The scale of the past year’s geopolitical and economic disruptions has left a mark on the overall demand dynamics of the diamond market. As a result, there has been a sustained decline in India’s diamond exports for most of 2023. As per a report from GJEPC, the gross export dropped from $23.8 billion to $18.24 billion between April and October 2023, as per reports.
However, lab-grown diamonds (LGDs) are gaining an increasing share of the global diamond market each year, with the market share expected to amount to ten percent in 2030, as per Statista. The lab-grown diamonds (LGDs) provide a ray of hope to the Indian diamond industry. It would make sense that, in the face of challenging times for the Indian gems and jewellery market, lab-grown diamonds can play a crucial role.
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Radhika Gupta, Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Edelweiss Mutual Fund, and Shark Tank Judge says, “Have always loved disruptive ideas, in mutual funds and in business, and lab created diamonds is a category I have been watching with a lot of interest. In fact I migrated to buying lab grown last year as a consumer! Our honourable PM had also gifted a lab grown diamond to the US First Lady on a state visit last year.”
She adds, “It’s no surprise Jewelbox became an all shark deal, because like in the US, this category will zoom in India. Do watch their pitch on Shark Tank India to learn about this category and see a very talented group of founders – incidentally with no background in jewellery- at work.”
The demand for LGDs has been gradually but consistently on the rise in the domestic market. Globally too, these man-made diamonds have performed well based on the longer-term trends, with sales increasing from under $1 billion in 2016 to just more than $12 billion in 2023. They represent just over 17 per cent of the overall diamond market, and the rate of growth is accelerating. As a result of this, a report from CNN stated that LGD sales shot up 38 per cent from 2021 to 2022.
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