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Helzberg selling lab-grown diamonds in select stores
The test program includes white, pink and yellow stones, which are being sold in Helzberg stores in Virginia, Florida, Arizona and Illinois, among others.
Three pink diamonds grown by Greenville, S.C.-based Scio Diamond Technology in partnership with Renaissance Diamonds; Helzberg Diamonds is now selling lab-grown pinks, along with whites and yellows, at select stores.
New York--Helzberg Diamonds is selling pink, yellow and white lab-grown diamonds from Scio and Renaissance Diamonds in select stores across the country, making it the latest retailer to test the market for man-made diamonds.
When asked for comment and information on the program, Helzberg Diamonds Chairman and CEO Beryl Raff said “This year, Helzberg Diamonds is celebrating 100 years of love. Embracing innovation and change is a part of our rich heritage. Testing lab-grown diamonds, with full consumer disclosure, is only one of many initiatives to give customers choices and seek new ways to best serve them for the next 100 years.”
The lab-grown pinks are all loose, round brilliant diamonds that are either fancy vivid or fancy intense vivid and are 1/2, 3/4, or 1 carat in size.
Renaissance Diamonds Corp. President and CEO Neil Koppel said price points range from $5,000 to $11,000, making the lab-grown stones significantly less expensive than mined pink diamonds of the same size and quality.
Greenville, S.C.-based Scio Diamond Technology Corp. produced the pink diamonds in a joint venture with Renaissance, called Renaissance Created Diamonds. They are being sold to consumers under, and are inscribed with, the Renaissance brand name.
The diamonds are grown using the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process, and are high-pressure, high-temperature (HPHT) treated to improve their color. Renaissance cuts and polishes the stones and they are graded by the International Gemological Institute (IGI) in New York.
The test program started in March and is in in-store only; the stones are not being sold online by Helzberg, which has more than 200 stores.
According to Scio, the Helzberg stores carrying the lab-grown diamonds include the locations in the Pentagon Mall in Arlington, Va.; Wellington Green in Wellington, Fla.; Chandler Fashion Center in Chandler, Ariz.; and White Oaks Mall in Springfield, Ill.
Scio CEO Gerald (Jerry) McGuire and Koppel said that Helzberg is selling some lab-grown white and yellow diamonds as well. The whites are a mix of Scio- and Renaissance-grown stones, while the yellow diamonds were all grown by Renaissance.
Lab-grown diamonds are becoming more common as the technology involved in growing them improves.
In addition to Helzberg Diamonds, which is one of the largest remaining specialty jewelry chains in the country and is a member of the American Gem Society, reports have noted that 73-store chain Rogers & Hollands carries lab-grown diamonds.
At the trade
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shows in Las Vegas this past week, De Beers, Rio Tinto, Alrosa and other diamond mining companies announced the formation of the Diamond Producers Association, which will focus on maintaining demand for mined diamonds specifically, indicating that the world’s biggest mining companies view man-made stones as a threat.
While the “conflict free” aspect of lab-grown diamonds has been pushed in the past, both McGuire and Koppel said the lower price of man-made stones is what they believe will appeal most to consumers, particularly with colored diamonds, which are rarer and more expensive.
As Koppel put it, “It makes the unaffordable affordable.”
McGuire concurred.
“Consumers might not ever see (pink and yellow diamonds) in their lifetime,” he said, and even if they get the chance to see them, they likely wouldn’t be able to buy them.
“We don’t think we are going to replace mined diamonds. It would be silly to think that. But we do want to give the consumer an alternative.”
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