Not all that glitters is gold, even if that very glittery thing is a diamond. These jewels remain a highly-prized luxury good, but behind the scenes, the industry isn’t always as beautiful. As EO Belgium member Priyanka Mehta experienced herself, the diamond trade is heavily dominated by men, despite the fact that the vast majority of their end customers are women. Meanwhile, sourcing ethical diamond from nature remains a tricky business.
When Priyanka first entered the diamond industry, it wasn’t necessarily her goal to change either of these factors, but her mere presence as a woman set her aside from the outset and made the shortcomings of the industry too obvious to ignore, eventually leading her to found her own fine jewelry brand, Neu Fine Jewelry.
Though she had no experience or education in design, Priyanka followed here intuition, creating simple, yet elegant pieces featuring lab-grown diamonds and recycled metals. Little did she know that her natural eye for design and ethical sourcing of materials would quickly upend the diamond industry and get her creations featured in the fashion-oriented hit show Emily in Paris.
Join Nir Zavaro, host of the Europreneur Podcast, in a fascinating conversation with Priyanka Mehta on running a business with a spouse, what it was like to sign a deal with Netflix, whether brick-and-mortar fashion stores are here to stay and much more.
The Europreneur Podcast is also available on Spotify.
Priyanka Mehta is a member of EO Belgium, COO of Jaianco BVBA and Founder of Nue Fine Jewelry , a fine jewelry brand specializing in fine design, expert craftsmanship and ethical materials.