By Sarah Wallace

PA jeweller recognized as a registered supplier

May 28, 2013 | 4:49 PM

A member of the Embee Diamond Technology team in Prince Albert is being recognized by the American Gem Society as a registered supplier.

Ruth Batson, chief executive officer for the American Gem Society (AGS) and American Gem Society Laboratory said Evert Botha recently received his title as registered supplier.

“The title of registered supplier means the firm Embee Diamond Technology is an active member of the American Gem Society and Evert is a registered supplier titleholder, which means that he has met specific criteria for education, he’s taken additional course work through the American Gem Society and he’d agreed to be recertified annually to stay on top of his game in the jewelry industry,” she said.

Botha is currently the chief operation officer and bottle washer at Embee Diamonds and said receiving the title was a long time coming.

“I wrote the exam for graving diamonds way back in 1993 in South Africa never thinking that I’d ever look at another diamond again in my life … so when I joined my father in the business five years ago I realized I needed to up my game,” Botha explained.

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He said it’s a bit of a relief to be done with the exam and said it was an honour to be recognized.

“It’s quite a process to go through, you got to know your diamonds, you got to know your ethics, you got to know your business practices, so it’s a big thing for us,” Botha said.

Batson said, “There are only about 150 registered supplier firms in the world, so Evert’s a part of a very elite and unique group, so I’d say it’s a tremendous accomplishment for him.”

She said the certification sends a message to his customers that he’s committed to a high standard of business ethics and professionalism, and that he is not only ethical, but he’s knowledgeable in his field.

“The American Gem Society is proud to have Evert and his firm as members of our organization,” Batson said.

Not only is Evert now a registered supplier, but his father and one of the company’s gemologists also have the title as well.

“Currently at Embee we have, here in Prince Albert, three AGS title holders, in the US we have one title holder and we’ll probably be adding more in months to come through some of the partners that we’re working with,” Botha explained.

The AGS and its affiliates are all about consumer protection, ethical business practices and the development and maintenance of superior gemological skills and knowledge.

“We often say that somebody that was selling furniture at a furniture store two weeks ago should by no means be allowed to sell diamond and diamond jewelry immediately because it’s really a career that a lot of people invested years of study to understand the product, and to understand gemology and gem stones and precious metals,” Botha said, adding they’re continually educating themselves because of the annual exam they need to take.

Fair trade is also very important to Embee Diamonds and AGS.

Botha said within the AGS there are about 3,005 businesses and title holders who have been admitted to the society.

“So having multiple title holders on staff, it obviously means we really take consumer protection, ethical business practices and the continued development and maintenance of our gemological skills and knowledge very seriously, so that if we come across something in the market that is new we can question it and analyze it from all angles,” Botha explained.

“We can also share that knowledge and insight with our fellow members so that we can continue to grow in education and understanding,” he continued.

He said at Embee Diamonds they look forward to increasing their knowledge for years to come.

swallace@panow.com

On Twitter: @sarahthesquid