In late 1994 Gad Zak, a Canadian businessman, grew frustrated in his efforts to source the right, and rightly priced, diamond for his engagement ring. He noticed that evaluating the quality of a diamond requires much explanations--beyond the scope, limits, willingness or patience span of most jewelers and jewelry sales clerks. Once enough knowledge is, somehow collected, it was easy to see why brick & mortar jewelers cannot really offer a flexible selection to satisfy all tastes: there are, literally, several million* (!) combinations of acceptable diamond parameters per each unit (point-) of (carat-) weight, per diamond shape!!! The jeweler, however, must sell what happens to be in stock. Hopefully--what you want or need rather than what he is willing and attempting to sell...

It had become clear to Gad that those two factors-- the intricacy of required knowledge and the number of required diamonds to satisfy all expectations-- called for a new way of marketing of diamonds that would satisfy both. A centralized system, of sorts, combining a wealth of information, of choice, and high service standards.

Gad approached Mr. Steven Davidovics of M.S.D Gemological Laboratory, a reputable diamond dealing company based in Montreal Canada for over 19 years, with a request to support his ideas for new diamond marketing initiatives. The choice of MSD was natural and well understood in the local diamond trade: during all its years in operation the lab has been marked by its excellence of service to the local professional and end-users communities. The lab was to supply access to data bases of available diamonds as well as gemological services, while Gad concentrated on researching the new communication vehicle, the Internet, that was rumored to offer all that he thought was needed for the project: the ability to display large bodies of information that are required for an educated purchase, as well as to electronically sort and process vast inventories of multi-parameter-characterized merchandise items. And, indeed, the details were encouraging and promising:

• The Internet was already used by a community estimated, by early 1995, to be of approximately 2-5 million users, and growing exponentially
• While most of diamond buyers were adult males-- so were, at the time, most Internet surfers, and, they were also of the right age group and disposable income
• Surprising as it may sound at first --diamonds are easily characterized objectively in a manner that enables a purchase site-unseen, if the right parameters are supplied, present and the theory behind them understood. Such parameters will guarantee high performance: brilliance, fire, life. Coupled with grading by most reputable laboratories (the GIA, AGS, HRD, EGL, IGI) the diamond description is binding and unambiguous. All those elements are presentable via the Internet.
• Affiliation with Internet based or accessible consumer protection agencies can provide customers with the confidence required for such transactions of substance.

A picture of a new, astounding marketing possibility has emerged, that would revolutionize the experience of diamond purchasing and, in fact, the business world at large. E-commerce of goods, of any value and nature, beyond the few lines sold by the few commercial sites that existed at the time and were based, primarily, on downloadable goods: software, games etc.

A novel, exciting concept, ahead of its times in its nature, had struck, evolved and then launched. Diamond sales via the Internet! (known today--not yet then-- as "e-commerce", "e-tailing" etc.).

Thus, by mid 1995 the site was ready to launch and, indeed, put on line within days. All despite all nay-sayers gloom and doom prophecies...One must remember that those were pre-Amazon, pre-Yahoo, pre Dell on-line days...

When the project started becoming a reality in early 1995 there were only 2 or 3 other brick and mortar jewelers on the 'Net' that sold also (but not only...) diamonds! At least two of the others have ceased (off & on,. that is...) their Net operation since.

In fact, by being a business founded specifically for on-line diamond sourcing and selling, Van Daaz was the world's very first fully virtual diamond dealership, created and designed with Internet commerce as its primary, in fact only, goal, purpose & raison-d'etre.

The first virtual, particularly diamond centered e-commerce, designed especially for the Internet and virtual mode of operation, in continuous operation until this very day, was thus born. In fact-- one of the world's very first successful and well conceived e-tailer came into being... The first sale followed soon after...

The diamond trade looked dismissingly, at first, at the audacious 'experiment' and eschewed it... Van-Daaz found itself having to explain almost apologetically or, even better, avoid mentioning the fact of on-line sales in the process of creating its suppliers data base so as not to stir suspicion of this new mode of doing diamond business...

The catchy, say-it-all label Diamonds R4U (spelled also sometimes as <><><>R4U--due to search engine listing advantages at the time) was adopted in the early part of 1996 as a useful mark of obvious marketing advantage and started appearing, then, in Van-Daaz's site as a mark indicative of the business's goods and services. Proper Trademark application filing ensued, of course.

Gad, meanwhile, hastened to undergo diamond grading training in Antwerp, Belgium, and use the gained knowledge in the new business that has become intense and demanding. The data-base pool expanded and the site's search engine tailored to match buyers needs and requests. The savings were generated by cutting out the middlemen and typical "brick and mortar" expenses.

With the passing years not only have others hastened to join the diamond e-tailing crowds, but, also, Van-Daaz has managed to forge formidable ties and connections within the diamond trade, acquire the respect and recognition of major players within it, and play a central & leading role in diamond e-tailing. Those account for the great prices and selection offered by Van-Daaz to its customers.

Loyal to the page title "Van-Daaz--The diamond People, Van DOES--the trade is watching", indeed, Van-Daaz is ready to embark on its upcoming new pioneering initiatives that would revolutionize the trade once again, sending shock waves through it, just as we did by adopting the Internet, against all odds and against all opinions and advises from within the diamond trade, creating the World's first truly virtual diamond dealership. Those would be evident in the coming months.

2. WHEN THEY ARE LARGE, VERY LARGE or R A R E... Van-Daaz specializes, above and beyond its ordinary diamond sourcing, in highly customized, high value & cost sales. We have successfully affected such sales that have reached us, initially, via Internet inquiries, having, on occasion, an overseas client, from Sweden to London, traveling on a coordinated viewing or purchasing date to New York. Such sales involve, typically, diamonds of over 5.00 Cts. and purchase-value of over $50,000 - $60,000. Similar procedure, involving, however, yet tighter security arrangements, will apply when diamonds of over $500,000 are involved. For such private viewing or purchasing session Van-Daaz would arrange an appointment in a high-security environment and certain, advance financial guarantees and arrangements are to be agreed upon and in effect with the potential client. The appointment is set up only if the potential client is very much inclined to affect the purchase based on her previous viewing and analysis of the diamond's grading report and on prior detailed exchange of information via e-mail and voice communication, and the potential client is, indeed, pleased with all of those. The client has also to indicate her willingness to absorb all costs of shuttling the subject-diamond via, e.g., Brinks to the appointment location--only when applicable--in the case of an aborted or an inconclusive session. In some cases, reservation fees may be required. For security reasons, proper identification is required. Such appointments may take place in New York, Miami or Chicago. When such diamonds are paid in advance awaiting a personal pickup, Van-Daaz might bear the traveling expenses of the overseas client.

3. Professionalism!

Van-Daaz's sourcing and customer support personnel are HRD and IGI Antwerp graduates with an established impeccable reputation in the trade. It still includes Van-Daaz's founder, Mr. Zak and Van-Daaz old timer Ms. Maria Costa, an HRD (of Antwerp) graduate diamond grader. Maria, as a trained designer in her background is also in charge of Van-Daaz independent Titanium jewelry division. Be her guest and visit the showroom.

4. About Honesty & Track-record...

Van-Daaz follows and is inspired by age-old diamond trade traditions of trust and honesty that were established in Flanders, the land where the diamond industry and trade were, indeed, born and where the world largest diamond center of Antwerp still prospers.

Our e-commerce platform is based today in Montreal Canada and operations carried out by Diamonds R4U of NV, with Fulfillment houses in several locations throughout the USA, and with strong trade ties in New York City. The e-commerce enterprise is a member of the "Better Business Bureau" (scroll down their linked-site for the local chapter's telephone number to obtain further confirmation) fully adhering to the bureau's strict code of commercial conduct & ethic. Van-Daaz is also a certified merchant by the prestigious and hard to obtain "Gomez Certification Program" . It is, farther, "monitored 24 hours" by The Public Eye -- an Internet Consumer Protection agency, and is also listed in the Jewelers Board of Trade's "Red Book" as a credit-worthy member of the industry.

*

All sales within the borders of the USA are sourced and handled within the USA with no extra trans-border delays or expenses. The full payment cycle is carried out within the US in USD. For that matter Van-Daaz serves as the main marketing tool of large diamond sources in New York city.

With a global network of suppliers importing from over three continents and the world's major diamond centers, from Antwerp to New-York, Van-Daaz is guaranteed a vast variety of stones and best diamond values.

This variety of sources translates into a wide choice for you , including stunning natural colored diamonds, from canary yellow to salmon pink which are now coming into vogue. The low prices derived from the ability to comparative shop among the numerous manufacturers are passed to you (alongside the savings derived, you may recall, from approaching you via 'Net'-without numerous, maintenance-cost-ineffective physical shops).

5. You may locate us at:

Operatins Head Office:

Diamonds R4U Offices are located at:
1802 N. Carson St., Suite 212-2325
1-800-777-0889 Ext. 4367 (G-E-M-S)
Carson City, NV, 89701

US Main Forwarding Depot:
178 West Service Rd.
Champlain NY 12919

Main Fulfillment House at:
589 5th Ave., Suite 500,
NY, NY, 10017

e-commerce platform is located at Montreal Quebec Canada: vandaaz@vandaaz.com
Telephone: +1 (514)697-5046 ;

  6. Van-Daaz--One of the loose diamond sales pioneers

Van-Daaz promotes the concept of buying the diamond by itself, a novelty in the trade when Van-Daaz started offering it on the World Wide Web as early as 1995, an advantageous approach for several clear reasons :

• By buying the loose diamond from Van-Daaz you buy from a diamond specialist and you are guaranteed the widest choice and best prices around. Individual jewelers do not, habitually, carry a large and versatile inventory of diamonds and your choice is therefore curtailed significantly. As diamond specialists Van-Daaz can offer in depth expert counseling and a superb quality of merchandise which is reserved normally only to trade specialists who shop from a network of trusting and trustworthy suppliers. Now all of it is only a mouse-click or a key-stroke away from you !
• By buying the diamond by itself your diamond price is net and clear. You are not overcharged for it through the alleged ring's "price"
• Rather than disappoint her with a ring design that she may not like or lose the element of surprise by asking her to buy the ring with you may maintain now the surprise by buying her the diamond by itself . Present it to her at a tender moment .... she will say it was not necessary but will hardly mean it.... And she would like to shop for the ring with you later on !
• We do not encourage buying set diamonds for reasons mentioned above and others (e.g., a set diamond cannot be verified with 100% certainty and the setting/diamond combination may jeopardized return policies of either the diamond or the setting or both, due to minor marks or scratches etc... and more). Still,- Van-Daaz may provide the ring too and set your chosen diamond in it for you. We will do so for special jewelry lines chosen by us for their unique beauty, but which require, also, setting by the manufacturer, due to the specialized skill required or innovative and proprietary processes involved. Thus, we chose to sell in our show room the exclusive line of Steven Kretchmer's award winning line of tension set jewelry. All rings are available in 18 Karat yellow gold and in 950Pt Platinum-- the latest European trend. Your ring price will be separate and clear and the value of your purchase will be applauded by any appraiser and easy to determine. In addition we carry now a most innovative line of rings crafted out of...pure, aircraft-grade or aerospace-grade titanium ...! Another trade-break through and innovation by Van-Daaz...
• You shop from the convenience and discreteness of your home or work place - another factor in maintaining the element of surprise !
• Furthermore, you are not vulnerable to personal sales pressures, 'arm-twisting' or embarrassments associated, sometimes, with 'physical world' shopping process. You are the ultimate 'armchair' judge and decision maker regarding your diamond purchase and you do so in an informed and rational manner. Van-Daaz provides you with the fullest informative support via its User-Friendly inquiry forms. In particular, if you are in the market for those larger and harder to find, rarer diamonds in the over 6.00 carat category-- you will find our services indispensable and our offers unlikely to be matched; A private viewing will be arranged c/o the actual cutters or importers, at their facilities (!) prior to any purchase.

If you are experienced with diamond shopping you may go simply straight to our search angine--the "Diamond~Explorer"™.Its data base is extracted from Data Bases of our networked US importers and cutters.