While the main diamond-producing countries are African, the experts are mostly Western or Indian. Thelma West, a Nigerian based in London, is one of the very few Africans in this very exclusive and male-dominated industry.

She belongs to the tiny Jewish community in Nigeria, which has 40,000 members out of a population of 140 million. She is the first in her family to work in the diamond industry. Her career is all the more surprising since Nigeria does not produce diamonds. “Yes, I am the only young Nigerian Jewish woman in the diamond trade, and I don’t know of any other African women,” she says.

“At 16, I left Lagos to finish my secondary education in the United Kingdom,” says the eldest of five children who enjoyed a very happy childhood in a privileged environment. The goal was a “solid career”: doctor, engineer, banker— the only professions that are highly respected in the country. But her attraction to diamonds was irresistible. It was in her mother’s jewelry box that her first emotions for these stones were born.

“When we organized a party, my mother would adorn me with small stones—earrings, bracelets—telling me not to lose them,” recalls this daughter of a former Guinness brewery employee and an industrialist and real estate promoter. But more than the beauty, it was the secrets of these stones she wanted to uncover. This led to her decision to go to Antwerp, the diamond capital of the world, at 17, “without knowing anyone there,” to join the internationally renowned school Hoge Raad Voor Diamant.

“The classes weren’t enough for me. Most of the knowledge comes from handling diamonds daily,” she says. So, she looked for an internship with a diamond dealer. In vain for six months. Until David, one of them, welcomed her every evening after classes for a year.

After Antwerp, she was recruited “by one of the largest diamond suppliers in Europe” based in Barcelona, Spain. “It was like being thrown into the deep end. I was 19 years old. I was responsible for every diamond the company owned.” She spent four years there before starting her own company in London, helped by former classmates from Lagos who had become investment bankers.

She personally makes all her creations, which are guaranteed for life. With metal tweezers in her hand, Thelma West loves explaining the secrets of some of her stock. “Diamonds have fire,” West declared. “This stone is too flat, but it has a lot of life in it; it was cut about 100 years ago,” she says, showing a small rock. “This one costs a bit over €100,000 ($141,000, £126,000). It has a low color grade, but it was cut perfectly, so it reflects light in an incredible way.”

Thelma works for fewer than 50 clients, 12 of whom are investors who have access to her expertise. “I can find a diamond, call them, and say, ‘We need to buy this diamond, trust me,’ and they follow me,” she says.

Her multinational client base—introduced through word-of-mouth—includes Swiss, Russians, Ghanaians, Nigerians, and “a handful of French people.” Her most ambitious creation was a custom-made necklace worth approximately €2 million. She plans to open a workshop in Nigeria, “where I will train girls in the art of jewelry-making.”

She hopes to complete the creation of a “revolutionary object” she designed. Intended for all diamond dealers, it aims to modernize an ancestral tool of the profession by incorporating high-tech innovations. Tradition and innovation, a combination that reflects her ambition…

This text is an excerpt from the book “SECRETS OF THOSE WHO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS PROJECTS” written by Luc André GBELISSA.

We invite you to read the following article “FROM IDEA TO BUSINESS PROJECT.”

Thelma West