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SERVING NEW ZEALAND JEWELLERS FOR OVER THREE DECADES


Precious Gem Imports began in Auckland in 1990, but the story behind it starts a generation earlier, in Bangkok.

Our founder, Paul Thavat, grew up in Bangkok, the third generation of a family that had been trading jewellery, antiques and gemstones for nearly a century.  

With his brother, he ran a gemstone cutting house on Silom Road, the heart of the world's gem trade, and it was there that he learned to read a rough stone and recut it to reveal the beauty hidden inside.

Over decades, Paul travelled extensively through Belgium, Israel, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, building relationships with only the finest diamond and coloured stone cutters. Many became family friends, and we still do business with them today.

Those who know the trade know Paul for his eye. He selects only the very best, and quietly set about educating a generation of New Zealand jewellers on what fine gemstones could be. It is a measure of his legacy that some of the country's most beautiful pieces of jewellery carry stones he chose himself.

Paul remains active in the business, splitting his time between Bangkok and Auckland, because a passion for gemstones never retires. 

Precious Gem Imports is now led by Paul's daughter, Joy Thavat, a qualified gemmologist and diamond grader, and a familiar face to many in the trade. As the fourth generation carrying on this trade, Joy has inherited her father's standards along with the relationships he spent a lifetime building, and continues the work he began: choosing carefully, and looking after the jewellers who trust us with the stones at the heart of their pieces.


EXPERT SELECTION BY QUALIFIED GEMMOLOGISTS


Each stone that enters our inventory is meticulously examined and chosen for its cut, symmetry, character and colour. Experience tells us which stones are not only beautiful, but a pleasure for a jeweller to set and finish.

Our qualified gemmologists know the pitfalls that catch out less experienced dealers — the subtle treatments, the optimistic grading, the stones that look the part but won't hold up to scrutiny.

And our long-established networks mean no nasty surprises: no undisclosed treatments, no synthetics passed off as natural, no quiet omissions.


WHAT WE OFFER


Our inventory holds one of the most comprehensive selections of loose stones in New Zealand, spanning:

  • Certified and non-certified natural diamonds across a full range of shapes and sizes
  • Sapphires in classic blue, and the full spectrum of fancy colours
  • Rubies, emeralds, and the major precious coloured gemstones
  • Accent stones and matched pairs in diamond and coloured gemstones
  • Parcel lots in calibrated sizes
  • A working range of small goods and melee across a range of grades


APPROVAL PROCESS


We ship nationwide and offer a simple obligation-free approval service whereby we send the stones to you so you can physically view them. This gives you time to present your stones to a client or to check their suitability to a design or setting. It also gives you the benefit of viewing them in person before committing. This service is available to established and approved customers. 


TRADE ONLY


We supply jewellers, jewellery designers and jewellery retailers in New Zealand and Australia. We do not sell directly to the public.  Not as a matter of exclusion, but out of respect for the jewellers who carry our stones. They are the ones best placed to listen to your story, understand the piece you have in mind, and guide a stone into a setting that will be worn for a lifetime.

If you have found us while searching for a particular stone, we would warmly encourage you to take that search to your local jeweller. We would be delighted for one of our stones to find its way to you through them.