Ada Thela, CEO of Zoe Diamonds in Botswana, joins the Pearls of Wisdom Jewelry Podcast for an inspiring conversation about diamonds, entrepreneurship, provenance, and the future of Botswana’s natural diamond industry.
Ada’s journey began after university when she discovered the Okavango Diamond Company Youth Entrepreneurship Program, a seven-month program that introduced her to the entire diamond value chain, from mining to jewelry retail. After completing the program and an apprenticeship with WDM Botswana, she spent years learning the diamond cutting and polishing trade before launching Zoe Diamonds in April 2023.
Since then, Ada has faced the realities of building a young diamond manufacturing business, including volatile rough diamond prices and changing market conditions. Zoe Diamonds grew from two diamond polishers to nine at its peak and continues working to create jobs while expanding its customer base and international reach. One of its early U.S. clients was J.R. Dunn, helping open opportunities for additional international relationships.
Ada also discusses the importance of diamond provenance and traceability, explaining how technology can document a diamond’s journey from mine to polish and ultimately to the jeweler. For U.S. jewelry retailers, this creates an opportunity to tell customers a deeper story about where their natural diamonds came from and the people behind them.
The conversation goes beyond diamonds to explore job creation, skills development, responsible luxury, women in business, and Botswana’s goal of capturing more value within its own diamond industry. Ada shares her vision for growing Zoe Diamonds from an SME into a larger corporation while creating dignified opportunities for her team.
Discover Ada Thela’s remarkable journey and learn why the story behind a diamond can be just as valuable as the stone itself. Tune in, get inspired, and discover the future of Botswana’s diamonds with Zoe Diamonds!
Podcast Transcript
Intro:
Hello everyone, this is Guy with Southern Jewelry News, and this is another episode of the Pearls of Wisdom Jewelry Podcast. Enjoy the episode.
Guy:
Hello everyone, this is Guy with Southern Jewelry News, and this is another amazing episode of the Pearls of Wisdom Jewelry Podcast. And I have, I say this all the time, but this woman right next to me is a very special guest, Ada Thela, CEO of Zoe Diamonds here in Botswana, in Botswana Gaborone, and welcome so much, thank you for joining me [ADA] Thank you for having me [GUY] My first question is are you a diamond baby? [ADA] yes most certainly [GUY] what does that mean to you?
Ada:
what that means is to me personally is that i've benefited from the process of diamonds you know our country is well known the world over for gem quality diamonds and they contribute significantly to our exports and our GBP and they've done so much for the country in terms of our socio-economic development from our roads our schools our education so i for instance went to university of botswana, university of botswana and that was fully funded by the government. [GUY] Yeah. Wow. Congratulations.
Guy:
And I was reading about your history and you were part of their internship, I believe, or some mentorship program. Is that correct? How did you get involved with diamonds and the jewelry, the diamond trade here?
Ada:
Yeah. Okay. I think it was shortly after I completed my undergraduate qualification. So I was in the interim. trying to figure out what my next steps would be. So I was browsing through back then my dad loved to read newspapers. So I was looking through newspapers for job opportunities and things like that. and then i came across an ad for the okavango diamond company youth entrepreneurship program so it was like a seven month program where we learned the entrepreneurial skills and got exposure to the entire diamond value chain from mining to jewelry retail so that's how my journey with the diamond industry started so upon completing that program i got an apprenticeship with one of the facilitators of the program called wdm botana so that's how my journey began.
Guy:
Wow, fantastic. And so far, how has your journey been here with the diamond industry here in Botswana?
Ada:
It's been very enlightening, very empowering. You know, I think when I graduated back in 2016, I never imagined or even thought that I'd actively be in the diamond industry as a business owner, you know, but… That program really opened up my worldview and I thought to myself, hey, how come we've been mining diamonds for so long, but there isn't any Botswana, you know, actively in the diamond value chain as business owners, particularly like value addition part. I was like, okay, no, I think I should go into diamond cutting and polishing as a starting point. So that's what my journey has been throughout the nine years.
Guy:
yeah nine years well that's that's amazing how do you feel now being a ceo of a diamond company here in botswana how does that make you feel and and um are you proud of what you've achieved for the country?
Ada:
yeah it's most definitely a privilege and an honor you know um I fall in love daily with the product, but more so with the people behind the product. That's what really drew me to the industry as well as the job creation potential that diamond manufacturing has. So it's both very, how do I say it? It's quite a journey, you know, with a lot of highs, a lot of lows, but I embrace all of them and I try to learn as fast as I can as I go.
Guy:
Yeah. Wow. And how do you think, the botswana and diamonds compare in the world?
Ada:
oh I think gem quality wise I think we're pretty right at the top you know um There's been so many discoveries, you know, of the Okavango Blue, Mazeedi Diamond, and many others. I think we've contributed significantly to the national diamond industry globally. And I think we'll continue having more of those discoveries. But something that I really look forward to is having more of that value captured within the country. And that's really what Zoe Diamond's trying to push for.
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Guy:
Wow. Could you tell me about what they call the added diamond?
Ada:
Oh. Yes, that's a project that I'm working on with an associate of mine within the industry. We're really pushing, you know, to come up with a diamond cut as homage to the 54 countries of the African continent. So that's something that's still in the pipeline. But I think once it's up and running, it's really going to contribute greatly or significantly to the natural diamond industry. I think… Beyond saying buy natural diamonds because they're natural, we need to come up with more creative ways of adding value to them such that it justifies the premium on the product.
Guy:
Yeah. Right. Wow. So in the nine years you've since started Zoe Diamonds, how has it grown and where do you market your diamonds to in the world?
Ada:
okay so I think in the nine years the first the initial five to six years i'd say were really just me deep diving and immersed in the diamond cutting and polishing trade learning that understanding that and then eventually i was able to apply for all the necessary licenses and startup capital and then that's when we started zoe diamonds in april 2023. So in terms of our operation we've been operating for like three years and four months and three months into operation that's when rough prices started being volatile and going down and all of that. and I'd say we've successfully navigated the very challenging and difficult time for the during the industry you know but we're not quite out of the woods yet so we're looking to grow beyond where we are and we started with two diamond polishes at peak point we were like nine of us so like eight diamond polishes and now we're back to five so it's basically just us trying to create jobs for yam but also based on the volume of goods that were that were handling so if it goes up then we're happy to onboard more people if it goes down then we are just accordingly
Guy:
yeah yes yeah how does it make you feel that you can help your country, your community, with jobs with good jobs and learning about this great industry? How does that make you feel?
Ada:
It makes me feel happy, you know, and somewhat proud. And I really want to do more of that on like a larger scale, you know, for more impact. So I really want to push us to grow from right now we can be categorized as an SME. within the diamond industry but i'd love one day to hopefully grow into a big corporation within the diamond industry
Guy:
fantastic fantastic do you i know you work with JR Dunn and others in the U.S um have you worked with a lot more now in the last few years?
Ada:
I'd say JR Dunn was our first like international U.S client now we're having a bit more interest in our services as a result of that and i'm truly grateful and thankful for that and yeah um i look forward to working with more people from the us you know as we know the us is like the largest market for natural diamonds. But we're also looking to grow into different regions of the world but we haven't quite established a client-based thing yet.
Guy:
What would you like to tell the world about uh Zoe diamonds or the diamonds from botswana. What do people what do the what do consumers and jewelers in the world, what should they know about that about the diamonds from your country?
Ada:
okay I think what what they need to know is you're buying just the product that buying the story behind the product you know the developmental story of Botswana and how it's so closely tied into her natural diamonds and also just the human story of how those diamonds go over and above just being jewelry pieces for them or collector items but actually pouring positively and in a very great and significant way into people's lives the very people that transform them from rough to polished so that they can enjoy them as a finished end product
Guy:
right right uh amazing amazing so you've um you continue to grow you continue to improve what what are the latest things on the near horizon that you're working on
Ada:
Okay, I'd say we're working definitely on securing more clients, you know, and we're also working on a few projects. The other cut be one of them. And I think once those are up and running, it will be something very exciting, not only for us and our country, but also for the entire Natural Diamond community, you know, to say, let's rethink. Purposeful and responsible luxury insofar as natural diamonds are concerned and let's rethink that the the value or the luxury part of diamonds it is to do something new you know something fresh that will continue to cement the relevance of natural diamonds culturally in people's lives
Guy:
Right, aside from the the world of diamonds and jewelry you have done something amazing you You've gone on to create a company, employ people, and start creating a thriving business. And in some, you are a role model, not just for young people to start businesses, but also for women. How does that make you feel that you are an amazing example of just not only a young person, but a young woman? How does that make you feel?
Ada:
It makes me feel like incredibly honored and blessed to do so, you know. So to be honest, I never thought it would have the… The way people resonate with it, you know, the story and everything. I didn't think it would have as much weight as it does now. But now I'm fully aware of that. And I wear that badge or hat with a whole lot of responsibility now. Fully aware that whatever I do, either positively or negatively,impacts and influences others.
Guy:
Right, right. So you…I've seen some of the… the stories and so forth and a lot of from what i've seen your employees are so happy to to learn and to be part of your company yeah and your your goal is to grow your not only your customer base but your employees and what why uh what what would be your uh goal in terms of growing your company what type of environment that you create for them.
Ada:
oh wow um I think one of my greatest goals is just to really upskill them you know while also giving them dignified jobs that can enable them to support their beneficiaries you know take their children to school and all of that and also just looking for more ways as to how I can collaborate with other brands and other companies to really have that skill, knowledge and technology transfer. So I think, like you asked, in a few months you might see, you know, some of those things rolling out in terms of us partnering together with more companies and like-minded brands.
Guy:
Yeah. Right, right. So if someone in the…my publication is Southern Jewry News and we deal with jewelers in the U.S. And what would you like to tell the jewelers of the U.S. about your company, Zoe Diamonds?
Ada:
I'd like to tell them that, you know, where the company that they can go to in terms of sourcing rough and having it customized to them, you know, cutting and polishing it. Such that they can use it in their jewelry. And I believe that Zoe Diamonds is now growing to have a lot of brand value, you know, in terms of provenance, ethics, traceability, and that can really tie in well with their brands as well, similar to what I was doing with J.R.Dunn. um that's that's a story that they can confidently tell to to their clients within their jewelry stores and have even the data to back it up because we use a lot of traceability apps to trace our diamonds from from mine to polish
Guy:
right yeah so if you could expand further on that traceability provenance how why is that important to a U.S jeweler or consumer and um yeah if you could explain.
Ada:
I think it's necessitated more so now because we're living in a world where there's natural diamonds and lab grown diamonds and a lot of times at the very end of the value chain wherein the jewelers interface with the people that buy the jewelry, those lines in a lot of ways kind of get blurred. So the traceability and the provenance helps too. Really distinguish between the two and you have the data to back it up if you have the tracer files you can trace it all the way from the mine to who polished it within our team and who sold it as the jeweler and all of that so you can have the full history of the diamond and it also Not only that, but it justifies why you should pay a premium on the natural versus the left-grown diamond.
Guy:
Right, right. I watched a previous video, interview of yours, where you say you can trace from the mind to the finger. Yeah. And I think that's really amazing. As opposed to probably, you know, many years ago where you see a beautiful diamond, you just don't know where it came from. [ADA] Exactly.
Guy:
And I think in the world, uh there's a lot of questions about natural diamonds and uh and so forth and i believe education is important but what do you what type of education what do you tell people about natural earthmine diamonds in terms of its uh beauty its uh its um uh value yeah yeah what what do you tell people about.
Ada:
I think firstly i sort of like um do my own bit especially with Zoe diamonds to sort of like dispel the myths around um natural diamonds or rather the bad history you know that people now think it's still a reality but we've gone beyond that and actually corrected ourselves to say actually no um there's no there's no more like child labor or exploitation or like blood diamonds you know yes and the way diamonds that's what our mind now is done in a truly ethical way you know given how the industry just regulates itself and puts like standards in place to make sure that all of that is taken into account you know to say you can safely buy a natural diamond and not think that by so doing you're endorsing practices that exploit or take advantage of other people and the traceability also goes another step further to actually verify that and and prove that.
Guy:
right right right and uh i think that's a big misconception that a lot of people still have and i would say mostly consumers the jewelers and uh that deal with earth-mined diamonds they they are getting the education needed but uh in the consumers um many of them wanna want a diamond and they don't really know much about why lab grown or why earth mine and um there's a lot of uh previous stories that you know that still stick in people's minds and that's why education is very important about it
Guy:
and um currently I believe botswana so far has been one of the largest producers of rough uh rough diamonds in the world and I believe with all the new changes with the uh with the government and and so forth I believe there's going to be a lot more finished jewelry finished diamonds that appear in the world and could be right from your backyard is that that pretty cool to you that you that You know, I don't know if people think about Botswana when they think about diamonds. [ADA] Well, I hope they do. [GUY] I think you're going to help that cause. [ADA] Yeah, for sure.
Guy:
That when people think about amazing diamonds, I think they'll think about Botswana.
Ada:
Yes, definitely. Definitely. Yeah, it really brings… immense sense of of pride and joy not only to to myself or my team you know but everyone in Botswana like I think I was having a conversation with Jill Newman and I was telling her that diamonds mean so much to us as a country that literally even our grandmothers at the farms know that hey look like everything in the economy is so tied to this that If our diamonds pick up, then that means we're going to be okay. You know, we'll get our retirement pension funds and fees monthly. We'll get our free medication and all of that. Yeah, I think one thing that really the government as well as everyone in the private sector in Botswana right now is pushing for is really having a bit more value addition in country and also just having that. diamond value chain in our country more integrated and more developed further downstream.
Guy:
So in my trip here with Veer Diamonds and other delegates from the US, we're going to be visiting and seeing the diamond mine and what should we experience or learn here in Botswana?
Ada:
Well, I think you should experience and learn and just carry with you back to the US the entire diamond story and just tell of how the earth mine diamonds here are ethically mined and like literally the highest standards are maintained and also just how maybe you've seen what they've done for the country and for young people such as myself and my team and all of that and embed that also into your own brand stories and value.
Guy:
Yeah. Wow. Amazing. Amazing. Well, I am certainly looking forward to hearing more about you and more about Zoe Diamonds. And I look forward to the trip here and learning about your beautiful country. Yeah. So anybody looking to learn more about Zoe Diamonds, please, how can people find you or reach out to you?
Ada:
We're on LinkedIn, Zoe Diamonds Pty Ltd. We have a website, [www.zoediamondsofficial.com](http://www.zoediamondsofficial.com) . And yeah, that's pretty much it.
Guy:
Well, congratulations on everything. All the success, all the… Probably what you did in creating a company, reaching out to people, building a team. This is not easy to do. Was it easy?
Ada:
No, even on the daily it's not easy but we keep at it and i i learned so much and my team is also very much resilient so we're going to keep pushing and i'm definitely sure that you'll see more of us
Guy:
fantastic well congratulations on all of the success and the future success for Zoe Diamonds for yourself but also for the country of Botswana and make sure you learn more about Zoe Diamonds and Diamonds right from Botswana, Africa. And thank you so much. And everyone paying attention, listening, please follow Southern Jewelry News. But we'll catch you on the next podcast episode. Take care.
Outro:
Thank you for watching another episode of the Pearls of Wisdom Jewelry podcast. We'll catch you on the next one. Take care.
