Editor’s Note
Tiffany & Co. has announced it will disclose the provenance of its newly sourced diamonds, becoming the first major luxury jeweler to do so. This move reflects a growing consumer demand for transparency in both quality and ethical sourcing.
Tiffany & Co. announced on Tuesday that it will share the complete background of its newly acquired diamond rings, a first in the industry, as it seeks to attract customers who care about quality as well as social and environmental responsibility.
Tiffany says that revealing the country where each stone is crafted and set marks a novelty for global luxury jewelers, making it the first jeweler of its kind to provide the country or region of origin for its diamonds.
The 183-year-old jewelry giant will provide a Tiffany Diamond Certificate with the region or countries of origin of the diamond, as well as the location where it was cut and polished, graded, quality guaranteed, and set into jewelry, starting in October.
Given that demand for lab-grown diamonds is on the rise, Tiffany and other jewelers are likely seeking to mitigate concerns about conflict diamonds and sustainability that have long plagued the diamond industry.
Twenty years ago, diamond industry leaders, including Tiffany’s, adopted the Kimberley Process with the aim of stopping the global trade in conflict diamonds, which it defines as “rough diamonds used to finance wars against governments.” However, critics have said the definition is too narrow and does not factor in human rights and sustainability concerns.
In 2018, the advocacy organization Human Rights Watch assessed whether 13 of the world’s leading jewelry brands responsibly source their gems and minerals, and Tiffany’s topped the list. However, the report found that “none of the companies can identify all the individual mines of origin for their diamonds.”
Despite recent “quarantine proposals,” Tiffany’s engagement jewelry sales fell nearly 97% year-over-year from $280.4 million to $142.5 million in the first quarter of 2020, and total net sales fell nearly 45% from over $1 billion to $555.5 million.
Nearly 70% of millennials would consider buying an engagement ring with a lab-grown diamond, according to a 2018 report by MVI Industries, a market analysis and research firm for the gem, jewelry, and watch industries. Lab-grown diamonds have the same chemical composition as a traditional diamond but are generally less expensive.
Before the 1930s, people rarely proposed marriage with diamond engagement rings, but De Beers Group’s 1947 campaign “A Diamond is Forever” is said to have been a catalyst for the trend. By 1951, eight out of ten brides were proposed to with a diamond engagement ring, according to De Beers. Even De Beers now backs lab-grown diamonds, having invested more than $94 million in the diamond company Lightbox Jewelry.