Articles and News
INDUSTRY NEWS: DE BEERS PROFIT, SALES PLUNGE; G&G TACKLES SYNTHETIC DIAMOND ID; MORE July 25, 2012 (0 comments)
De Beers Profit, Sales Drop Significantly, But Retail Arm Gets Kudos for Mobile Marketing
London, United Kingdom—De Beers reported a total sales decline of 14% for the first half of 2012, and a 50% drop in profits. It also registered an 11% decline from its Diamond Trading Company, which supplies rough stones to the trade. The company has said it expects conditions to remain “challenging” for the rest of the year.
According to this article in National Jeweler, total sales in the six-month period ending June 30 were $3.35 billion, vs. $3.89 billion in the first half of 2011. Second half sales in 2011 were $3.5 billion. Profit before finance charges and taxation dropped to $502 million from $1.02 billion in the first half of 2011.
Both production and DTC sales were down; in its De Beers retail stores co-owned with LVMH, core jewelry sales grew but high-end sales lagged. The company also said its Forevermark brand continues to grow in core markets.
Separately, De Beers was the sole jeweler named by Luxury Daily as one of the top 10 mobile brand apps for the first half of 2012. The app serves as a wedding jewelry finder as well as a consultant on diamonds and the brand, but it is not commerce-enabled, forcing consumers into the store.
The other nine brand apps named to the top 10 were department stores Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus, shoemaker Christian Louboutin, menswear designer Ermengildo Zegna, automakers Lexus and Maserati, and hotel chains Ritz-Carlton and Starwood Hotels & Resorts.
Summer G&G Available Free on iPad; Synthetic Diamonds A Major Feature
Carlsbad, CA—GIA’s (Gemological Institute of America) Summer 2012 issue of its quarterly journal, Gems & Gemology, is now available through G&G’s free iPad app. The issue features:
- A look at CVD-grown synthetic diamonds from Gemesis Corp, including criteria for identifying these products.
- A pair of supplements to the first article: an overview of recent advances in CVD synthesis, and a study of a synthetic nano-polycrystalline diamond sphere that is completely transparent.
- Inside coverage of the recent sapphire rush near Kataragama, Sri Lanka, which has yielded specimens with good transparency and a pure blue color.
- An assessment of the emerging cultured pearl industry in the Federated States of Micronesia.
- Lab Notes from GIA: a large artificially irradiated yellow diamond, a new type of greenish blue imitation opal, and near-colorless synthetic diamonds from Advanced Optical Technology Co.
- Gem News International reports from around the world: a new production of Champagne/Imperial garnet from Tanzania, rainbow moonstone from Zambia, and a major discovery of ruby and sapphire near Didy, Madagascar.
G&G's free iPad app with the summer 2012 issue, featuring articles about identifying characteristics of Gemesis and other synthetic diamonds.
World Diamond Congress Set for October 14-17
Mumbai, India--The 35th World Diamond Congress (WDC), the joint biennial meeting of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA) and the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB), will be held in Mumbai, India, from October 14 to 17. The event is being organized and hosted by the Gems & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) and the Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB).
A dedicated congress website with one-point access to all relevant information about the event can be accessed here. It provides detailed information on the event's schedule and program, participating organizations, the hosts, registration, hotel and room booking, social tours, and post-congress optional programs.