How the Diamond Landscape is Shifting from Natural ‘Versus’ Grown to Natural ‘And’ Grown at SGL Retail Jeweller India Forum 2019

De Beers, the world’s leading producer of natural diamonds, started selling grown diamonds in the USA. The news perturbed the mined diamond industry and raised myriad of questions about the future of the mined diamond business.

In the light of these developments, at SGL Retail Jeweller India Forum 2019, we take a deep dive into the hitherto taboo topic of grown diamonds and reflect on the market realities in India and the USA. We draw comparisons between the two countries to understand the growing relevance of the category for consumers and retailers.

The session ‘Grown diamonds: An American and an Indian Perspective’ is being moderated by Chirag Soni from Solitaire Gemmological Laboratories. The esteemed members in this panel are Samuel Jansen, Made by Man Diamond (USA), Shaankar Sen from Senco Golds & Diamonds and Shailesh Sangani, Priority Jewels.

Explaining the relevance of the topic, Chirag Soni, Director, Solitaire Gemological Laboratories said, “The topic is important not only for the jewellery industry in India, but worldwide. If you have 7 million carats grown worldwide and US is the only platform where retailers are selling it to the consumers, where does the rest of it go? This is a big concern as it is being sold to people undisclosed.”

He further added, “Our aim through this discussion should therefore be to instill confidence in the minds of the retailer that a lab grown diamond is not a taboo, as it is considered in a market like India. The idea of having this discussion is to create awareness about the subject.”

Giving an idea about the market, Samuel Jansen said, “Currently lab grown diamond market is less than 5% of sales in the US but is growing at a significant rate.” He acknowledges De Beers did a wonderful job of marketing diamonds as a symbol of love. Agreeing that there is still a lot to say for the story of a diamond naturally forming deep within the Earth, he says, “But lab-grown diamonds have a different spin, a different kind of diamond story. It all depends on how you market and brand a diamond.”

Shaankar Sen, Chairman and Managing Director, SENCO Gold & Diamonds said, “From this discussion, I believe we can give the audience a sense of direction on how to view both the categories.”

Shailesh Sangani, Owner, Priority Jewels, opines that the, “Indians will never accept grown diamonds as it is not entrenched with the emotional values of a real diamond.”

Retail Jewellers India Forum serves as a great platform for people across the industry, and they benefit from the thoughts shared by our esteemed speakers. Like every year, this time as well, the day is packed with engaging sessions and discussions on various subjects.  So book your seats today.

(Retail Jeweller India will be hosting their 6th edition of Retail Jeweller India Forum on February 9, 2019, at Sofitel BKC, Mumbai.  Register yourself today to be part of the exciting knowledge-based event, which will have renowned speakers sharing their rich insights on this year’s theme ‘Innovate to Win’. For more information and to register, log in on to retailjewellerindiaforum.com).