Think positive
DiCaprio’s backing of lab-growns quickly drew criticism from the trade for saying they reduce “the human and environmental toll of the diamond industry by sustainably culturing diamonds without the destructive use of mining.” His comments set off a slew of open letters to the superstar, notably from Martin Rapaport, who took issue with the idea lab-grown diamonds, in DiCaprio’s views, are less harmful, ignoring the fact the natural diamond industry supports the livelihood of millions of artisanal diggers in Africa.
The negative marketing surrounding lab-grown diamonds is a point of concern for many, given it elevates them as a more ethical choice, while diminishing the value of natural diamonds. Mel Moss, president of Regal Imports in Vancouver, sells both lab-grown and natural diamonds. He says a marketing message built on the so-called ethical superiority of lab-growns may actually work against itself. Likewise, he says the natural diamond industry should not impede the marketing of man-made diamonds.
“Marketing is everything with lab-growns, and if you promote them by saying they don’t ruin the land or they’re more ethical, of course that type of marketing turns people off buying natural diamonds,” he says. “But the interesting part is that natural diamonds are the basis of the lab-grown diamond business, and if people don’t want to buy a natural diamond, why would they want to buy a lab-grown. This type of marketing is destructive to all forms of the diamond business, lab-grown and natural.”
Promoting lab-grown diamonds to consumers is one of the primary objectives of the International Grown Diamond Association (IGDA), although one of its members—Diamond Foundry—has also engaged in a war of words with Rapaport over the ethical value of one diamond over the other. Originally comprising about 10 companies, IGDA now counts close to 20 members, including Fair Trade Jewellery.
Taylor agrees with Moss that negative marketing is harmful. “That’s not how we position them at our atelier,” he says. “It hurts the entire industry to say natural diamonds are bad because customers would then question buying either of them. Consumers just want to make sure they’re educated at retail—that’s the difference between good retail and bad retail.
I think the fear in the industry is, what happens when bad retailers flood the market with lab-growns, which is a valid argument.”
