In times of record inflation, the savings account has had its day. The company is waiting when looking for alternatives to secure assets The Natural Gem from Dr. Thomas Schröck with something very special, apart from stocks, gold, real estate and cryptocurrencies: precious stones. It specializes in colored gemstones – ruby, sapphire, emerald – and here in a “niche”: naturally colored stones that are so beautiful that they no longer have to be treated, only polished. The Natural Gem is the only company in the German-speaking region that deals in natural-colored gemstones.
“Only some of our gemstones are actually processed into jewellery,” reports the doctor of economics and internationally trained gemmologist on eXXpressTV in an interview with eXXpress editor Stefan Beig. “Most of them are stored in vaults as an investment product.” During the financial crisis of 2008, demand had already started to rise noticeably, reports the entrepreneur. Further significant increases followed with the Covid crisis, the Ukraine war and now fears of inflation.
The Natural Gem offers gemstones in all size classes between 3000 and one million euros. Most clients are freelancers, entrepreneurs, heirs, or people looking to exit and switch from cryptocurrencies. All rely on other forms of investment as well. “Almost everyone has gold beforehand, and then, depending on their preference, funds, securities, real estate,” reports Thomas Schröck, who himself recommends investing ten percent of liquid assets in precious stones.
Having a certain amount of basic assets here is therefore “a good idea”. Schröck admits: “I wouldn’t start with precious stones. I think gold and silver make a lot of sense, and then I would combine that with precious stones. I’m a fan of diversifying wealth, with a base stock in stocks and precious metals.” Some of his clients are more into artworks or cars. The main thing: “Don’t put everything on one card.”
In recent years, jewels have fared better than gold: “At the moment, the value is rising sharply due to the scarcity,” reports the entrepreneur. “Fewer gemstones are being found, but at the same time the demand is increasing very rapidly. But not the strongest with us, but in China, India, Indonesia, only then come Europe and the USA.”
Schröck initially buys the gemstones in large quantities abroad, if possible from the mines themselves, such as in Sri Lanka and Burma, in Madagascar via a broker. “We don’t buy anything in Europe.”
Apart from economics, Schröck also studied gemmology – the study of precious stones – in Germany and Switzerland. “It’s a must.” Then “learning by doing” followed: “If I spend a week in India, I’ll grade 2000 to 3000 gems. That’s how you gain a lot of experience. You have to know what is in demand on the market and what makes a beautiful gemstone.”
Thomas Schröck has always had a passion for valuable stones: he started collecting minerals at the age of eight, cut gemstones were added when he was twelve, and at the age of 20 he was the youngest young entrepreneur in Lower Austria with a jewelery shop. The current company was founded in 2008 when a customer came to him to secure his assets with precious stones.
