A Sparkling Gem of a Family Business in the Heart of the Diamond District

Jonathan Matatov sees the real value in working with his family every day, which is worth more than the pieces of jewelry they sell.

“The pro is you work with people you already know and trust and you already have a relationship with,” he said.

“I wouldn’t really say there’s any cons just because you get to see your family every day. Especially in a business like this, family is important. You have to work with people you trust.”

Matatov has been working in the Diamond District for 15 years at his family’s business OMI Jewelry, which all started when his father Alexander opened up a jewelry booth on Canal Street in 1991. Now, their showroom is located on 46th Street, where clients are invited in to peruse their extensive selection of inventory from watches to engagement rings to fine jewelry.

The company has expanded from their parent company, JD Watches, where their bestsellers are Rolexes, and launched OMI Jewelry, which has $1 million dollars worth of inventory, in 2013. This year, they introduced an engagement ring line called Say Yes by OMI Jewelry, which specializes in lab-grown diamonds.

It is a true family-run operation, with Matatov’s parents at the helm and his brother Robert and their three cousins lending a hand. The name OMI, even comes from Robert’s daughter, Naomi, who couldn’t pronounce her full name as a child.

Matatov also sees the benefits of operating the company in the heart of the Diamond District. “Every day, something new happens. You always meet new people, interact and learn from them. I always like to talk to people about their background and history and get to know them. It makes the job more interesting. It’s not just about buying a Rolex, it’s about the experience that comes with it.”

Tell us about the history of the company.

It started with my father in the early 90s. He took his little savings and opened up a booth on Canal Street back when that was the epicenter for jewelry. He started out with his family and then he opened more locations. At one point, he had three locations on Canal Street. And then in 2004, he opened up an office on 47th Street. So my brother Robert took over that office. Then, he closed the Canal Street locations and opened a store on 47th Street and then they closed the store, and now we just have an office on 46th Street.

What is it like running a business in the Diamond District?

I’ve definitely seen a lot of changes in terms of the people that work here. I noticed a lot of family businesses. It’s not uncommon to have a family business in the Diamond District. Also people are gravitating more towards watches as opposed to jewelry.

Your parent company is JD Watches, right?

That’s what we started with and that’s a wholesale business. Then we wanted to branch out into the retail sector, so that’s when we created OMI Jewelry. That name came from my brother’s daughter. Her name is Naomi and when she was young, she couldn’t say her full name. So she would say, “My name is Omi.”

What are your bestsellers?

We primarily deal with Rolexes, just because that’s the most popular brand out there and what people really ask for the most. But we also specialize in other high-end, luxury brands, so we sell a good amount of Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, Breitling, Cartier.

What’s the most expensive watch you’ve ever sold?

Me personally, $200,000. A Patek Philippe.

What do you see trending now in watches?

Right now, I see a lot of people gravitating towards the sports models or the professional models of Rolex. And people are still asking for the classic models.

Tell us about your engagement line.

In terms of engagement rings, we branched out to Say Yes by OMI Jewelry. Over there, we jumped on the trend of lab-grown diamonds.

What are the benefits to lab-grown diamonds?

You kind of get more bang for your buck because with the lab-grown diamond, it’s still a real diamond, but it’s like getting a leather bag from Hermes versus Michael Kors. It’s slightly different in the sense that a natural diamond is more expensive, it comes from the earth. A lab-grown diamond comes from a lab. But let’s say you spend $5,000 on a one-carat natural diamond, for $5,000, you could get a three or four-carat lab-grown diamond.

What would say the demographics of your customers are in terms of locals versus tourists? What are the farthest places customers come from?

I had a customer come from Sweden a couple of weeks ago. She was visiting her friend here and she and her friend came and bought watches. We mostly deal with local people because we are an office, so unless you know that we’re here, you’re not really going to walk in. We do have people walking in who find us through social media or a Google search. Other people reach out and make an appointment. In terms of walk-ins, it’s mostly people from the East Coast, the tri-state area, a drivable distance. They’ll take a day trip to New York. But we’ve had people from all over the world, Europe, South America, Asia.