Most people would be amazed at how little, when not in a shop under bright lights, jewelry is actually worth. Let’s just say they aren’t selling gold, they are selling emotions and hype. And many customers get extremely angry when they go to resell and find out how little it’s worth. You’ll be lucky to get a tenth of what you paid for the stones.
Source; my wife ran the biggest gold buying store in northern LA county for a few years.
If it’s in any form but rounds or bars, it’ll need to be melted down which has a cost. So it can be made into a form that can be resold closer to spot value.
The margin are actually even better if you melt them down. it’s really hard to buy physical gold at spot, single ounces/grams go for a few points higher.
Gold, Silver etc have a daily published value, and you can expect a number close to that (allowing for margin). But "precious stones" are really not all that precious, or rare.
When selling (to a dealer) you discover the margins they make- often upwards of 90% (as my father discovered selling jewelry he inherited.) To be fair, crafting takes significant labor and most old jewelry has to be melted down and recrafted.
None of this negates the significance of one person giving another jewelry. That adds substantial sentimental value which is what makes them valuable at all.
(It does make me smile though when movies use uncut diamonds as some sort of compact currency...)
Some gets resold as is (there's a (limited) market for vintage jewelry) but most is reworked. And of course that reworking takes significant time and skill.
My pet theory is that those are all effectively product placements; i.e. they get paid to portray diamonds in the movie as valuable.
Gold teeth are worth the absolute least.
That was an unexpected kicker. I suspect you or your spouse must have a good story about shady people trying to work that angle.
Just messy business.
After a while she just kind of knew what to look out for. How people presented the goods, how they acted, etc.
The most shocking part to me, was how many 80s-90s celebs would bring in gold to sell. I guess times get rough.
Boots, not clothes. Diamonds are so sharp that they easily get lodged in rubber soles. And then fall out when you walk.
One would think diamond merchants would take the time to be equally careful, if not moreso.
But also, these tiny stones really aren't worth much. What you're asking is like Home Depot making sure to account for every single nut & bolt so none are stolen or lost. It would cost far more in time & labor then what you'd get back in return.
And the small diamonds are still pretty cheap. He said about $100 per carat of small diamonds. It's not surprising that they're more casual with this inventory.
> Over six days, he says, he collected enough gold for two sales totaling $819 on 47th Street.