As is the case in virtually all major strategic corporate moves in the secretive Swarovski crystal empire, its entry into the lab-grown gem-quality diamond business was planned and executed in utmost secrecy. Within the Swarovski family, the world’s leading producer of cut crystals, its former president and chairman, Helmut Swarovski, had endeavored for years to find an entry into the diamond business.
Eventually, Helmut’s daughter, Nadja Swarovski, her cousin, Markus Langes-Swarovski, and the three other family members of the company’s executive committee, made it happen. They are cautiously testing the waters in the man-made diamond jungle. The “Swarovski Created Diamonds” has made its debut.
Swarovski Marketing May Provide ‘Product Differentiation’
For the diamond market, Swarovski’s new brand represents a welcome game changer as the company can potentially provide the ethical, legal and moral leadership in the man-made diamond market. Currently, a handful of man-made diamond producers linger at the fringes of the market, trying to promote themselves through “delegitimizing” the natural diamond productions.
The market is also acutely aware of problems. These include undisclosed synthetic sales or “peppering-the-parcel,” a practice in which a certain percentage of diamonds in a parcel or in a set diamond jewelry piece is replaced with man-made stones. Many of the current players in the market are out there to make “easy money” – as long as the margins between natural and lab-grown diamonds are significant.
In sharp contrast to some of the other man-made diamond producers, Swarovski makes corporate decisions for generations. It will not try to quickly get a return on capital. It will slowly, consistency and cautiously develop a sustainable business for the future. It seems committed.
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