The True Vera Wang LOVE collection for Zales has 16 engagement ring styles that feature lab-grown diamond center stones.
(CNN Business) -
For many couples who recently consolidated their commitment to each other, the ring choice did not include natural gemstones but man-made diamonds, even in the main diamond.
While a diamond remains the most popular type of engagement stone, nearly one in four engagement rings in 2021 featured a man-made center stone, not necessarily always a diamond, up 11% in the past two years. according to a report from wedding planning website The Knot.
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The popularity of lab-made diamonds is growing due to the eco-mindedness of millennial consumers and a subset of Gen Z, said the report, which was based on a November survey of 5,000 American couples who got engaged between January and November. of 2021.
Another factor fueling the preference for synthetic diamonds: they are less expensive than mined diamonds.
These can cost up to 30% less, said Shelley Brown, senior fashion and beauty editor at The Knot.
Lab-made diamonds and other gemstones have become the main trend in the last four to five years, he noted.
What is made in the laboratory becomes popular
Major jewelry retailers are also driving that effort.
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The True Vera Wang LOVE for Zales collection has 16 styles of engagement rings that feature lab-grown diamond center stones.
This May, the world's largest jewelry store, Pandora, made a major change by announcing that it would stop using mined diamonds in its jewelry.
Instead, the Copenhagen-based company is switching to lab-created diamonds, which it said have the same "optical, chemical, thermal and physical characteristics" of a mined diamond and are graded according to the same standards known as 4C: cut, color, clarity and carats.
Pandora said it is instituting the change as part of its own effort to sell sustainable jewelry, and also because consumers are asking for it.
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Signet, America's largest jewelry company, stocks engagement rings.
"This is peak season for bridal jewelry. There are a lot of couples getting engaged from Thanksgiving through the New Years, and we're ready to get started," said Jamie Singleton, president of Signet Jewelers, who is owner of Zales, Kay Jewelers and Jared.
Singleton said the three big trends dominating engagement ring preferences include larger stones of 1 to 3 carats, yellow gold and elegant center stone shapes like oval, pear and emerald.
You also see the demand for lab-created diamonds growing.
"This is very much based on millennials and frankly, they are the demographic that represents the majority of shoppers in the bridal category anyway," Singleton said.
"The lower cost of a lab-created diamond allows couples to buy a larger stone."
Currently, 4.7% of the specialty diamond jewelry market in the United States is represented by lab-grown diamonds.
That figure jumps to a whopping 34% as of 2020, said Edahn Golan, industry analyst and founder of Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data.
"Regarding the cost difference, a 1-carat engagement ring with a lab-grown diamond can cost 60% less than a 1-carat natural diamond ring," Golan said.
The new "LEO Legacy lab-created diamond" collection is a collection of 21 engagement rings and bands at Kay Jewelers.
Although most shoppers in his stores still buy natural diamonds, Singleton said Signet has expanded its selection of artificial bridal jewelry this year.
This includes a new "True Lab-created Diamonds by Vera Wang LOVE" collection for Zales, including 16 styles of engagement rings featuring 101 lab-grown diamond centers, as well as the new "LEO Legacy lab-created diamond collection. "with 21 rings and engagement bands at Kay Jewelers.
But there is one important consideration for anyone buying lab-created diamonds: their resale value.
"A lab-created diamond is really not as big of an investment as a natural diamond," Brown said.
"Consumers may not be informed about this."
Martin Rapaport, founder of the Rapaport Diamond Report and president of the Rapaport Group, agreed.
"Synthetic diamonds are not subject to natural scarcity like a mined diamond. They can be produced in unlimited quantities by machines," Rapaport said.
"So they don't really retain a resale value like natural diamonds."
"I think it is misleading to sell artificial diamonds without this important disclosure, even if some consumers don't care about the resale value," he said.
