De Beers to Unveil Lab-Grown Diamond Fashion Jewellery with Lightbox.
De Beers Group announced launching the Lightbox Jewelry company for its new endeavor to market a brand of laboratory-grown diamond jewellery. The new brand, Lightbox will offer high-quality fashion centric designs. The company will unveil the jewellery in September.
Price points of Lightbox jewellery are lower than existing lab-grown diamond offerings. They begin at US$200 for a quarter-carat stone up to US$800 for a one-carat stone. The line will offer pink, blue and white lab-grown diamonds set in accessibly-priced selections of earrings and necklaces. This will be a new and innovative approach to the jewelry sector.
Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group mentioned that, “Lightbox will transform the lab-grown diamond sector by offering consumers a lab-grown product they have told us they want but aren’t getting: affordable fashion jewelry that may not be forever, but is perfect for right now.”
He noted that an extensive research by De Beers revealed the consumer mindset towards lab-grown diamonds as being fun, pretty which should not weight heavy on the pocket. This, he mentioned is “an opportunity here that’s been missed by lab-grown diamond producers. Lab-grown diamonds are a product of technology, and as we’ve seen with synthetic sapphires, rubies and emeralds, as the technology advances, products become more affordable. After decades of R&D investment, we’re able to offer consumers a better price today. While it will be a small business compared with our core diamond business, we think the Lightbox brand will resonate with consumers and provide a new, complementary commercial opportunity for De Beers Group.”
“Lightbox Jewelry offers consumers something new: sparkle and colors, at a very accessible price. In addition to a deep understanding of what consumers want, Lightbox brings innovation and a commitment to transparency to the lab-grown diamond sector,” added Steve Coe, General Manager, Lightbox Jewelry.
“We’ve learned from our research that there is a lot of confusion about lab-grown diamonds – what they are, how they differ from diamonds, and how they are valued. Lightbox will be clear with consumers about what lab-grown diamonds are and will offer straightforward pricing that is consistent with the true cost of production.
“We will introduce more designs and colors as the range evolves, and the technological efficiency of our proprietary production process means we will always offer Lightbox at accessible prices,” Mr. Coe noted.
The launch of Lightbox will begin in the US though online – Lightbox e-commerce website. Retail partnerships are planned in the future.
Lightbox is a subsidiary of De Beers Group and the only jewelry brand to source lab-grown diamonds from the Group’s Element Six venture. Element Six is the leading lab-grown diamond technology company since over 50 years. Lightbox lab-grown diamonds of 0.2 carats and more will bear a permanent Lightbox logo in the stone. The logo is invisible to the naked eye and seen only under magnification. It will identify the stone as lab-grown and be s symbol of quality and assurance of being produced by Element Six.
Over four years, De Beers Group is investing US$94 million in a new Element Six production facility near Portland, Oregon for its Lightbox venture. This will enhance Element Six’s existing UK-based facilities. On being fully operational, the plant’s production capacity will be upwards of 500,000 rough carats of lab-grown diamonds a year.
