Take #60 - From Her Dad's Jewelry Counter to Founding Dainty Diamond | Jess Fried on Custom Gold, Permanent Jewelry & the Future of Engagement Rings

What does it take to turn a childhood spent in a diamond shop into a thriving luxury jewelry brand? Jess Fried, founder of Toronto-based Dainty Diamond, joins That Digital Take to answer exactly that. Jess grew up in her family's jewelry store, earned a Master's in Media and Journalism from Western University, built a career in media, and then came full circle to found Dainty Diamond in 2020, right in the middle of a pandemic. Today, the brand is redefining luxury jewelry in Canada with custom gold pieces, permanent jewelry activations, and heirloom-quality designs built to be worn, not stored. In this episode, we get into the rise of permanent jewelry, why dainty gold layering has taken over (looking at you, Sabrina Carpenter), the quiet luxury aesthetic, women buying their own fine jewelry, and what record gold prices actually mean for shoppers right now. We also tackle lab-grown vs. mined diamonds, the vintage jewelry resale boom, and why the best jewelry is the kind you never take off. Plus, Jess gives her honest advice to anyone shopping for an engagement ring, and we close it out with a rapid-fire round you won't want to skip.