Indie Of The Month: Cry For The Moon Jewellers

Published on: 16 Sep, 2021
Updated on: 24 Sep, 2021

By Hugh Coakley

“Cry For The Moon is a proper county jewellers,” said Stephen Sutton, manager of Cry For The Moon jewellers in Tunsgate.

“We buy, sell, manufacture and repair and restore. We are unique in Guildford. No one else has a workshop on the premises any more.”

Cry For The Moon jewellers in Tunsgate.

Sales assistant Vivien Bastable showed me an £85,000 ring, the most expensive item in the shop with a lot of pride. The 4 carat, cushion cut, hand-made, cluster diamond ring “is probably the most tried on piece we have.” she said.

Vivien has worked at Cry For The Moon for 13 years. “I love it,” she said. “People go to a jewellers for a nice occasion. It’s a lovely place to work.”

Vivien Bastable shows off the £85,000 ring in Cry For The Moon.

The shop has a comfortable, old-fashioned feel, dark wood cabinets, comfortable chairs, an inlaid wooden screen across the discrete backroom entrance and a huge full height antique mirror. It definitely doesn’t have a corporate feel.

And it isn’t corporate as there is only one Cry For The Moon shop. Owned by Harry Diamond since 2002, Harry has worked with jewellery and gemstones for over 50 years. His surname is not a mistake, just a wonderful coincidence.

Cry For The Moon has a comfortable, old-fashioned feel.

“The look of the shop hasn’t changed much since we moved here in 1999 and customers like it,” said Stephen, who has been the manager for 12 years.

His first job was in H Samuel in White Lion Walk. “It was a Christmas job. It worked out well and I stayed.”

Stephen said: “High street jewellers only do retail nowadays. Having a workshop on the premises is one of our biggest selling points. People don’t want their jewellery to be sent around the country, especially when it has sentimental value.”

Cry For The Moon manager Stephen Sutton in the jewellery workshop.

Having jewellers in the shop means they can do special commissions for customers and they do two or three a week. They have their celebrity customers but “we are very discrete,” said Stephen.

The jewellery made on the premises is only for the shop. “The great thing about our own manufacturing is the quality is much better and, because we source the gems and gold ourselves, it’s better value.”

£85,000 4 carat cluster diamond ring made in the Cry For The Moon workshop.

Stephen does the ordering for what they need in the shop. “All our diamonds come from Antwerp. It’s all delivered to order and we send back if the quality is not good enough. Our suppliers know the quality we need.

“It was easier before Brexit. Our main supplier would be in London every month. He can’t do that now because he would have to pay duty on the gems both ways. Loads of business has stopped because of that.”

Why the name, Cry For The Moon? Stephen said it came from a saying in the East End of London, when crying for the moon would be yearning for something beautiful, unique and hard to reach.

What a great name for a jewellers.