| The Big Picture |
 | What becomes of the broken-hearted?
Angela Han, Publisher of Jeweller “Indeed, while attitudes towards sexual purity and marriage had started to change, most people still held views that would be extremely conservative by today’s standards. While women had entered the professional workforce en masse, their earning power was still weak. “The abolition of ‘breach of promise to marry’ laws meant that a critical financial safety net had been removed for women. Professor Brinig argued that diamond rings became the standard as a substitute for this legal protection.” |
 | Diamonds: A small piece of a large puzzle
Samuel Ord, Editor of Jeweller “As lab-created diamonds increasingly gained traction in the jewellery market, advertising frequently capitalised on the traditional characteristics of diamonds as symbols of love and value. “While natural and lab-created diamonds are chemically identical, these claims ignore the fact that this meaning is historically derived from perceptions of scarcity and natural beauty – two factors that cannot be rightly attributed to lab-created diamonds. The copy had begun to alter reality.” |
| In-Depth |
 | Will diamonds shine forever? Eight steps to securing a brighter future Robert Bouquet, Independent Analyst “I believe only the right buyer, one who understands the diamond business in all its complexity, has a chance to make such an acquisition work. A market recovery is essential for future profitability, and De Beers remains the best-equipped vehicle to achieve it. “So, despite the clamour in some quarters for greater resource nationalisation, ‘caveat emptor’ would seem prudent advice right now.” |
 | Lab-created diamonds are in fashion Joshua Freedman, Senior Analyst, Rapaport
“One of the most common debates in the diamond market is whether or not lab-created diamonds are reaching their resting point in the lower-cost and lower-emotion sphere.
“While previously lab-created diamonds stole market share from natural diamond engagement rings, the situation with one particularly prominent US retailer, Signet Jewelers, appears to indicate that lab-created diamonds are very much… in fashion.” |
 | The Mark: Natural diamonds need to be more easily identifiable Paul Zimnisky, Independent Diamond Industry Analyst, Paul Zimnisky Diamond Analytics “It’s important that consumers can relatively easily identify the authenticity of a diamond on their own. Despite the moderate success of proprietary diamond brands in recent decades, the general marketing and branding of diamonds as a category remains imperative to the product’s relevance.
“At the end of the day, diamonds are still competing with other colour gemstones – and these days, especially with lab-created diamonds.” |
| The Debate |
 | Natural diamonds: Clean your house first! Garry Holloway, Owner, Holloway Diamonds “Lab-created diamonds were always going to be here to stay. The natural diamond industry has consistently done a better job of harming itself than any of its supposed competitors.
“I’ve also been consistent in my belief that you should never bash the competition, and that telling consumers they are foolish for choosing one product over another is a losing strategy.” |
 | Diamonds & Ice: Nobody likes change Tom Chatham, Owner, Chatham Created Gems “New ideas and products often face resistance from various sources, and their acceptance or rejection is shaped by a complex interplay of factors, including social attitudes, economic implications and effectiveness of communication and education about their benefits and risks.
“There are many other examples of revolutionary products that did not start out well. Bicycles, automobiles, and aeroplanes were each dismissed as impractical or dangerous fads. Surely, nothing could improve on the horse!” |
 | Consumers hold an enduring love for natural diamonds David Kellie, CEO, Natural Diamond Council “This has spurred myths, false claims, and over simplifications about what they are and what they mean for the diamond industry.
“Natural and laboratory-created diamonds are two different product categories. Both have a place in the market. To ensure the long-term growth of both markets, the industry must avoid comparing them on value, meaning, or impact.
“As they are not identical products, they are driven by different economic factors and offer very different value propositions to consumers.” |
 | Seismic shifts to shape jewellery retail for the next 40 years Marty Hurwitz, Executive Director, Grown Diamond Trade Organization “In short, the traditional ‘big box jewellery retailer with rows of glass cases’ model is under structural siege.
“Lease liabilities, heavy inventory, and transactional selling floors are millstones in a world where younger shoppers buy online first.
“Indeed, these young consumers are visiting stores for inspiration, expertise, and those ‘Instagram-worthy’ moments, and not to browse endless trays of the same merchandise.” |
 | Trust and transparency remain critical in an evolving diamond industry
Sally Morrison, Natural Diamonds Market Lead (US), De Beers Group “To date, lower lab-created diamond prices have provided retail jewellers with new opportunities, particularly in affordable, fashion-forward jewellery, which can now be bigger, bolder, and offer inventive design at very appealing prices for customers. “However, even more exciting are the opportunities in the high-tech field, where current production costs make
lab-created diamonds for technical applications an economic reality. “Already, we have seen a number of growers shift focus to that new market with an eye towards industrial applications, including quantum computing.” |
 |
Consumers wisely opt for the superior product: Lab-created diamonds
Martin Roscheisen, CEO, Diamond Foundry
“It was also said that jewellers would start to notice that they sell jewellery products, not raw materials. Diamonds, like gold and steel, are materials, not products. “Jewellery is something different - just as flour, butter, and eggs are not patisserie. “Indeed, the jewellery business will remain alive and well for the foreseeable future, using quality components, including lab-created diamonds.” |
 |
Natural Diamonds: Nature’s Mic Drop
Feriel Zerouki, President, World Diamond Council
“In Botswana, diamonds transformed one of the poorest countries in Africa into one of its most stable. In Angola and Sierra Leone, diamonds drive new chapters of rebuilding and growth, supported by frameworks such as the Kimberley Process and the World Diamond Council’s System of Warranties. “These are not slogans; they are schools, hospitals, roads, and jobs. This is not theory, it is reality. And more importantly, it is a story that needs to be told, Africa’s success written in its own words.” |
| The Science |
 |
Strictly speaking, about synthetics
Dr Gaetano Cavalieri, President, World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO)
”It was a business plan that made economic sense, in both the short and medium terms.
“Like most mass-manufactured products, as production of synthetics ramped up to scale, the cost per item of producing them fell dramatically, and eventually exponentially.
“But, because at that time they were being sold in the same way as natural diamonds, as long as the discount being provided for them on standard price-list prices fell at a slower rate than the cost of production, profit margins rose accordingly.”
|
 |
Natural or Synthetic Diamonds: Education is more important than ever
Ian Dun, Federal President, Gemmological Association of Australia
”The skills of the trained gemmologist are more essential than ever, and we continue to develop and deliver the fundamental competencies and knowledge that add credibility and confidence to the decisions made by valuers, jewellers, traders and purchasers.
“The steady flow of new gemstone materials into the jewellery trade from both natural and man-made sources has consistently been directed at broadening supply options for potential purchasers of high-value, high-status gemstones, in greater quantity and at lower prices.”
|
 |
Beauty & Flaw: Nothing lasts forever
Daniel Nyfeler, Managing Director, Gübelin Gem Lab.
“Emphasising the relative rarity of the natural product is legitimate, and challenging misleading claims about the environmental or ethical advantages of lab-created diamonds is both justified and necessary.
“However, this can also be read as a deflection from its own shortcomings, in particular the persistent intransparency of the natural diamond supply chain, and the industry’s inability or unwillingness to disclose precise provenance.” |