“Royal ring could be gold mine for jewelers”

Royal ring could be gold mine for jewelers

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 03:42 AM PST

Major jewelry stores across the country are being inundated with requests from customers interested in buying a replica of the blue sapphire ring that Prince William gave to his fiancee Kate Middleton.

Local jewelers said this week they hadn't received any requests for a knockoff, but they aren't surprised at the excitement being generated by the couple and the famous ring.

Most customers in the local area couldn't afford the actual ring anyway, they said. Originally given to Lady Diana by Prince Charles, it consists of an oval 18-carat sapphire ring surrounded by diamonds in 18-carat white gold and is valued at nearly a half-million dollars.

"Who better to present a piece of jewelry like that than Di? It is so appropriate to wear that in honor of her," said Anne Lawler, manager of Elliott's Jewelers in Fitchburg. "Lady Di was a role model for all young women today. She was a wonderful mother, great provider and protector for her children."

Lawler said Elliott's has sold a similar ring for years, and noticed a trend when Princess Diana first received it from Prince Charles in 1981. She predicted Prince William's engagement could rekindle interest.

"It's wonderful for our industry, and it will start another precedent because this young, vibrant woman has received one," Lawler said.

Gini Tocci, owner of Joseph's Jewelers in Leominster, said the store has always kept a similar ring in stock, but says the store has not had any requests as a

result of the couple's engagement.

"If it gets to be popular, it might around the Christmas season. As of yet, I have not had any calls," said Tocci who recalls its popularity when Princess Diana received it and the number of calls received by the store at that time.

Customers can expect to pay between $1,000 and $2,500 for a smaller version of the ring, she explained.

"It's Princess Diana. She's been a very popular figure even in death. Going from being a commoner to a princess was like a fairy tale and that fairy tale continues to this day through her sons," said Tocci.

At Crowne Jewelers in Leominster, owner Donna Cormier says she has not received any orders or inquiries for the ring, but at the moment they don't have any in stock anyway.

"We don't have one like that. It's a beautiful ring," Cormier said. "Its resurgence is great for the jewelry business."

T. Slocum, a salesperson at George's Jewelers in Leominster, said the store has a similar ring for sale, but the allure of this particular ring hasn't caught on yet locally.

"A few years ago, maybe 10 years, there was a craze with the ring, but not so much now," she said.

In Manhattan on Tuesday, it took only minutes for the world to see the ring before phones started ringing madly at a Manhattan jewelry maker Natural Sapphire Co.

Its website crashed as customers swamped it with online orders. Then the craftsmen got busy, producing the first of dozens of orders for replicas of Kate Middleton's ring.

"I called my wife and said, 'Honey, I'm not coming home tonight!" Michael Arnstein, the CEO of the jewelry company his grandfather started in 1939, told the Associated Press. "We're in a frenzy. This is changing our business overnight."

"It's the biggest news for our company since Princess Diana received her sapphire," said Arnstein, adding that after Diana's engagement to Charles, the same ring also was responsible for a surge in business.

"Now, it's turned into a legacy," he said.

Using high-tech, 3D computer software and modeling machines, he's producing replicas costing mostly $1,000 to $2,500 using 1- or 2-carat certified sapphires surrounded by tiny diamonds also set in 18-carat white gold.

"They're just as beautiful," said Arnstein.

Sapphires are rarer than diamonds but less expensive because demand for them is lower. They're especially beloved in Britain and its former colonies, including Sri Lanka, which Arnstein plans to visit soon to buy more of the sapphires mined there -- expecting an uptick in demand through the holidays.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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