GemThoughts

De Beers has announced the formation of a new company, Lightbox, that will be selling man-made diamonds (MMDs), mounted in earrings, pendants and bracelets - no rings. I will assume everyone has read the details, and heard their rationale for claiming that this move will have little or no impact in the natural diamond industry.  Briefly, they will be selling MMDs in finished jewelry with total weights up to one carat, mounted in silver or gold, and with simple pricing - $800 per carat.  There is no grading of the stones, which are white, yellow, blue or pink; the jewelry is meant for “moments” not “milestones” (like weddings). De Beers has arrived at this moment after a few decades of seeing their business transformed from a monopoly into a commercial venture facing all the pressures of a competitive market.   At the turn of the century, Rio Tinto, with their major mine at Argyle in Western Australia, went their own way, sensing that they would do much bett...

This past week we saw De Beers introduce Lightbox Jewelry, a full-bore, direct to consumer (DTC) retailer that will exclusively use man-made diamonds (MMDs) produced by their Element 6 division.  The concept is neatly packaged to offer a basic selection of body jewelry at moderate prices.  The DTC approach is intended to circumvent the entire traditional channels of distribution established by De Beers over the last century, in an effort to demonstrate that this is just a low-end, low-value product aimed at an under-served public.  De Beers claims that it will only benefit its existing clients by demonstrating how much more valuable "real" diamonds are. This move cam as no surprise at all to me. There are many gaps and holes in this plan, and I will try to outline them in future blog posts. To begin with, I posted three times in 2015 with my views on the subject.  Here are the links to those blog posts, as it would save me time repeating the points I made back...

Suppliers are regularly in turmoil over how to respond to the significant shifts in distribution and consumption.  It should be noted that many suppliers are far upstream, and feel the realities of the front lines last. We already see that upcoming technological and demographic changes are causing distress at the retail counter, and we covered some of that in the last blog.  Suppliers have been forced to make changes in their modalities, sometimes painfully.  What factors are at work: The number of retail operations is shrinking, and so are the number of outlets.  That means fewer retailers as customers available. The market has been forced to adapt fully to the fact that the US is a very mature market, and has been way over-stored for a long time. What might have been a more gradual adjustment to supply and demand (fewer stores to serve a stable, slow-growth market) has been radically accelerated by Internet marketing. Internet marketing puts everyone on a ...

This year has been, if anything, disorienting.  We keep thinking that things should happen in the same way that they have happened in the past, even given the business cycles.  But somehow, they have not, even though the US economy, and the low unemployment figures, keep telling us that things are all moving in the right direction.  GDP is up, the stock market has hit record highs almost every day until recently, consumers are spending and credit card debt is rising (though that may not be that good!), and so forth.  And yet, the diamond and jewelry business seems stuck in a rut. If we are to develop progressive business policies, we need to look closely at market realities, especially those that we should accept as fundamental, not cyclical, trends.  So here are some thoughts. Retail as we have known it is rapidly disappearing.   We have lived through countless revolutions and evolutions in retailing over the last decades.  This one is different...

It is fair to say that the last year or so has left us at a loss trying to understand where the business is headed.  There are the obvious changes, which I have noted in the past - a steady stream of store closings, the continuing growth of on-line sales, and a real weakness in diamond prices.  We know that some retailers are doing well, but many are struggling, trying to figure out just what to do to stimulate sales. By now, nobody thinks we are simply going through a slow period, and sales will rise as the economy continues to grow, even though it is at a slow pace. For starters, jewelry will continue to be an important expression of love, status, and achievement for many years to come.  But is not alone in satisfying those psychic needs, and the competition is growing. We read a great deal of commentary on what needs to be done, most of it focused on much better marketing, creating experiential environments, wooing millennials, and becoming far more innovative a...

Nobody knows for sure.  Present trends show that retailers of all sorts are working hard to adapt to a marketplace that is shifting dramatically.  Jewelry retailers are not exempt from this paradigm shift, but their issues are not quite the same as for other retailers, and that holds true for most of their suppliers. Stated quickly, what are the specific issues confronting traditional jewelry retailers? The low end of the market continues to move steadily towards Internet retailers. The low end of any store's business is the traffic builder, and important opportunities to build long term relationships. The low end of the market, now significantly composed of non-precious materials, is appearing in many non-jewelry environments, further diluting the business. The mid-market has been suffering for decades now, but will still serve a substantial part of the public.  It is increasingly owned by larger chains, but faces daunting prospects due to buyer burnout, a very m...

Late last year there were two events in New York about the diamond business.  I'd call them bookends to the business, in that they address two real concerns - the image of diamonds, and the growing presence of man-made diamonds (MMDs). The first was the presentation by DPA (Diamond Producers Association) on the new advertising and promotional program for natural diamonds, "Rare is Real."  This was, finally, an attempt by the leading mining companies to rebuild the natural diamond image in the minds of consumers.  Two ads were shown (you have probably seen them by now) and I liked them both, if that means anything, while other people were very dubious.  Both were appeals to the millennials, with different approaches, though both skated around the classic themes of commitment and happiness.  As I think further about it, both reflect lifestyles that most Trump supporters, and even many Clinton supporters, probably disapprove of.  In introducing "...