Show Notes
Send us Fan Mail Sourcing Is Relationships: Building Trust With Gem Dealers The episode argues that successful gemstone sourcing is less about finding vendors and more about building relationships with dealers who will support you when problems arise. The host recounts cracking a ruby during engagement ring sizing and needing to replace it at their own cost; because of an established relationship, the dealer helped significantly and the replacement stone was even better, leaving the client t...
More from The Jeweler's View
Send us Fan Mail Don’t Judge a Custom Jewelry Inquiry Too Fast: The “Dragon Slayer” Email Lesson Courtney Gray shares how she almost ignored a six-page email from an address ending in “dragon slayer,” only to later discover it was a sincere request for a one-of-a-kind custom piece with full creative freedom and a roughly $10,000 budget, which became a commission paid via a $500/month plan and resulted in an elaborate gemstone necklace made in a new platinum-silver alloy. Using this sto...
Send us Fan Mail What Did That Sale Really Require? (Custom, Shows, and Best Sellers in Jewelry Business) Courtney Gray explains why a sales total never tells the whole story in a jewelry business and urges makers to ask, “What did this sale require from me?” Using examples from custom work, craft shows, and best-selling pieces, she breaks down the hidden time, labor, sourcing, communication, revisions, travel, and prep that can shrink real profit and drain energy even when revenue looks str...
Send us Fan Mail Episode 100: No Magic Key. Just Reps, Commitment, and Beginning Courtney Gray marks episode 100 of The Jeweler’s View, reflecting on nearly 30 years in the jewelry industry and on building the podcast one week at a time without a master plan. She shares growth milestones (15,000+ audio downloads, about 1,000 a month, 17,000+ YouTube views, 200+ subscribers) and emphasizes that success isn’t a “magic key,” but the unseen hours of learning, mistakes, adjustments, and persisten...
Send us Fan Mail Go Slow With Intentionality: Bella Grass on Becoming a Jeweler, Building Confidence, and Finding Your Niche Host Courtney Gray shares a conversation with Transform student Bella Grass about her path into jewelry after college, starting with a Boulder Metalsmithing Studio class, learning through an entry-level casting job, attending New Approach’s three-month program, and working as a repair jeweler and setter. Bella discusses what surprised her most, how hard and gratifying ...
Send us Fan Mail Stop Adding More Tasks: Find Direction with Two Words Courtney Gray welcomes listeners to The Jeweler’s View and explores what to do when you know you want something different but can’t define what it is yet. She describes how makers often react by piling on new classes, tools, techniques, and goals, mistaking activity for direction. Drawing from a coaching call with an accomplished jeweler and her own experience selling Creative Side without a mapped-out next step, sh...