FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Unprecedented Confidence in Online Purchasing - The Sky's The Limit HOUSTON, Texas, May 12, 2008 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- A decade ago, only the most risk-tolerant consumers would consider making diamond engagement ring purchases through online channels, says Whiteflash (www.Whiteflash.com). In those early days, the internet was hailed as a revolutionary way to buy small-ticket items, but most wouldn't have dared to buy something as emotionally and financially significant as an engagement ring online. *(PHOTO 72dpi: Send2Press.com/mediaboom/08-0508-Whiteflash_72dpi.jpg) *(Photo Caption: Whiteflash diamonds customized engagement settings.) Today, more and more people are turning to trustworthy virtual vendors to make substantial, multi-thousand-dollar purchases with complete confidence. Convenience and increased variety have always been primary attractions for internet shopper. Traditional storefront hours often don't fit into today's demanding schedules, and local merchants often cannot stock the wide selection platinum rings and princess cut diamonds or round brilliant diamonds online. How has that translated to increased comfort when purchasing luxury goods online? Lesley Harris, Director of Sales at Whiteflash.com, explains. "More wealthy people are becoming comfortable making large diamond and jewelry purchases from trustworthy e-tailers due to the transparency in both pricing and offerings. Savvy customers can educate themselves through online research to compare price, selection, and vendor policies." Does buying online mean giving up excellent service and personalized experiences associated with high-value transactions? Whiteflash doesn't think so. "We focus on listening intently to what our customers want," Harris says. "We have been known to make 'personal house calls' to show our ideal cut diamonds or beautiful customized engagement settings." Judging by recent trends, Whiteflash.com is clearly doing something right. "In recent months, we've experienced a spike both in custom settings and in sales of large diamonds, up to and exceeding the six-figure range." Whiteflash notes several recent transactions involved 4 to 5 ct ideal-cut round brilliant diamonds exceeding $100,000. It would seem their clients concur. One recent high-value client praised Whiteflash.com's service, commenting "few (others) invest the time in earning business today." About Whiteflash(TM) Whiteflash is the first company in the U.S. to offer an exclusive brand of Hearts & Arrows diamond and bring the sheer beauty of "super ideal cut" to the Internet. Brian Gavin, a 5th generation diamond cutter, and Debi Wexler, a computer entrepreneur, together founded Whiteflash.com in 1999 bringing to the Internet their brand "A Cut Above." More information: http://www.Whiteflash.com. All trademarks acknowledged. Send2Press(R) is the originating wire service for this story. NEWS SOURCE: Whiteflash # # # //RELEASE END// MEDIA ONLY CONTACT(S): [ contact info not for publication online or in print ] Debra Wexler of Whiteflash +1-713-344-2554 dwexler @ whiteflash.com /Note to editors: additional Whiteflash news and RSS: http://www.send2press.com/newswire/Whiteflash_Diamonds.shtml ......... Plain Text Copy, and Story Permalink: http://www.Send2Press.com/mediadrome/2008-05-0512-001P.txt Release PDF: http://www.Send2Press.com/mediadrome/news_2008-05-0512-001P.pdf Get our full-text news via RSS: http://www.Send2Press.com/RSS2/rss.xml ......... Text provided by news source (and/or the source's authorized agency), who is solely responsible for accuracy and legality of content transmitted. ......... This news story from Send2Press Newswire may be redistributed and re-posted in part or in whole by members of the media. Copr. (c) Send2Press, a unit of Neotrope(R). For news aggregation sites, blogs, and bureaus, you must retain Send2Press as the original wire service source. You may capture and self-host images linked to in above release, but do NOT stream from our server. ......... The original version of this release was issued on behalf of the above organization (the "news source"), by Send2Press(R) Newswire, a unit of Neotrope(R). http://www.Send2Press.com. ......... May 2008 // Press Release / B-NAB / PRT=Y/M