don't see or appreciate. I'm curious. Growing up, you watched your parents with their antique jewelry business. And you watched your father with the diamond cutting. What's something that surprised you most about the industry, the way that it operates? Well, I think I had, like obviously I learned a lot.

[00:06:25] But I had a pretty, especially working in wholesale, going from like luxury retail to wholesale was the biggest learning curve for me. Just how the whole industry operates. It's relationship-based. It's trust-based. A lot of things are done with like handshakes or like agreements, like not like contracts or anything like that. So what I learned is it's really about the personal connections and the trust that you have not only with your clients but also your suppliers. That's kind of everything. It's all about the relationships you maintain.

[00:06:55] The industry itself is somewhat still antiquated. Yes. We're talking taking thousands of dollars of merchandise and your signature on a piece of paper is what's... Like a scribble-scrabble. So again, the human connection. We talk about luxury and what is trust and what's shaping the future of luxury today. And it really is that human connection piece and the trust.

[00:07:15] And it is an opportunity for companies like the clear-cut and for the broader diamond jewelry industry to really push that forward and define and help lead luxury forward. And I think what's a little bit unfortunate for like the diamond industry in particular is that there can be negative associations with like how opaque it is, how like it isn't a very trustworthy industry, especially deception to like clients. And I think that's something when I got into it, I really wanted to change. Like we started as an educational blog.

[00:07:45] Still, our content on social media is very driven to being transparent and empowering our community to make the best decision for them. And I think historically it's like, no, you don't want to give your client too much information. You want to like swindle them in some sort of way. And a lot of the industry is still doing that in other ways. So I think that's something that's like core to like the ethos of our business. The transparency piece is key. Educating your consumer, educating your clients to feel empowered.

[00:08:14] Let's say I'm a new client of yours coming in. What do you think are the most important points to educate your clients about diamonds? But people first and foremost have to know what they're buying. So that's where it comes down to. What are you buying? Are you buying a natural diamond? Are you buying a synthetic lab grown diamond? And if so, if you are buying a natural diamond, what's the lab that graded it? Is it GIA certified? Is it EGL certified? Is it IGI certified?

[00:08:42] Because the grades don't matter if you don't know what you're buying. And then once you have the basics down, then we can get into areas you want to prioritize and where you want to compromise. So there are layers to it. There are the big overlying things. And then you can get very, very niche and nitty gritty. And also like natural diamonds are, it's not an exact science. It's more like an art. Each one is special and unique and one of a kind. Even if it has the same grade on a paper, that doesn't mean it's going to look the same. If it's the same carat weight, doesn't mean it's going to present the same way.

[00:09:11] So we have to go, once we get the top line basics, we got to go like deep, you know, to understand what do you want? Do you want finger coverage? That's not necessarily about the carat weight. It's about the dimensions. Right. But you don't want to lose the sparkle. But what kind of ratio do you want? So there's a lot to unpack there, of course. 10 years of content that people can go back and see. Yes. The industry itself is still relatively opaque.

[00:09:36] And that's why I love what you've done, putting information and education out there for consumers to see. And there's a lot of misconceptions about the natural diamond industry, about the supply chain of jewelry. What would you say are one or two misconceptions by consumers? Well, I think for natural diamonds, the industry for a long time just, I don't want to say they

[00:10:02] were like a bit lazy, but they were a bit lazy because they thought that, you know, there was always going to be like demand for it. It was unnecessary to tell the story of them. And so that left a lot of gaps where, you know, people that weren't part of the industry are like trying to create their own narratives filled it in for them because actually we're the natural diamond industry is so regulated, so ahead of its time, but like so behind on telling the story.

[00:10:31] So I think the blood diamond narrative is still out there. Like you see it in my TikTok comments like every day. It's like, oh, like a child slave like died for this. We're in like reality. Entire African nations rely on this natural resource to fund like free health care, education, infrastructure like Botswana. So it's actually the complete opposite. Not buying a natural diamond, you're actually hurting an African child versus if you were,

[00:10:56] which I think is kind of mind blowing for the average American consumer because we don't tell the stories of country of origin. And the fact that now we have amazing technology like Tracer where you can literally trace the exact diamond you have from the country of origin, the exact rough it came from, how it was cut, polished and planned. Sometimes the exact person who polished it and everything is completely traceable on the blockchain.

[00:11:21] So we're actually way ahead of our time where I think the synthetics and lab grown marketing kind of filled in a void saying lab grown diamonds are more ethical when they're in fact mass manufactured in factories in India and China with much less regulation than the mines. I've been to lab grown factories. I've been to natural diamond mines and there's a stark difference between the two. And just working conditions in general. We were talking a bit before the podcast today about visiting India.

[00:11:48] Tell us a bit about visiting some of these diamond cutting facilities for people outside the industry just to paint a picture and give some color to what these working conditions are like. Yeah, most diamonds, whether natural or lab grown, are manufactured, so cut and polished from rough in Surat, which is a sight to see. It's incredible to see the level of craftsmanship, attention to detail. The operations are insane.

[00:12:14] The amount of wealth that is given to this country and these cities because of this industry, which is kind of sad because when you see it in decline, you see real suffering from people who rely on the natural diamond industry. I also went to a lab grown factory there and you can see how something can be grown in kind of a microwave over a few days and then treated to be manufactured for perfection. But it's a commodity. I mean, it's not really.

[00:12:44] It's a mass manufactured product without inherent rarity or value. So it's just as beautiful once it's finished and cut and polished, but they're completely different in terms of what they represent and the value that they hold. And the amount of wealth it's created for so many new generations too. Things that I was most impressed by, some of these huge sideholder diamond manufacturing companies in India,

[00:13:10] the way they live their lives and operate their businesses is unlike anything like I've seen in the U.S. They are driven by higher purpose. A lot of these companies, they pay for their employees to have housing and homes and cars, and they always donate money back to like having clean water or just helping their community. There's like a really strong sense of building a lot of wealth and being profitable, but giving back to the local community.

[00:13:39] And I think it's such like a beautiful thing. And I think it's part of just like the culture in India. Tying that back to the consumer standpoint, just to paint a picture of the supply chain for the consumer about mine. Yeah. Say like for natural diamonds, most natural diamonds are going to be mined in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Canada. I think now there's more production in Angola. They're doing incredible things there too.

[00:14:04] Most of these diamonds are going to be cut and polished and manufactured in India, mostly in Surat. And then they come to the U.S. or to other major wholesaling outlets. Here is New York. I think like 85% of all loose diamonds are going to flow through 47th Street at a certain point. And we only work with GIA certified loose diamonds. And you guys are also working on some proprietary technology inside of the ClearCut.

[00:14:31] So tell us about what the impetus of starting this, the technology and the vision for this and how your consumers and clients can interact with this new interface. Yeah. I mean, we actually started building it in 2020. So it's our gem software. Basically, when we started, it is extremely difficult to scale human interaction and like a bespoke process. So we did everything super painfully, really unscalably.

[00:14:57] And how most private jewelers do it through email, text message, DMs. And I was like, you cannot scale a business this way. So we looked on the market to see if there was any technology existing out there that we could plug and play. And it didn't exist. So we had to build our own. And gem is our proprietary internal software. There's a ton of backend tools that are really important for us. So inventory management, we have an API with GIA. So everything flows really seamlessly.

[00:15:24] We build tools for our manufacturers and vendors because I don't feel comfortable having something just on a scribble scrabble and calling up every couple weeks to be like, oh, is this ring done? Like now QR codes are made for every single piece that's sent out? We know everywhere in the process it is. And on the front end, it is basically the goal of democratizing the private jewelry experience no matter where you physically are. So if you don't have the luxury to come and like sit in person with a private jeweler, you can have that exact same experience.

[00:15:52] So we make every single one of our customers schedule an initial phone consultation with myself or one of our gemologists, understand who they are, what their preferences are, be able to answer their questions. Then they get set up in a gem portal. So they have their own personal portal where they have direct access through messages with their gemologist. They can always book a call with their gemologist. And then we actually curate a selection of diamonds specifically for what they are looking for. So they don't have to sift through like hundreds of thousands of options.

[00:16:20] We have in person, we have our eyes on it. It has our stamp of approval. Very collaborative. We work together to, you know, get feedback on the stones, narrow down, get more diamonds until we find the right one. And then we design a custom ring for it. Everything can be paid for there. They can access their GIA certificate. They can schedule their shipping. Everything is done through the portal. And that is our gem software that we've been operating on, obviously like tweaking and making better since 2020. But that's kind of like our secret sauce.

[00:16:48] Then this past year, we launched Eunice, which is our AI tool named after the first female gemologist, who's built on top of gem basically to take all of that data that we have on diamonds, on clients, on interactions from the past six years of building it and giving us information on what types of diamonds are selling. Where are they selling? How quickly are they selling? What do we need to give the information to our manufacturers on what's missing in the mix of natural diamonds?

[00:17:16] Because we saw there was a lot of demand for certain goods and oversupply in others. So we needed to have that data to communicate. And then also able to train our new gemologists and staff to what are the best client interactions looking like? How should you be speaking? What are like things that are working? How can you identify, you know, how serious a client is in the process? Because we're dealing with lots and lots of people. So we needed that extra Eunice to help us with that. For us in particular, I think we have a unique clientele because we are only natural.

[00:17:45] We dabble with a bit more unique stones. But what we've been seeing is something Eunice told us the other day. We have 115% increase in K to O colors, which is very interesting because clients are embracing lower colors and more. And then we have seen a huge shift towards larger carat weights. And then historically, two and a half carats to four carats is kind of a sweet spot for us now, where before we did a lot of one and a half to three. Now we've just seen a shift to that.

[00:18:14] Elongated cushion cuts, antique old mine, old European cuts have been very popular, specifically with longer ratios, like a one to four, which is really difficult to find. So yeah, that's kind of been the shift we've been seeing, which is very interesting. And I think it tells a lot about where we are culturally. I think with lab-grown diamonds having entered the market, being so easily available, all being like DEF, VVS quality,

[00:18:42] anyone can have like a six carat D color diamond on their hand. It's tempting for a lot of these consumers. I think people don't know that they're $50 a carat. Also, we were the first company to ever offer a free lab-grown diamond for a travel ring, just to show that they are complementary products, but not the same thing. So I think now with the prices going down, there's a lot more competition. Everyone wants something unique, something that immediately looks natural or just something different.

[00:19:10] So I want to transition over to talking about leadership, specifically leadership under pressure. You know, thinking about your last since 2016, really, when you started building the ClearCut, almost been 10 years now, thinking about leadership under pressure, you've started with the blog in the early days and things started to evolve from hiring your first employee to starting to grow and scale the company. How do you balance leadership under pressure?

[00:19:39] A lot of times when we're faced with hard decisions, do you have a decision framework or core principles that you live by? I think pressure, I always think is like a privilege to be able to be under pressure. So I work really well under pressure. I think how I've operated like my life and business is know the hills you want to die on and like know who you are. There was so much pressure in 2022, 2023.

[00:20:09] Everyone was like, you're so like stubborn. You're going to make a huge mistake. You should be selling lab grown. There's so much margin. This is the future. You're not embracing technology when we're embracing it in a different way. And that was the hill I was willing to die on. I was like, I'm not compromising. I will let the company die on this. So the way I saw it as a gemologist, taking a step back on why I felt so strongly on it.

[00:20:35] When you're at GIA doing your colored stones, half of the entire thing is identifying what stone it is. Is it synthetic? Is it natural? What is the process? Like, you know they're different and you're trying to decipher the differences. And you understand that synthetic gemstones have been around for over 100 years and what the trajectory was for that. No one like looks back on history. So you see, okay, it's hot. Everyone thinks it's going to be the new thing. It's going to replace it. Then they flood the market.

[00:21:04] They're really inexpensive and no one wants it. And the market bifurcates. You can get it on HSN or QVC, but it's not stopping these Colombian emeralds from selling at Christie's. So I knew that was happening. And yes, you could do a short-term money grab like every single other person did. But then what happens to your customer that you sold that two-carat lab grown for $10,000 when they come back or who they referred their customer to when you're... And you're already seeing a lot of these companies try to circle back to do natural.

[00:21:33] And it's just like you lose that trust. So I was like, I've always been honest with my consumer, my audience. The whole thing is about being transparent. And you have to know the hill you're willing to die on and be willing to die on it. Yeah. I think that's a really important lesson because whether we're looking at our industry in the diamond and jewelry space or beyond, taking an early stance even when people tell you that you're crazy, aren't you following the easy path forward?

[00:22:00] But it's keeping that long-term vision and knowing your DNA for the company. And I actually think looking back, I was just so principled right off the gate. But I think like, yes, there's a huge market for lab grown. I think it's an amazing alternative for like cubic zirconia or moissanite fashion jewelry. There is Zara and there's Laura Piana. And you don't sell like an Hermes bag. Like you don't go to Hermes and see a Birkin and a dupe right next to each other at the sales counter.

[00:22:30] There are different places for them and they're not interchangeable. But that's the problem with what was happening. It was getting too muddied. So if I was to ever get into it, I'd be like, oh yeah, if I wanted to do like a fashion line, but that's like a whole nother business. Create a separate subsidiary. Yeah, that's a whole thing. But you can't like sell them side by side. And there's so many different parts of the industry, but it just got too muddied and people got a little greedy. Got a little greedy. Exactly.

[00:22:56] Looking at the clear cut today, you've really built this business out of college, out of one of your first jobs at Tiffany's and then starting to build it alongside your now husband and building a company with a significant other. How was your experience with that? Well, it's something I always said I would never do because my parents had a business together and they're no longer together and it didn't work out for them. So I saw that and I was like, I will never go into business with my husband.

[00:23:24] So when he proposed going into business together when we were just dating, I was like, absolutely not. But we do make a very good team and we have very different skill sets. So I think that's how it works out. He's like doing the accounting, the business. I trust him with that. And he trusts me with design, diamonds, products, like client stuff. And then we actually have a lot of shared interest on like the content creation. He has like a lot of good ideas. We call him like the Kyle Jenner behind everything. He's always like.

[00:23:54] So I think it's great because we have respect for each other's lanes. We don't really overstep. And we have it's kind of romantic. We have this shared goal. And a lot of people are like, oh, it's really hard to go into business with your spouse. But I think it's hard to go into business with like anyone, a friend co-founder, because a lot of times like we are like in lockstep with like our vision, what we want. But if you have a co-founder that's your friend and they get married or they move away or they're just like in a different phase of life, they may not want the same things for the business

[00:24:24] or for their life. So I think it's actually easier, at least in our situation, that we are married. I mean, all of our eggs are in one basket. But, you know, it's it's I think it's quite special, too, because, yes, when you get into business with someone, you actually are so integrated. And I mean, it's a business marriage. The key is having that shared and common vision and keeping that same vision in mind and intact and continuing to build together. And we love talking like everyone's like, oh, do you ever like separate work? And we're like, no, we don't.

[00:24:53] I mean, if we're not talking about work, we're talking about our kid. But like there this is like our first child, you know, your your son is so handsome. Oh, such a cutie. Can you share a bit more about the parenthood shift? Oh, my God. Having a kid is like it's it's harder. It's so much harder. A lot of people aren't talking enough about it. Like balance. How do you achieve balance? There is no balance. And honestly, like props to like all like business owner moms, working moms. Like it's I truly underestimated it.

[00:25:23] It was like insane. Well, we were like so hardcore, like live, breathe nonstop like the business. And I think having a kid like forces you to take a beat and take a step back and just surrender a lot of things. I'm a control freak and you can't control everything. And that has taught me a lot. And you have to find like some sort. There's no balance. But like on the weekends, I'm not dealing with the emails. I'm not looking at anything. I'm like all in 100 percent with my son.

[00:25:53] I'm like fully focused. And then during the week, like I'm all in on work. So it's just about, you know, in balance in a sense of like you're all in on one thing or another. I never want to be like not present with him, you know, never want to be on my phone, like looking at something with him there. If I'm with him, I'm like with him all in. But then if I'm working, I can't have him around. And I really underestimated. I was like, oh, yeah, just go right back to work. I brought him to the office every single day of his life for the first like three months

[00:26:22] after I gave birth. I didn't take a maternity leave. And that was wild. I like will never do that again. Wow. That must have been really intense too at the office. I think like my employees were like, what is going on? This lady is crazy. You're a dedicated thing. I wasn't interviewing. I was interviewing people with him like strapped to my chest and they were like, what's the maternity leave policy? And I was like, not this. Whatever. It's not this. So I think that there's also something that a lot of founders, CEOs and business owners carry.

[00:26:53] There's like an invisible pressure in a way to show up fully as running at the company, but then also showing up as a parent or even as a partner. So talk a bit more about some pressures that you want people to have more conversations around. Like even just like feeling comfortable, like to want to have those chapters and those seasons of life to take time off and maybe start to focus on the family or even those seasons

[00:27:19] of life where you're like all in on the business and you're going 110 miles an hour. Exactly. It's all about seasons. And I think you're never going to be like perfectly balanced at any one time. There's going to be a part of your life where you're going to have to work so hard and work harder than anyone else. And you're going to have to put in those hours. And when you're starting a business, you have to like build it from the ground up. You can't just be part time if you want it to be successful.

[00:27:47] You will be forced to take a breather and break when you have a kid, like physically, mentally. You cannot operate at that same level that you were before. So take advantage of those times when you can. But life is about ebbs and flows and different pressures at different times. But I think the most important thing is having a vision or a goal of where you want to go and

[00:28:13] having a clear direction and having that North Star kind of keeps you in track throughout whatever life is throwing at you. Like I do really believe in visualization, manifesting, like gratitude. And so like I am big on visualizing my goals of where I want to go and manifesting it. So I think like that kind of keeps me. I walked into your office a few months ago and I walk in and it's like this balanced,

[00:28:41] zen, white candles, crisp. I'm like, this is the ideal office environment. So it reflects truly on you too, because I think it's important with your environment. You want it to be a reflection of how you feel. We want clients to not feel like people can get really like stressed out when they come or like nervous. So we want to feel like as calm as possible. Well, you guys are doing a very good job. Thank you. I want to switch perspective and look at the luxury industry itself.

[00:29:09] The world is changing very quickly, especially the luxury industry. Where do you see things breaking off from the traditional luxury model? And what's something that's breaking traditional luxury? Breaking traditional luxury? Well, I think like it's interesting. Everyone talks about this K-shaped economy. And I think that is kind of what's happening. There are more upper middle class millionaires coming in every single day.

[00:29:37] But then we're like losing the middle class. But there's more people that are interested in investing in luxury than ever before in the U.S. at least. International markets are different. And there's like, you know, their own set of things. A whole different things. Like China isn't what it used to be. I don't know if it will come back in the same capacity. But we're seeing a lot of people invest in luxury experiences, I think, more than anything.

[00:30:05] Luxury hotels, luxury vacations, business class travel. That's where we're competing with share of wallet for, I think, in terms of physical goods. You guys do such a superb job with bringing the experience in. Because now I've been noticing, too, like looking just purely at luxury goods shopping. Clients and consumers are tired of going into a store, buying something off the shelf.

[00:30:32] And what they're craving now is something that's more one of one bespoke and custom and tailored towards them, which you guys have been doing since you guys really have been early movers on this since the early beginning. I think it is all about the feeling that comes with the purchase, the memories, that experience. And that's what's so special, I think, about bridal in particular, like your engagement ring.

[00:30:55] Working with your partner, like picking out the diamond, creating a one-of-a-kind setting, maybe with hidden details that are special for you. And then obviously, you know, having that moment, that proposal where a lot of people do travel for or have family or friends around. And it's just a moment to remember in your life, which kind of coincides with like those luxury experiences. I think also you're seeing like a lot of people just in terms of the handbag experience, right? Like handbags have been like in.

[00:31:25] But in particular, people are really into getting a Birkin or a Kelly bag or a Hermes bag. And it's the experience around, oh, I have to buy like this certain things or I'm in Paris and I got a leather appointment. And then let me tell you the story of like what was, you know, offered to me. It's all about the storytelling, the experience around the luxury purchase. No one's just like, I'm going in, here's my credit card walking out. That doesn't feel good, you know? And you can't make a TikTok about it. You can't. Exactly. It's not Instagrammable.

[00:31:53] I think that's interesting because jewelry itself is a collectible. I see this emerging trend of diamonds, jewelry becoming more of an asset class. So I think that there's right now, there's a lot of mistrust in the diamond industry. So a lot of people aren't necessarily investing into jewelry as much as they were before. I think a lot of branded jewelry is getting, people are getting tired of it. It's getting like oversaturated too.

[00:32:19] Like once the Cartier Love bracelet was a status symbol or the Van Cleef Alhambra. I think everyone's kind of tired of that. And that comes to be a question. Is that true luxury when everyone can access it? Tying it back to the trust piece. One of the things that you guys do very well is building that trust with the client. And I think trust is one of the core pillars of this new model of luxury today. And looking at trust as part of the experience with the customer. It's that human to human interaction.

[00:32:48] Being in the jewelry business, it's one of the most personal one-on-one connections. Clear Cut has built and been successful in one of the most trust-based industries and categories of all time. What are you most proud of with what you guys have built? I think I'm most proud of that we've built a business and a company that you know what we stand for and you know who we are.

[00:33:16] I always say when you're building a business or a brand, you can't be everything for everyone. Because you lose your sense of self or your identity or who your core community is. So I'm really proud of the community that we have around us, our amazing team, and all of the incredible advancements we built for the industry being like who we are.

[00:33:37] And one thing I'm really proud of that just got launched and is coming out is we have a case study at Columbia Business School about our business and being an only natural company and the history of the natural diamond industry with a focus on Botswana. And it will be taught in the core curriculum this coming fall to all Columbia Business School students. So I'm really proud of that.

[00:34:00] It's kind of like everything that all of the hard work we've been doing working with like countries of origin or like Tracer, De Beers and educating the consumer and building technology. It's all kind of encapsulated in this. Going back to what you said before, it's putting that flag on the ground and dying on that hill that you chose. And it's remarkable because now it's getting into this case, which, by the way, I want a copy. Okay.

[00:34:25] I think it's a nod to standing true to your thesis, your vision, your core beliefs as a company and not veering away from that. Because like you said, it's very easy to be distracted and want to be everything for everyone as a company. You see like, oh, like this person's doing that. I want to do that. Or this looks cool. Like, I want to do that. It's just like, does that fit into... Anything's going to look attractive on the outside. It's really understanding and knowing who you are.

[00:34:52] I want to jump forward into the future and talk about a feeling. We're having the same conversation in 10 years from now. What's a feeling that you want to leave with your clients? A feeling you want to leave with your employees? A feeling you want to leave with your family after the end of building? I want to leave a feeling of legacy that we've made like a mark and an impact in the industry. Helping it turn around.

[00:35:18] Helping it make its way into the future, to the next generation. Shaping the way how people look at diamonds, buy engagement rings forever. Give us one or two of your non-negotiables. My non-negotiables are being honest in anything. In business, in your relationship. Being honest with yourself. I can't handle inauthenticity, I guess that's the word. I don't think it gets you very far and it's only doing a disservice to yourself.

[00:35:48] People feel it right away too. Yeah. Your community feels it. You feel it like it's not good for you. You know? Yeah. Honesty. Transparency. And that's my one non-negotiable. I don't know if I have anything else that's like a leading thing. Sleep, but I don't get a lot of it now. Sometimes you can control. Authenticity and trust plays one-on-one together. Trust isn't built by something you could say. It's not built in one single decision, but a series of micro decisions made every day.

[00:36:18] And that's how you build. That's how you get into where you guys are today and really defines building something that will last beyond you, I think is really the goal. Yeah. Especially in the jewelry industry, because we're dealing with multi-generations of companies, which is really, really remarkable. I think business and life intertwine. There's always trust at the center. I think building from that, going to your non-negotiables of always being honest, always being authentic. It's building from that core.

[00:36:46] Every ripple effect outwards is going to, it's like even the micro interactions between your clients, your suppliers, your customers. It's like always operating from that core. Everything else seems to really work itself out. So, Olivia, one last question for you is, if you were to describe the luxury industry today, if you were to create like a billboard campaign for the diamond and jewelry industry, what would be on the billboard? Oh, my God.

[00:37:15] I think it's all about making luxury fun. You have to make it like something people want to experience, want to invest in. Making it personal, you know? Yeah. Luxury has to be a personal. Creative expression too, which is the luxury today. These diamonds are specifically for you. This ring was made for you. This moment is for you, you know? Yes. That's what it's about.

[00:37:45] Luxury has to be personal. Make it personal. Yeah. I'm looking at your jewelry today and I want to put a quick plug in the clear cut. Show us some of the things you have on today. Right now, I'm wearing, because I feel like it's like getting warm out. I really love a little like dainty lariat when it's like warm out. And I'm really loving a pinky ring moment these days. I'm wearing our lunar ring with an oval. And just like some, I'm like experimenting with different like ring stacks. Some attorney bands and fun things.

[00:38:13] I've been loving the ring stacks lately. I love like a very clean, elegant outfit. I'm always seeing like photos with my hands. So I, for a long time, was like just wearing my engagement ring. And I was like not a ring stack person. But I admire people who can like stack and layer. And I made a decision one day. I was like, I don't care if I have to take my rings on and off all day. I'm going to be a ring stack and ear stack girly. I just got my third holes pierced as a 35-year-old. I was just like, one day I was like, you know what? I'm going to go get this during a lunch. And I went and got it.

[00:38:42] And I've been loving it. It looks lovely. And I get to like switch it out all the time. And they have, I mean, it's great talking points too. Yes. Well, Olivia, thank you so much for spending this time with me today. And it's really exciting because this is a first in-person podcast. I know. I'm so honored to be the first in-person guest. And I'm so honored to be able to share this episode with you. So I'm just, I'm happy to be able to. Thank you. Incredible, incredible job. I admire you so much as a founder, as a mom. Thank you. And just as a wonderful person.

[00:39:11] Thank you so much for being open and sharing your journey with us. Thank you for joining me on the Responsible Luxury podcast. If you're building or thinking about building in the future of luxury, this is where we have those conversations. Make sure you subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you stream your favorite podcasts so you don't miss what's coming next. Trust isn't something you can manufacture. It's built over time through decisions and consistency.

[00:39:41] Olivia has done exactly that with the clear cut. This is what Responsible Luxury is about. Understanding how trust, leadership, and long-term thinking are shaping where this industry goes next. We're also taking this beyond the podcast with more in-person recordings, private salons, and a lineup of conversations I'm very intentional about curating. If you want to be a part of it, join us through the Responsible Luxury newsletter. See you in the next episode.