With Undisclosed Diamonds, the Situation Is Still Uncertain

 

Reprint from JCK Magazine

 

by Rob Bates

Nov. 4, 2016

Cutting Remarks

 

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend the Undisclosed Lab Grown Diamonds: Detection and Disclosure Summit held in NYC and hosted by the US Jewelry Council (USJC).

 

The room was packed, primarily with industry professionals from the supply side, as well as media and some retailers.  Topics that were discussed ranged from presentations of different available detection machines and services, as well as what the diamond industry, especially the Indian market, is doing to ensure the integrity of their supply chain.

 

Below you will find a reprint of an article written by Rob Bates, from JCK magazine, summarizing the day. 

 

One thing that was abundantly clear was the fact that lab grown diamonds are a fact of life. 

 

The consumer will ultimately determine what place these stones have in the market, however, we as an industry are at a point in time where we must recognize the need to ensure our reputation is not marred by any of these stones being sold as natural, and not being properly disclosed. 

 

At the U.S. Jewelry Council forum on Undisclosed Synthetic Diamonds, held at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City on Nov. 1, National Jeweler’s Michelle Graff and I were given the task of summarizing the day’s events and prescribing takeaways. But that wasn’t easy to do.

 

If anything became clear during the day’s worth of presentations, it’s that the situation with undisclosed lab-grown diamonds remains very unclear. We know undisclosed stones are out there. We don’t know how many. And there is no easy way to spot them.

 

“If a consumer comes in and asks: Is the diamond real?” said one retailer. “I’m a gemologist, and I have no clue.… Right now, we have no confidence in our supply chain. 

 

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE 

 

When you read the above article, scroll down after to the comment section. I always find this interesting to see what people are saying. 

 

One thing is for sure, this is just the beginning of the conversation.

 

All of us need to make sure we stay on top of this and keep educating ourselves about not only synthetic diamonds, but also what we as an industry is doing about it.

 

 ann-arnold-blog-post

Ann Arnold

CSO – The BIG Network

BIG – Buyers Intelligence Group

Ann@bigjewelers.com