Seventeen Years in the
Heart of the Trade
The story of how a single visit to the Merelani Hills became a seventeen-year sourcing journey across the world's finest gem-producing regions.
Bangkok, 2009
Shub International began with a question: why are the most extraordinary gemstones in the world still reaching buyers through three or four layers of intermediaries? Each layer adds cost, reduces transparency, and loses provenance.
Devan founded the company in Bangkok in 2009 with a different model — direct relationships with miners and rough dealers, independent laboratory certification at the source, and complete documentation from mine to buyer.
Bangkok was the natural base: home to the Gems and Jewelry Trade Center on Silom Road, the Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair — one of the four largest gem trade shows in the world — and a deep network of international traders with access to every producing region.
The Merelani Hills, Tanzania
Tanzanite exists in a single four-square-kilometre zone at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro. This geological uniqueness is what makes the stone so valuable — and so easy to fake.
Our relationships with mine operators in Block D of the Merelani Mining Area give us access to rough that is documented from extraction. By the time a Tanzanite reaches a buyer, we know exactly which mine block it came from.
Every Tanzanite we sell carries an AIGS or GIA report confirming the single admissible origin. We do not sell Tanzanite without origin documentation.
The Muzo Valley, Colombia
Colombian emerald is not a category — it is a benchmark. The distinctive “jardin” (garden) inclusions found in emeralds from the Muzo and Chivor mines are what separate Colombian origin stones from every other source.
We work with direct buyers in Bogotá and Medellin who maintain long-term relationships with the Muzo International mining cooperative. Every Colombian emerald we carry is accompanied by a GRS or GIA report with explicit origin determination.
Origin reports matter. A 2-carat Colombian emerald commands a 40–60% premium over a comparable Zambian or Brazilian stone. Without a laboratory origin report, a buyer has no protection. We never sell Colombian emeralds without one.
The Standard
We do not apply a house grading standard. Every stone that enters our inventory is submitted to an independent laboratory — GIA, GRS, AIGS, or Gübelin — before it is priced, photographed, or listed.
This adds cost and time. It also means that every stone we sell comes with a grading report that can be independently verified by the buyer, by their jeweller, and by future owners in perpetuity. A certificate does not expire.
Treatment disclosure is non-negotiable. Every enhancement — heat treatment, glass filling, fracture filling — is documented on the certificate. We do not sell stones where treatment has been undisclosed or where the laboratory has expressed concern about undeclared enhancement.
For origin-sensitive stones (Tanzanite, Colombian emerald, Kashmir sapphire, Burmese ruby), we require an explicit origin determination — not just a general grading report.
On the Floor, Every Year
The Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair — organised by Thailand's Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) — is one of the four largest gem and jewelry trade events in the world. We have exhibited at every edition since our founding.
Whether you're a collector, a jeweller, or a trade buyer — we'd like to work with you.