De Beers Group today announced the launch of a new company Lightbox Jewelry and added that it will be introducing a new fashion jewellery brand using laboratory-grown diamonds under the name of Lightbox, in September this year.  

De Beers said that the new line will offer consumers “high-quality, fashion jewellery designs at lower prices than existing lab-grown diamond offerings”.

The Lightbox lab-grown diamond jewellery will retail from US$ 200 for a quarter-carat stone to US$ 800 for a one-carat stone. But it is not only the pricing which will differentiate the jewellery – the Lightbox collection will feature pink, blue and white lab-grown diamonds.

“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 jewellery that may not be forever, but is perfect for right now,” said Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group. “Our extensive research tells us this is how consumers regard lab-grown diamonds – as a fun, pretty product that shouldn’t cost that much – so we see 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.”

Steve Coe, General Manager, Lightbox Jewelry added: “Lightbox Jewelry offers consumers something new: sparkle and colours, 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. 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.”

Coe went on to say: “We will introduce more designs and colours as the range evolves, and the technological efficiency of our proprietary production process means we will always offer Lightbox at accessible prices.”

To be initially launched in the US, Lightbox jewellery will, initially, be available to US-based consumers through the Lightbox e-commerce website. Retail partnerships will be announced in due course, the Company said.

Lightbox, a De Beers subsidiary, will be the only jewellery brand to source lab-grown diamonds from De Beers Group’s Element Six business, “a world leader in lab-grown diamond technology for more than 50 years”, the Company revealed.

“Any Lightbox lab-grown diamonds of 0.2 carats or above will carry a permanent Lightbox logo inside the stone,” De Beers noted. “Invisible to the naked eye but easily identified under magnification, the logo will clearly identify the stone as lab-grown and also serve as a mark of quality and assurance that it was produced by Element Six.”

De Beers Group announced it will be investing a total of US$ 94 million over four years in a new Element Six production facility near Portland, Oregon, adding to Element Six’s existing UK-based facilities. “Once fully operational, the plant will be capable of producing upwards of 500,000 rough carats of lab-grown diamonds a year,” the Company said.