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Mined and Lab-Grown Diamonds Face Off Online — But There's Still Room for Both

A recent social media controversy put the two sides at odds, but there may not be cause for a war just yet.

Lab-grown diamonds have seen a massive surge in popularity in the last few years. According to TrendAnalytics data, searches across social media for lab-grown are up 48.3% compared to just last year, with the expectation that interest will continue to accelerate. This isn’t to say that natural diamonds are experiencing a downturn in interest or sales. It’s simply that lab-grown diamonds have gotten people’s attention in a massive way. And thus, a debate and subsequent marketing battle between natural diamond evangelists and lab-grown enthusiasts has ensued.

Though there are ways for experts to tell the difference, when looking at it objectively, lab-grown and mined diamonds are molecularly the same — they are solid carbon. The most noteworthy differences are in how they come to market: Lab-grown diamonds are less finite and less expensive, and the process of producing them doesn’t require the human labor or natural resources associated with mining, which traditionally takes place in communities that have historically been exploited. But with recent innovation across the diamond industry, both versions have evolved for the better.

“Lab-grown is democratizing the diamond industry, enabling a much larger segment of consumers to afford beautiful, timeless jewelry that was once reserved only for the elite due to the prohibitive price of mined diamonds,” Meg Strachan, founder and CEO of jewelry company Dorsey, tells Fashionista. “The affordability of lab-grown means people can purchase more jewelry they love, and they aren’t restricted based on style or budget.”

That democratization is exactly what has some natural diamond brands trying out new marketing tactics. The diamond brand Clear Cut recently launched a promotion allowing customers to pick out a lab-grown diamond for free that can replace their natural diamond while traveling. In a video recorded by the CEO and distributed via Clear Cut’s social media channels, captions claim that some lab-grown diamonds have decreased in price to around $600.

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Reading between the lines, the sentiment is that the lab-grown version has less inherent value, especially at resale. In the comments, customers seem confused and frustrated by the debate altogether — categorizing the campaign as “elitist” or even a calculated effort to put down lab-grown diamonds in order to boost natural ones.

“There’s nothing more personal than what someone can afford to buy,” Strachan says of videos and promotions like this, and the ire they can draw. “Actively trying to make a large consumer base that’s choosing lab-grown over mined feel somehow less than is unusual. It’s especially unusual for an industry to demean a customer they’re competing for.” She goes on to add that, in her view, this marketing has actually led people to look into lab-grown more than they may have before. “It leads to a natural education for people who otherwise wouldn’t have known about lab-grown. It’s actually leading to more knowledge-gathering and learning,” she notes.

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Still, while the conversation has been loud, and mined diamond marketing has been bold, it’s possible that the actual battle between the two groups hasn’t picked up steam. According to BusinessWire, the global lab-grown market is expected reach $37.32 billion this year; that’s significant, but it doesn’t necessarily correlate to one type of diamond overtaking the other and, in fact, in might signify a general growing interest in diamonds and luxury, lab-grown or not. Another estimate by Grandview Research shows the overall diamond market growing to about $123.83 billion by 2030, with a significant portion of that coming from natural diamonds (though lab-grown versions could gradually gain more share).

“When it comes to lab-grown diamonds and natural diamonds, they are two very different value propositions,” argues Kristina Buckley Kayel, managing director and CMO of Natural Diamond Council (NDC), via email. “The reality is that lab-grown diamonds are less expensive — they were recently launched at Pandora and Swarovski, which illustrates that they are a different product than natural diamonds, and that’s OK.”

Of course, one wouldn’t expect an executive of an organization on a mission to advance the natural diamond industry to broadcast anything different. And there’s an inherent bias among lab-grown founders as well, although some seem to feel that the value argument, in particular, might be overblown. Instead, they’re more focused on a generational shift as younger consumers get introduced to diamonds.

“There are people who just really want mined diamonds, and that’s fine. I look at lab and mined diamonds as two different product choices,” says Kristy Cullinane, co-founder of lab-grown diamond brand Plum Diamonds. “We do see a lot of clients change their minds about mined diamonds once they understand the true numbers involved and learn how many industry insiders have made the switch themselves. It’s really all about being an educated consumer about the values of lab-grown diamonds.”

One side of this debate that can’t be ignored is the ethical factors behind each method. While it’s now one of the most regulated industries in the world through the implementation of legislation like the Kimberley Process Clean Diamond Trade Act, the natural diamond industry has a not-so-secret sordid past, and that reputation often precedes traditional diamond brands with customers who take ethics into consideration. The onus here is on the natural diamond brands to prove that they are following regulations and giving back to the communities they mine within — and there are ways to do it.

“Traceability and blockchain technologies take ethical sourcing to another level of transparency. The industry is making tremendous strides with these technologies as consumers care more about the origin and impact of what they buy and invest in,” Buckley Kayel notes.

At this point, the battle, if there truly is one, between lab-grown and natural diamonds might simply be more about getting customers’ attention than bringing them to one side or another.

“We’ve seen that the mined diamond buyer is also a lab-grown buyer. A lot of our customers have mined diamond rings (engagement rings, wedding bands) and lab-grown earrings, necklaces and bracelets from Dorsey,” Strachan explains. Cullinane also emphasizes this point.

“Customers can decide what’s best for them,” she says, adding, “We’re not afraid of mined diamond competition. It’s a different product.”

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Source: Fashionista.com

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