The Diamond Lane • Beth Gerstein

(Co-Founder and CEO, Brilliant Earth || CA USA)

“I come from a line of mathematicians and engineers. In school, I wanted to face the most challenging problems I could find — I loved stretching my mind to solve them! That’s what led me to study electrical engineering and work in satellite communications. After a few years, though, I realized I didn’t just want to solve technical problems, but also challenging ones with the scope of a broader impact — business school would be a nice way to gain a more holistic look on these challenges.

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While at business school, my partner and I decided to get engaged. When we were looking for a ring, most jewelers couldn’t tell me anything about where the diamond was from. Diamonds are a very emotionally-charged topic, with social issues like blood diamonds. And no one was addressing it! It seemed like there was an opportunity to find ethically-sourced diamonds and give back to impacted communities — that led me to start my company, Brilliant Earth. We started outsourcing ethical diamonds from Canada and have now expanded into other origins, including lab-grown diamonds.

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Brilliant Earth has brought up exciting tech challenges, like using blockchain to provide additional transparency on the origin of the diamond, or building out the complex logistics and supply chain to offer made-to-order jewelry. We’re constantly innovating — I’m learning the importance of building a supportive team. In an industry dominated by men, our company is 80 percent women — there’s freedom in creating our own culture.”