Am I hoarding or am I selling? How this gemstone collector and businessman manages his over $1m collection
PHOTO: Instagram/Ministry of Gemstones
PUBLISHED ONOctober 05, 2024 4:00 AMByVanessa Nah
Is it really possible to do what you love for a living? It's an ideal that many of us were brought up to believe, myself included. But as I powered through my school years and propelled myself into the working world, I became jaded.
"Turn your passion into your paycheck"? Honey. My passions would only turn my paycheck into debt.
"Choose a job you love, and you won't have to work"? Right. I won't have to eat either with the amount of money I'd make.
But then I got to speak to Alex, a local gemstone collector and the owner of the Ministry of Gemstones. Today, his shiny collection is worth over S$1 million.
Alex is animated, lively, and zealous; you can't listen to him talk about the gemstones he loves without feeling enthused too. As I observed out loud to him during our session: "You're one of those rare people whose passion is really your job."
Here's a peek into the fascinating mind of a gemstone collector cum businessman, and what he taught me about what it takes to make your passion your job.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
So, Alex, take us back. How did you start collecting gemstones?
I'm 44 this year, and I've been a collector for about 17 years. This isn't my first job, though. I was a teacher before — I'm trained in biomedical science, so I taught biology in secondary schools for about 15 years.
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Collecting gemstones all started with my first blue sapphire. My aunt saw an astrologer who said it would be good for me to have a blue sapphire. It wasn't in my head; I didn't plan on getting it. But when I saw it, I was hooked. It was my first experience, and it was amazing.
Even now, people from different shops ask me why I like gemstones so much, and the honest truth is this: I don't know. Different pieces attract me for different reasons. It's just something about them that makes me want to know more. When I see a rare one, I'm like, "Wow!" It's hard to put my finger on it — it's a variety of things that draw me in.
Tell us more about how that blue sapphire started it all.
The gemstone that started it all: this is the first sapphire that Alex ever bought. It got him hooked!
After getting my first blue sapphire at around 25 years old, I started collecting more gemstones. That's when I got exposed to all sorts of different gemstones... and I personally got conned myself!
In the gemstone industry back then, they would con you if they could. Like if you're a tourist looking for something, it's quite easy to get tricked.
I learned that the hard way when I lost some money, but it's all part of the journey. Along the way, friends and family started asking me to get gemstones for them. Suddenly, I found myself with this network of people buying from me.
So it just developed from there. After being a teacher for about 15 or 16 years, I was in a pretty comfortable place financially. I had two kids, a house - big commitments.
But I was confident enough to take the leap and start selling gemstones. I thought, "Hey, why not?" I had an inventory collected and the good thing is over time-I won't share the exact numbers-but my gemstones appreciated too.
Speaking of your gemstones, what gemstone do you have on right now?
This one I'm wearing is a Mahenge spinel from Tanzania. It's filled with inclusions, but I fell in love with the colour the moment I saw it. Before I set it into my ring, I kept it with me for a while, looking at it every day. I kept thinking, "This is the one, this is the one." Its colour is extremely unique - you can't find this kind of colour often!
Another special thing about this spinel is that it fluoresces under UV light. In sunlight, it really shines. So even though it's full of inclusions, that's not always a bad thing.
In the gemstone world, inclusions can actually add character. If you have a tolerance for them, they can make a piece quite unique. Of course, if this piece were crystal clear, it would be in a different league altogether.
But when it comes to inclusions, it's all about personal preference. Some clients see inclusions and think they're beautiful. It really depends on what they like.
As a seller, I try to look at my clients' preferences rather than imposing my own thoughts on them. I don't want to come across as hard-selling.
Over the years, what are some of the most memorable gemstones you've sold?
I'll share a story with you. So, as a collector myself, I had a 6.51-carat unheated cornflower blue sapphire from Sri Lanka. It was part of my personal collection. I like to show off my pieces, so I was showing it to a lot of people. But selling it was never on my mind.
Then, one day, a young couple showed interest in the sapphire. They came all the way to my house and spent about four hours talking with me. They were not pushing me to sell it — they were genuinely interested in the stone and wanted to get to know me and share how much they loved it.
I had no intention of selling it because it's a rare piece — 6.5 carats, cornflower blue, unheated, and certified. But as we talked, I was forced to reflect: what am I doing? Am I hoarding these gems, or am I selling them?
At that moment, the answer that came to me was this: I'm running a business. No matter when I sell this stone, I could always make a profit, even if I reacquire it.
So, I realised I shouldn't just keep it for myself. Eventually, I sold it to them, and I'm confident it's worthy as an heirloom piece for them.
The guy brought his partner to Santorini and proposed with the stone I sold him. They took a photo and sent it to me. It's moments like these when I realise I've become a part of someone's life story-they'll never forget where the gemstone came from.
Showing off is a good thing in this industry. It lets people know you have high-quality gemstones when you showcase what you have.
Wow. That's extraordinary. Under more normal circumstances, how do your customers go about buying a gemstone from you?
First, I ask them about their preferences - the type of gemstone, the size, the colour, and the type of inclusion they're looking for.
If I've seen something like that before or know where to find it, I can usually match their request. I have links with many other businesses, so sometimes I go through inventories just to see what's available.
When someone tells me what they're looking for, I might say, "Let me get back to you." Then, I'll send them a video of the gemstone if I find a match. If they're interested, they might ask to view it in person. That's how we typically go about it.
I once sold a really unique sapphire that was yellow with blue on top, in a pear shape. It was made into a pendant, and I posted about it on Instagram.
Someone else saw it and wanted a similar piece, but I told them, "eh, this one, when it comes like that, it doesn't come like that always, you know". Pure coincidence, two weeks later, I found another one just like it. I immediately called her, and she took it.
But these things are rare — Mother Nature decides what comes up. Some people come to me with very specific requests, saying, "I want this exact colour," and I have to tell them, "It doesn't always come like that." I can try to find it, but it's very difficult to get something so specific.
Yikes. What do you do when people come to you with very specific requests?
That's when I have to explain a few things to them. I let them know it's better to give me a bit of space to work with. If the request is too specific, I'm not saying it's impossible, but the chances of finding exactly what they want are very low.
When I go hunting for gemstones, there's a lot of effort involved travelling and searching. So, I hope to make a successful match when I do find something.
I always make sure to explain this to customers. For example, if someone asks me to find a specific four-carat blue sapphire, I tell them I'll do it, but I need their commitment. If I'm putting in the effort, I want to make sure they're serious.
Of course, there are times when you try really hard and just can't find a match. It does happen. That's why I say upfront that I need them to be serious. I have to gauge their commitment first because time is so important in this business.
What's the gemstone hunting process like?
Well after years in the business, I've made connections with various suppliers. When I get a new gemstone request, one way to go about it is to just reach out to all my trusted suppliers.
With coloured gemstones, colour is the most important. Different people have different preferences for colours, and I want to find the best fit for my client. So that's why having trusted contacts who'll select the best colour matches is so important.
Otherwise, I can also fly over myself to search for it. This allows me to look at gemstones with my own eyes and assess the colour, clarity, cut and all. In this case, I can purchase it on the spot and bring it over to Singapore with me. If you look at flight tickets off season, it's not too expensive.
But many times, I make use of a few runners I have. These runners come to Singapore frequently from different countries. Along the way, I get them to pick up a gemstone for me and bring it over for me to inspect.
Do you enjoy hunting for gemstones for people?
Yeah, I do enjoy it. You get to make new connections. And when you close a deal with someone new, you just found a new connection, right? Plus, you get to travel, which is always fun. So, yes, I quite enjoy it.
Let me share this with you: I'm at work every day. The only time I take a break is when my kids ask to go somewhere. I don't really see this as work — it's become my lifestyle. The only part that feels tedious is the accounting!
Even on weekends, I take my kids out in the morning, then come back to work when they nap in the afternoon. If we have plans in the evening, like going out for dinner or buying it back home, sometimes my kids say, "Papa, you're always tired," and I just laugh. I say, "you don't know what I'm doing while you're sleeping!"
But the truth is, I don't complain. I don't wake up feeling like I want to take an MC like I did in my previous job. Now, I wake up looking forward to the day — it's very different.
You're one of those rare people whose passion is really your job.
Yeah, it's very aligned! I'm blessed. That's why I cannot complain.
Final thoughts: Can we do what we love for a living?
There's a song lyric I heard once that goes like this: I won't be scared / because I do it for a livin' / it's not a taken, it's a given.
This line has never really made sense to me till now. Alex has made gemstones his livelihood, and he clearly loves what he does. It's not something to be taken for granted.
Not everyone can turn their passion into a successful career. It's a challenging path, full of uncertainties and muddy, unchartered waters you have to navigate.
For Alex, this journey is about more than just collecting or selling gems. It's about navigating the fine line between collecting and hoarding, between selling and investing. Margins for coloured gemstones can be anywhere between five per cent to 20 per cent.
But if you hold on to a particularly prized piece for a longer time-say, five to 10 years-you could be looking at much larger gains. For the gemstones like rare sapphires, rubies or emeralds, gains can sometimes be up to 100 per cent.
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But for Alex, it's not just about the money. Gemstone hunting, collecting, and selling have become his lifestyle. It may be his business-commercially-to collect and sell gemstones, but it's also his business-personally-to match people with their dream jewel.
He's blessed, as he says, that his passion and profession align so perfectly. That's not a quality you can just reach out and grab-arguably, it's not even something that can be easily nurtured. It's something innate in Alex, perhaps given to him by fate, the universe, or whatever you believe in.
So, back to my question at the start of this article. Is it really possible to do what you love for a living? I think the answer is yes. It's rare, but when you truly love what you do, it becomes a way of life. Loving what you do and living your life become two facets of the same gemstone.
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This article was first published in MoneySmart.