Digital Social Hour - How I Built a $42M Jewelry Empire in 21 Years | TRAX NYC (DSH #1393)

Host: Sean Kelly
Guest: Trax NYC (Maksud Agadjani)
Date: June 4, 2025

Episode Overview

In this raw and wide-ranging conversation, Sean Kelly sits down with Maksud Agadjani, better known as Trax NYC, to unravel the story behind building his $42 million-a-year jewelry business over two decades in New York’s cutthroat Diamond District. Trax candidly discusses money, gold vs. crypto, business ethics, the spiritual dimensions of entrepreneurship and survival, and his unfiltered opinions on love, culture, and what it truly takes to win in life and business.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Reality Behind Gold, Diamonds & Crypto

• Physical vs. Digital Assets:
  • Trax draws a hard line between tangible assets like gold and diamonds and the speculative nature of cryptocurrency and “shitcoins.”
  • “You got a bunch of crypto shitcoin and you pawned it off to someone else... I’ll sell you gold. I’ll sell you a diamond. I would do a fair markup for my business.” (Trax, 00:41)
• Gold’s Value Over Time:
  • Gold has increased roughly tenfold in price since Trax started in the business.
  • He contends that even if you overpaid for gold years ago, you’d still come out ahead today because of this appreciation.
  • “You bought a $500 chain for $1000. You could scrap that chain right now for, you know, thousands.” (Trax, 03:25)
• Skepticism Toward Crypto:
  • Trax accepts Bitcoin for business but doesn’t trust its fundamentals, questioning its practical value and security versus physical gold.
  • “You cannot go like this with a bitcoin. You can’t turn it into a vulture holding your company logo.” (Trax, 05:12)
• Market Capitalization Lesson:
  • He breaks down the actual meaning of crypto “market cap” and why it gets harder to move asset prices as they get larger. Claims many don’t understand this principle.
  • “The higher the price, the more difficult it is to move that needle... Now you need a trillion dollars to move the needle, and let's face it, you’re not doing it because you want to keep your money safe.” (Trax, 11:32)

2. Rarity, Lab Diamonds & Nature’s Perspective

• On Making Gold in Labs or Mining Asteroids:
  • Physics and scarcity: Only supernovas create gold; even if more existed in space, retrieving it is cost prohibitive.
  • “Gold is made when stars explode... you need to set off a nuclear bomb, you know what I’m saying? The cost per ounce would be in the billions.” (Trax, 13:36)
• Diamonds vs. Wood (Perspective on Rarity):
  • Surprising fact: Wood is rarer in the universe than diamonds, as it requires life.
  • “What’s more rare: diamonds or wood?... If you take across the universe, there’s a lot of crystallized carbon, but there’s not a lot of wood. The only place we know that has wood is planet Earth.” (Trax, 14:04)
• Lab Grown Diamonds:
  • Lab diamonds have changed pricing but not fundamentally hurt his business; he openly sells both.
  • “The diamonds are diamonds. LAB or not, it doesn’t matter. This table has enough wood to make a lot of diamonds.” (Trax, 34:45)
  • Explains the chemistry and technology of diamond creation.
• Mining & Sourcing Diamonds:
  • Briefs on artisanal mining, De Beers’ supremacy, and how pawn shops and auctions are often the best places to buy diamonds at a value.

3. Business Strategies, Scaling & Survival

• Operating at Scale – Impressive Figures:
  • 21 years in business, now selling $42 million/year, with monthly revenue around $3.5M.
  • “Our annual sales are like $42 million, which is like $3.5 million per month... for 21 years.” (Trax, 01:44)
• Dealing With Debt & Adversity:
  • Open about the terror of owing over a million in debt, juggling cash flow and creditors for years.
  • “It was a decade of trouble... Once you start dealing with it, you have to be really, really strong to get out.” (Trax, 19:36)
• Role of Luck and Divine Providence:
  • Credits “miracle” moments (lottery winner buying his inventory, a rich woman offering a loan) and attributes survival to God’s favor.
  • “A lottery winner walked through the door, bro... shit like that happened 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 times to make me survive.” (Trax, 21:51)
• Staff, Leadership & Freedom:
  • Leads a staff of 60, sees his business as more than wealth—a vehicle for stability, family care, and freedom.
  • “I also have freedom and control over my life. And that’s what I worked for, for 21 years.” (Trax, 17:01)

4. Giving Back, Ethics, and Spirituality

• On Giving:
  • Sees generosity as both spiritual duty and business strategy.
  • “You’re not gonna have God on your side if you’re just some selfish piece of shit... you have to have faith, and that faith has to come in your spirit and what you’re doing in this world.” (Trax, 24:04)
• Money & Karma:
  • Argues money made unethically is always cursed/lost; only ethical, creative approaches endure.
  • “The surest way to make money is to do it the ethical way... If you plant your own apple tree, that’s a guaranteed way to have apples.” (Trax, 28:02)
• Will Smith Example:
  • Cites Will Smith’s Oscar controversy to illustrate how spiritual errors or unethical choices can taint legacies.
  • “At the apex of his career... he comes out there and slaps another black man across the face in front of the world... something was spiritually missing.” (Trax, 30:01)

5. Business, Negotiation & Dealing With People

• Negotiation Approach:
  • Dislikes petty negotiations; prefers real “business,” values long-term, mutually beneficial relationships over haggling.
  • “I don’t do deals, I do business... I like to give... When I see someone’s taking advantage of that, I get angry and then I turn into a different person.” (Trax, 41:58)
• Handling Betrayal:
  • Stands firm against those who mistake kindness for weakness; believes some “need to be set with rules.”
  • “If you took my kindness for weakness... I will haunt you and break you.” (Trax, 46:04)
• Mentoring & Influencing the Diamond District:
  • Takes pride in inspiring others to break stereotypes and showcase new skills and personalities in business.

6. Human Nature, Relationships, and Social Commentary

• On Human Motivation:
  • Sees most people as herd followers, led by low self-esteem or desire for validation.
  • “The lower your self-esteem, the more you are like that.” (Trax, 48:08)
• Men, Women, and Dating:
  • Discusses competition and value on the dating market, especially in cities like NYC and Miami.
  • On women chasing status: “If she had a twin sister... I’d probably take the more conservative one.” (Trax, 49:53)
• Men in Their 20s – The Value of Sacrifice:
  • Strongly advises young men to delay gratification, sacrificing social life for business focus, to “win” in later life.
  • “Sacrifice is your 20s. If you’re a man, the more you sacrifice... the more you’ll have in your 30s, 40s, and 50s.” (Trax, 56:44)
• Devil as Metaphor for Distraction:
  • “The devil” wants to rob youth of their energy and potential via distractions, addiction, and war.
  • “You have to fight the devil in your life... he wants you to pop molly, get on prescription drugs, and destroy the lives of your friends and your family.” (Trax, 61:01)
• Cycles of Destruction and Creation:
  • Life, business, and existence break down to a struggle between creative and destructive forces.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Gold vs. Crypto:
  • “I want to know my gold is right here. Here it is... I have a million or so in gold chains and I really wish I had 20 million.” (Trax, 09:08)
• On Luck and Miracles:
  • “A lottery winner walked through the door... shit like that happened 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 times to make me survive.” (Trax, 21:51)
• On Work Ethic:
  • “The surest way to make money is to do it the ethical way.” (Trax, 28:02)
• On Business Philosophy:
  • “I don’t do deals, I do business... I like to give. When I see someone’s taking advantage of that, I get angry and then I turn into a different person.” (Trax, 41:58)
• On Sacrifice:
  • “Sacrifice is your 20s... the more you sacrifice, the more you're going to have in your 30s, 40s, and 50s.” (Trax, 56:44)
• On Spirituality and Fate:
  • “Experiencing time is like reading a book... The book's already written, you're just reading this page.” (Trax, 24:29)
• On Fighting Destruction:
  • “It’s one thing goes to eternal life, and the other one goes to death. It’s destruction and creation.” (Trax, 61:01)

Conversation Structure & Key Timestamps

• Gold, Diamonds, Crypto Reality Check: 00:41 – 13:36
• Market Cap Explanation & Asset Value Dynamics: 10:45 – 13:31
• Nature, Rarity, Lab Diamonds: 13:31 – 15:46; 34:21 – 38:45
• Building the Business, Debt and Survival: 16:59 – 23:09
• Ethics, Giving Back, Will Smith Analogy: 24:04 – 31:49
• Negotiation, Dealing with People: 41:57 – 46:54
• Dating, Social Observation, Advice for Men: 49:37 – 57:58
• Spiritual Warfare, Role of the Devil/Distraction: 58:03 – 61:39
• Business Behind Digital Social Hour (Meta conversation): 62:21 – 64:13

Tone & Style

Blunt, streetwise, a little brash but deeply reflective; Trax NYC oscillates between tough business philosophy and surprising spiritual, almost philosophical, insights. He is unfiltered, sometimes controversial, but clearly invested in both the success of his audience and his own ethical legacy.

Summary Usefulness

For those who want an insider's look at how real wealth and business is built—and kept—Trax’s story is a compelling mix of street smarts, risk, resilience, and spiritual worldview. His lessons apply beyond jewelry: focus on tangible value, play the long game, invest ethically, and remember that both luck and fate play roles for those who keep moving.

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