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China ‘Kaput,’ Synthetics Are Biggest Disruptor, Says Martin Rapaport

China’s crackdown on conspicuous consumption is dampening diamond demand there, and this has consequences for the rest of the global market, Rapaport Group Chairman Martin Rapaport told diamantaires in Los Angeles last week.   Rapaport was the keynote speaker at a gathering of the Diamond Club West Coast, where he addressed issues including synthetic-diamond competition, the […]

Lab-Grown Diamond Grading Is Becoming Its Own Thing

At the JCK Show, I was with a group of people who work with lab-grown who were upset that a certain lab was supposedly lax in its lab-grown grading. “It doesn’t matter,” one said. “It’s only lab-grown.” I’ve complained in the past that some people in the lab-grown world sometimes devalue their product, and that’s […]

Tiffany Reinterprets Iconic Jean Schlumberger Pieces in Blue Book

Launched in 1845 as one of the first mail-order catalogs in the United States, the Tiffany Blue Book is now an annually anticipated collection highlighting Tiffany & Co.’s finest one-of-a-kind creations. This year’s Blue Book, Tiffany Céleste, is the jeweler’s largest to date, with 157 pieces reportedly worth on average a million dollars or more. The […]

NDC Complains About Indian Company’s Lab-Grown Ad

The Natural Diamond Council (NDC) has filled a complaint with India’s advertising watchdog about a Kalamandir Jewellers ad for lab-grown diamonds. The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), which received the complaint from the NDC, lists the case as informally resolved on its website, and said the contested ad was “withdrawn.” However, Kalamandir disputes that characterization, noting […]

Synthetic Diamonds: How Low Will They Go?

More importantly, how will retailers pivot once these goods cease to be profitable? The conversation about synthetic diamonds has reached a fever pitch as oversupply and cheaper production costs continue to push down prices and trade-in values, even while consumer exposure and demand rise. Meanwhile, the natural-diamond industry, smarting from man-made diamond competition and its […]

Podcast: Making Peace in Antwerp

Antwerp industry veteran Isidore (Isi) Mörsel joined the Rapaport Diamond Podcast to share the inside story on the urgent and controversial issues affecting the Belgian and global diamond trades.  Mörsel, director of manufacturer Dali Diamond and president of the board of the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC), related how the city was originally on course […]

Boucheron makes major headway in the US market

Part of the Kering Group, Maison Boucheron opened its first boutique on Madison Avenue in New York in early September. To celebrate its 160th anniversary in 2018, Boucheron spent a dizzying sum renovating its flagship Place Vendôme store, located in the Hôtel de Nocé built in 1717. The magnificent result has become a blueprint in […]

Is Diamond Production on the Decline?

The drop in diamond recoveries is a response to market conditions, but also a reflection of diminishing prospects for viable new mines. Diamond miners are postponing sales and reviewing their production plans amid the weak market environment. “We have taken the proactive decision to defer the upcoming August-September tender from our South African operations, to […]