Midtown Diamonds was in started in March of 2017 by Erik Ottmann, a Reno Local, and son of Tim Ottmann, retired owner of the now closed Gem Gallery, a Reno mainstay for over 30 years. Erik grew up in the business, and found his passion for the arts, including jewelry design and drawing, at a very young aga. As a kid, Erik could often be found at the The Gallery, sitting quietly in his dad's office, sketching and drawing the afternoon away, constantly bothering his dad for new stones and ideas to use.
Erik attended McQueen High School and played on the golf team, and continued to develop his artistic talents. Upon graduating in 2009, Erik attended the Uinversity of Nevada, Reno. While in college, he worked at Wolf Run Golf Course in the summer, and when winter came, he began working for his dad at The Gem Gallery. It was here that Erik began to discover his passion not jsut for jewelry design, but for helping his customers design their dream piece of jewelry, while providing excellent service and experience. He began to work solely at The Gem Gallery while finishing college, and upon graduating in 2014, went to work full time as the store's marketing director and bridal specialist.
When talk began of Tim's retirement in 2015, Erik decided he wanted to continue the family business, but make some rebranding decisions to help guide the store. Although the Gem Gallery had been a staple in the business and philanthropic communities in Reno for nearly 3 decades, Erik felt that a significant rebranding was needed if the business wanted to continue to thrive in the 21st centruty. It was decided that at the end of 2016, Tim would hold his Retirement Sale that would celebrate the store's amazing 31 years, and Tim's 40 years of work in the jewelry industtry. While plans were laid for the sale, Erik began scouting out locations for his store, and he could only think of one are: Midtown.
