Icestore has spent 25 years building custom diamond engagement rings for clients who want a one-of-a-kind piece without the brand-name markup. The Los Angeles-based jeweler, founded in 2001, specializes in lab-grown diamond engagement rings and also offers GIA-certified natural diamonds and fancy color stones.
The company was started by founder Ari Gold after a frustrating search for an anniversary gift for his wife. "I started Icestore because buying a diamond shouldn't mean overpaying for a brand name or fighting through a sales pitch," Gold said. "Twenty-five years later, that hasn't changed. Every ring we make is custom, every client gets honest answers, and with lab-grown diamonds, people can finally get the ring they actually want."
Every Icestore ring is made to order. Each one is designed for a single client, built around their chosen diamond and their vision, never from a pre-fabricated or mass-produced catalog design. The company says this approach delivers a larger, finer lab-grown diamond and a better-made ring than a brand-name store would offer at a fraction of the price.
Icestore's lab-grown diamond selection is rigorously curated. Only stones in D to G color and VS1 clarity or better make the cut, which filters out the lower-quality diamonds that flood much of the lab-grown market, so every stone Icestore offers appears completely colorless and is 100% eye-clean. Many of its customers are engagement ring shoppers who have done their homework on lab-grown diamonds and want the most beautiful stone they can find. Often, they start by visiting well-known, high-end brand-name jewelers to get a feel for what they want, then come to Icestore to have a fully custom version created for a fraction of the cost.
Icestore also works with a growing circle of savvy connoisseurs who are embracing the lab-grown paradigm to create the diamond rings and jewelry of their dreams. For these discerning clients, rare diamonds of extraordinary size and color, from five-carat colorless centers to vivid pink and blue lab-grown fancy color diamonds, are now available for up to 99% less than their Earth-mined counterparts. Natural colorless diamonds of that caliber can exceed $100,000 per carat, and natural fancy colors can surpass $500,000 per carat. Pieces that were once reserved for the ultra-wealthy, from extraordinary statement rings to dramatic diamond earrings and necklaces, can now be made for a tiny fraction of what the same design would cost in natural diamonds.
Alongside its custom lab-grown engagement rings, Icestore offers GIA-certified natural diamonds and rare fancy color stones. Working with both lets the company give unbiased advice on which type of diamond is right for each client. It also serves clients looking for lab-grown fancy color diamonds in pink, yellow, blue and other hues, natural yellow diamonds, and anniversary or milestone jewelry.
Since its founding, Icestore has completed what it believes to be the single most expensive diamond sale ever made online, a transaction valued at more than $2 million. Details remain confidential under a non-disclosure agreement. Icestore has also created custom engagement rings for a number of celebrity clients, work that came almost entirely through word of mouth within that community.
A quarter century in business places Icestore among a small group of online diamond retailers that have thrived through multiple economic cycles, major shifts in e-commerce, and the rise of lab-grown diamonds. From Los Angeles, the company has designed and delivered custom engagement rings, diamonds and fine jewelry to clients throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. Shoppers can browse its designs at Icestore, where 25 years of standing behind every ring is what makes buying a diamond online risk-free.
For Gold, the real measure of success is who keeps coming back. "The proudest moments for me aren't the big sales," he said. "They're when a client we helped twenty years ago comes back to mark their anniversary with an extraordinary gift or sends their son or daughter to us for an engagement ring. That kind of trust is what this whole business is about."
About IcestoreIcestore (icestore.com) is an online jeweler based in Los Angeles, California, founded in 2001 by Ari Gold. The company specializes in custom lab-grown diamond engagement rings and also offers GIA-certified natural diamonds, fancy color diamonds and fine jewelry. Every ring is made to order and comes with a 30-day return policy and a lifetime warranty.