The Interview —

Olivia Landau, Founder & CEO of The Clear Cut

The Clear Cut started very organically. I was working at a diamond wholesale company at the time and found that many of my friends getting engaged were confused and overwhelmed by the process, not knowing where to go, who to trust, or if they were getting a good value. I started The Clear Cut initially as an educational blog that made diamond buying easy to digest for millennials, which led me to realize that there was a massive white space in the jewelry industry for a brand that produced quality diamond engagement rings without the crazy markups!

The most challenging aspect of running my own business is figuring things out and making decisions as I go. I like to think that we are building a rocket ship as we launch into space! As a first-time business owner and entrepreneur, I am constantly faced with challenges that I have never experienced before and have to learn and make decisions as I go along.

I love everything about my job, but I think the best part is working with my clients to help them create a meaningful and treasured token of their love during the happiest moments in their lives. Check out some of our Clear Cut Couple stories to see what I mean!

Do More, Faster: A motto we learned at our time in Techstars NY! This means putting yourself and your work out there even if it isn’t 100% perfect. 

I get to play with diamonds all day! Every day is completely different, but it usually involves client phone consultations, in person diamond appointments, remote diamond appointments, design meetings with my jewelers and Instagramming! 

I think I more so wished that I had believed in myself more. Throughout the process of starting The Clear Cut, I have realized that if you believe in yourself and your vision and work tirelessly on making it happen, nothing can stop you.

My favorite jewelry pieces are the ones I wear every day, including The Olivia Ring that I designed for myself a few years ago! This was made with extra diamonds from a project and is now our best-selling fine jewelry ring.

I was a fairly successful child model growing up gracing the pages of Vogue, Ralph Lauren, H&M, etc. Unfortunately, I stopped growing at age 12, but this trained me at a young age to be comfortable in front of a camera. Today I sometimes feel more comfortable in front of the camera than off. People are sometimes surprised to see me go from a somewhat shy soft-spoken person to a bubbly outgoing personality in front of the camera.

I love cooking dinner and it's a creative stress reliever after work!

Life has never been as exciting than it is right now! I am so excited to see what is in store for The Clear Cut! We have a fantastic growing team of Rockstars (pun intended) and the best community of diamond lovers ever!