Are lab grown Diamonds here to stay?

Are lab grown Diamonds here to stay? At the time of writing this (November 2023) this is the question on everyone’s lips. Are lab grown Diamonds just a passing fad or are they really here to stay after shaking up the jewellery industry for a few years now.

Pricing

One deciding factor could be prices. After dropping over the past few years Lab grown prices seem to be stabilising & they have done so at prices that are significantly cheaper than their natural counterparts (natural, mined Diamonds). This has increased their appeal massively. So much so in fact that it has created a decline in natural Diamond prices.

The big brands

A great indicator of whether Lab grown Diamonds are here to stay or not is the big brands. With so much financial risk at stake they rarely take chances on something that might just be a passing trend. So which of the big brands are on board? Here is  timeline of how some huge brand names are embracing Lab grown Diamonds:

• May 2018: De Beers launches a Lab-grown Diamond jewellery range
• August 2022: Pandora launches a Lab grown Diamond range
• December 2022: Stephen Webster launches a collaboration with Skydiamond
• August 2023: An article in British Vogue reveals that lab grown sales now make up 10% of all Diamonds sales with the market set to be worth an estimated £44 billion by 2031 (over double the current market value)
• August 2023: Duraflex Group Australia (supplier to many big jewellery brands) launch a lab grown collection with a 3ct Diamond giveaway at a trade show in Sydney
• Nov 2023: Jeweller to the star Jennifer Fisher launches lab grown Diamond collection
• December 2023: Canadian jewellery brand Mejuri announced their lab grown jewellery collection
• January 2024: Tag Heuer launches TAG Heuer Carrera Diamant d’ Avant-Garde technology
• December 2024: Breitling will phase out natural Diamonds by the end of 2024

So, as you can see the big brands are definitely putting their very influential weight behind Lab grown Diamonds.

Popularity

The laboratory grown Diamond market reached $12.24 billion in 2022 & seems to be growing fast. What is surprising is how popular lab grown are becoming in all kinds of jewellery. From tiny stones that are set into wedding rings & pendants, right up to the large rocks you find in Diamond engagement rings, Lab grown are being chosen for a wide range of jewellery. As De Beers have such a huge stake in the natural Diamond industry they tried to lead the lab grown market into jewellery for gifts but not for the big life moments like engagements & weddings. Very unlike De Beers though they failed miserably & lab grown are being chosen all over the world for very important jewellery milestones.

Only time will really tell but at the moment it seems the answer is a resounding yes. Lab grown Diamonds are here to stay.