Bedfordview + Virtual Studio.

Who Virtual Studio is for.

Most buyers can come to Bedfordview. Some can't. The Virtual Studio exists for the second group, with no compromise on price or stone quality:

• Buyers in Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Durban, Umhlanga, Port Elizabeth, East London, Pretoria, or any other South African town who would rather not fly to Johannesburg for an engagement-ring viewing.
• South Africans living abroad commissioning a piece at home rates: London, Sydney, New York, Dubai, Zurich, Geneva, Toronto.
• International buyers who want a South African cutting-house stone at trade-grounded SA pricing, dispatched insured.
• Buyers in Sandton or Rosebank who simply prefer the convenience of a video call over crosstown traffic.

How it works.

1. The brief, 10 minutes.

You email darren@prodiam.co.za or send a WhatsApp to +27 11 334 9010 with the rough brief: budget band, shape preference, intended setting, the date the piece is wanted by. If you already have a GIA report you have been quoted on, attach it. Darren replies within one working day with two or three candidate stones at the right price, all in stock at the Bedfordview bench or sourceable within a week.

2. The video viewing, 30 to 60 minutes.

You book a video slot via the link Darren sends. On the call Darren is at the Bedfordview viewing room with the candidate stones, a 10x loupe, a darkfield microscope, and a daylight-balanced bench light. The stones are shown face-up, side, table-down, on the white tray and on grey for colour contrast. Inclusions are pointed out with the loupe live. The GIA report for each stone is shared on-screen and walked through.

3. The decision and the dispatch.

If you pick a stone, you place a refundable deposit and Darren reserves it on the bench. The setting commission runs in parallel if you want it. Final payment is by EFT, SWIFT, or instalment as arranged. Dispatch is insured Brink's for South African destinations or Ferrari Group for international, both with door-to-door tracking, and arrives in 5 to 10 working days for SA addresses, 10 to 21 for international, depending on the destination country's customs framework.

What is the same as walking in.

• The price. Trade-grounded to the day's Rapaport reading. There is no in-store-only or travel-discount pricing. The number a Cape Town buyer sees is the number a Sandton walk-in sees.
• The stone. The same loose stones are on the bench whether you are in the room or on the call. The Virtual Studio is not a different inventory; it is the same inventory shown over a video link.
• The certificate. Every GIA report is read out and shared on-screen. You leave the call with the report PDF and a written written quote.
• The relationship. The same person who buys the rough at De Beers viewings, runs the cutting works, and signs across the finished piece is on the call. No call-centre, no junior sales staff, no script.

What is different.

• Settling time. A walk-in can complete the buy in one sitting. Virtual buyers typically take 48 to 72 hours between the viewing call and the deposit, which is plenty.
• Insured shipping. Walk-ins leave with the piece in hand. Virtual buyers receive the piece by insured courier, which adds 5 to 21 days depending on destination but is fully tracked and insured at full piece value.
• The cut-of-the-room experience. Some buyers want to be in the room with a stone before committing. That preference is real and is exactly why the Bedfordview viewing room exists. The Virtual Studio is for buyers who would rather optimise for time and distance.

Prices and shipping costs.

The Virtual Studio consultation itself is free. Stones are quoted at the same trade-grounded prices as any walk-in buyer would see. Setting commissions are quoted per piece. Shipping costs are pass-through at cost, billed on the final invoice:

• Within South Africa via Brink's secured-vehicle dispatch: R 850 to R 1 400 per piece depending on destination city, fully insured at the piece's full value.
• International via Ferrari Group: R 4 500 to R 12 000 depending on destination country and piece value, including in-country customs clearance and end-to-end insurance.

Your destination's import VAT, duty, and any local sales tax are the buyer's responsibility and are quoted on the invoice for transparency before you commit.

Security.

The video call uses standard end-to-end encrypted consumer video (your choice of WhatsApp, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Google Meet, whichever you have). No screen recording is kept. The GIA report PDF is sent by email only after the call so you have the certificate before any payment. Dispatch is insured at the piece's full replacement value; the dispatch carrier provides the proof-of-delivery certificate on receipt.