Two avenue names have lengthy been synonymous with luxurious jewelry in London: Hatton Backyard, within the capital’s historic centre famed for its rows of diamond specialists for the reason that nineteenth century, and Bond Avenue, often called “Europe’s costliest procuring avenue” and residential to Tiffany’s, Cartier, De Beers and extra.
You may count on these to be dream retail spots for younger jewelry manufacturers however a brand new wave of designers is purposefully distancing themselves from the outdated guard. A little bit north of Bond Avenue, within the Fitzrovia and Marylebone neigbourhoods, latest boutique openings, together with Matilde Jewelry and Lark & Berry, are interesting to a brand new demographic of jewelry customers with lab-grown diamonds.
The latest opening within the space is Kimaï, who pair lab-grown diamonds with recycled gold. The shop sits on Chiltern Avenue, characterised by upmarket indie shops, the hip Monocle journal café and movie star hangout Chiltern Firehouse.
Kimaï co-founder Jessica Warch, whose household work within the diamond trade in Antwerp, says: “The Bond Avenue jewellers wasn’t in any respect what we wished to signify. Chiltern Avenue feels up and coming. It isn’t a standard jewelry spot, so it’s way more chilled. It doesn’t really feel intimidating.”
Laura Chavez, founding father of Lark & Berry, opened her retailer across the nook on George Avenue in 2018. On the time, it was the primary retailer solely promoting lab-grown diamonds within the UK. “It is actually thrilling [to see more brands opening stores in the area]. The extra folks that do that, the higher for everybody, as a result of then extra folks learn about it and also you get all types of various designs,” says Chavez.
A brand new sort of diamond buyer
Most significantly, this vibrant a part of London is teaming with the kind of clientele who’re interested in lab-grown diamonds. Each manufacturers establish their core prospects as aged between 25 to 40 and predominantly feminine, a lot of whom are shopping for jewelry for themselves.
Lab-grown diamonds, although bodily similar to ones created by the earth, can value between 60-70 per cent lower than a stone of the identical measurement, making it a extra inexpensive option to entry luxurious.
Melanie Larsen, strategist at development forecaster WGSN Perception, explains: “Because it stands, man-made and naturally mined diamonds are principally purchased as high quality jewelry items or as engagement rings, nevertheless, with the lab-grown diamond market gaining traction, shoppers will begin to view them as style items as a consequence of their accessibility and nice high quality.”
Gross sales of lab-grown diamonds have jumped from 4 per cent of the general diamond market in 2019 to 10 per cent in 2022 based on WGSN.
Warch says it’s creating a complete new strategy to jewelry: “If you happen to have a look at campaigns (from conventional high quality jewelry manufacturers), everyone seems to be dressed up as in the event that they’re going to a gala. We put on sneakers, denim and our diamonds.”
Regardless of the elevated accessibility of lab-grown diamonds, there’s nonetheless demand for engagement rings. Based on a 2018 report by MVI Advertising, 70 per cent of millennials are contemplating lab-grown diamonds for engagement rings.
Each Lark & Berry and Kimaï expanded their companies to incorporate engagement rings in response to demand.
“Lots of people say, I would as effectively get one thing larger, nicer and cheaper. It is nonetheless gonna final endlessly, it is nonetheless gonna be a diamond and you’ll spend the opposite cash on an expertise like a greater honeymoon,” says Chavez.
Moral corporations, moral diamonds
Not solely are shoppers valuing experiences extra, they’re additionally seeking to put money into moral corporations. It’s at present difficult for shoppers to know the origin of mined diamonds because of the many steps it goes by and the quantity fingers they go by earlier than reaching the shop.
Kimaï, as an alternative, guarantees complete traceability. They work with labs in Israel who they go to and stay in shut contact with.
The labs use renewable vitality to create the diamonds and the social and environmental sustainability of their jewelry is a core tenet of the corporate.
“Worth is considerably subjective,” explains futurist Geraldine Wharry. “There’s that buyer on the market that’s looking for a sustainable possibility and it is reconditioning the market in the way it sees uncommon earth minerals and valuable stones.”
“The viewers for lab-grown diamonds is sustainability acutely aware, not simply which means extracting much less from the planet but in addition extracting much less from folks and offering good working situations. It is a client that has a notion of worth that’s emotional to them. They see this merchandise as one thing they understand as clear and pure,” Wharry continues
The innovation provided by lab-grown diamonds is one other promoting level for some shoppers. In March, TAG Heuer revealed its costliest watch to this point, created with 11.7 carats of lab-grown diamonds.
The luxurious model says that the design wouldn’t have been potential with mined diamonds and has used the expertise to push the boundaries of watch design.
As soon as dismissed by the jewelry trade as an inexpensive knock-off of mined diamonds, the rising recognition of lab-grown diamonds as each a style merchandise and luxurious buy reveals an fascinating image of what youthful generations worth.
Whereas it’s unlikely they’ll ever totally substitute mined diamonds, it poses a problem to the outdated guard to embrace values round accessibility, sustainability and innovation to remain forward.
