Stratus Estate Buyers Elevates Turnkey Buying Events Nationwide for Independent Jewelry Retailers

“Independent jewelry retailers are sitting on one of the most underleveraged opportunities in their market,” said VanMatre. “Consumers have valuable items they are ready to sell, and they want to do business with someone they trust. When a retailer hosts a Stratus event, they become that destination. We handle everything, and the store earns a commission while deepening relationships with their existing customers and meeting new ones. It is a revenue stream that does not require them to change a single thing about how they operate.”

Before founding Stratus, VanMatre served as Chief Revenue Officer at National Rarities, where he led the company to record growth across sales, partner relationships, and marketing. His background includes more than 15 years as a small business owner, consultant, and leader of 75-plus employees across industries.

A Team Built to Buy 

Stratus specialists are trained to evaluate and purchase a broad range of items, including fine jewelry, gold, silver, diamonds, coins, designer handbags, luxury watches, and one-of-a-kind collectibles. Customers arrive at Stratus events with pieces that fall well outside a typical jewelry store’s buying scope, and the ability to make confident, fair offers across categories is central to the program’s value for both retailers and their customers.

Before each event, the Stratus team conducts a thorough market analysis covering local demographics, current market conditions, and more. That research informs everything from marketing strategy to the categories emphasized during the event, producing a program calibrated to each specific market.

Every Stratus estate specialist completes 150-plus hours of internal training before setting foot in a partner store, moving from classroom instruction and mock buying sessions through live transactions. That program is led by Brandon Payne, Head of Gemology, Graduate Gemologist, and Certified Appraiser. The broader leadership team reflects the same depth: Mikayla Inez, Head of Business Systems and Diamond Graduate, brings years of hands-on estate buying experience; Stefanie Brock, Director of Operations, has spent years running estate buying programs at scale; Rebekah Hayward, Director of Account Management, has built and managed partner relationships across the jewelry industry throughout her career; and Adam Affholder, Director of Sales, brings decades of sales and partnership experience. Stratus further supports its team through ongoing investment in advanced credentials through the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and American Gem Society (AGS).