A jeweler from Dubai revealed that high-end customers, including Premier League football players, are now buying lab grown diamonds as demand for natural diamonds continues to decline.
When lab grown diamonds first appeared on the market a few years ago, the diamond industry did not anticipate that consumers would take to them so favorably. Major diamond merchants such as De Beers have tried to attract specific consumer groups such as teenagers or those who are environmentally conscious through branding campaigns.
However, Fergus James, founder of Dubai-based luxury jeweler Fergus James, said he witnessed a surge of interest in the laboratory from all customer groups following the release of the hit Netflix documentary Nothing Lasts Forever. Demand for lab-grown diamonds is surging.
Fergus James said: “What we discovered very quickly was that this was not what the diamond industry expected in terms of buying demographics or customer characteristics. What happened was that the customer characteristics were completely indistinguishable. Everybody was going to buy lab-grown diamonds. , even rich people who can afford everything.”
He recounted his sales experiences, including buying high-end lab-grown diamond bracelets from celebrities, influencers and Premier League footballers who live in multi-million dollar mansions on the Palm Jumeirah, as well as to another wealthy Indian Spending more than $500,000 a year buying lab-grown diamonds from him.
He revealed that these people only buy lab grown diamonds.
The shift caught James and the entire diamond industry off guard. He said that the demand for lab-grown diamonds has shifted from 5%-10% to 80%-90%, and it is becoming more and more popular among consumers.
He said the diamond industry failed to foresee changes in luxury consumption and made major mistakes in responding to the rise of lab grown diamonds.
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