Luminous Diamonds’ Debut Collection Celebrates Your Inner Glow

Luminous Diamonds

The new fine jewelry company is a leader in rare fluorescent stones.

All diamonds shimmer when light hits them. Under master hands, they are cut into interesting shapes that spark joy. Gems from Luminous Diamonds, a new fine jewelry brand, however, have an attribute that many precious stones don’t: They glow.

luminous diamonds

Luminous Diamonds’ parent company, Alrosa, is a leader in sourcing fluorescent stones, which are formed under unique geological conditions that leave trace elements during the carbon crystallization process. As a result, Luminous Diamonds shine extra bright in the sun and, most intriguingly, emit a blue glow under UV light.

luminous diamonds

“These diamonds are stunning, luminous, and make a statement,” says Rebecca Foerster, Alrosa’s president of North America. “They reflect the way modern women wear confidence like a rare jewel, and they dare us all to stand out by sharing our inner selves. Greatness in people, like diamonds, is made under pressure. When a woman follows her own inner light, others see it. Our diamonds are an enduring reminder of this light.”

luminous diamonds

To highlight this point, Luminous Diamonds enlisted female leaders from disparate industries to model its debut collection in a campaign titled Greatness Under Pressure. They are WNBA athlete Skylar Diggins-Smith, attorney and travel writer Cynthia Andrew, violinist Ezinma Ramsay, gender-fluid advocate Elliott Sailors, model Denise Bidot, and photographer Marian Moneymaker.

luminous diamonds

The 28-piece collection consists of brilliants and pavé diamonds on open-work hexagon settings. They include long necklaces with pendants, crawler and chandelier earrings, and bracelets. Each design comes with an illuminator charm that emits UV light so you can get that inner glow all the time.

Source: harpersbazaar

Alrosa steps up efforts to brighten fluorescent diamond sales

fluorescent diamond strong blue

Russia’s Alrosa the world’s top diamond miner by volume, is betting on a new strategy to boost its sales amid an industry-wide slowdown that has hit small companies the hardest.

The state-owned company is now selling naturally occurring fluorescent diamonds mixed with others. At the same time, it’s holding talks with global jewellery retailers about jointly marketing its ‘Luminous Diamonds’ brand, which uses the glowing stones.

Fluorescence, a bluish glow produced by ultraviolet rays (UV), is a characteristic of 25% to 35% of diamonds, according to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).

Fluorescence, a bluish glow produced by ultraviolet rays (UV), is a characteristic of 25% to 35% of diamonds, according to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).

The feature has traditionally been seen as a negative attribute as it can make a diamond appear “milky” or “oily” in direct sun or UV light. Alrosa’s marketing efforts are centred on changing those perceptions.

Glowing diamonds are most common in Russia and Canada due to their proximity to the Arctic, where they are usually found.

GfK market research agency recently conducted a study involving over 4,000 jewellery consumers to determine how they perceived fluorescent diamonds.

The survey revealed that 74% of the respondents in the US didn’t know what they were or were poorly informed about them. When educated, however, over 82% of respondents said they would consider buying a diamond with such a feature. And almost 60% of customers, mostly millennials, expressed their willingness to pay as much as 15% more to obtain a fluorescent diamond.

About half of all diamonds produced globally have some fluorescence, but those in which the feature is “strong”  —  the focus of Alrosa’s campaign —  represent as much as 5-10% of global supply.

Global demand for all types of diamonds fell between 2018 and 2019, affecting small stones producers the most, due to an oversupply in that segment that dragged prices down.

Increasing demand for synthetic diamonds also weighed on prices. Man-made stones require less investment than mined ones and can offer more attractive margins.

Big companies have not been immune to the downward trend. De Beers, the world’s No. 1 diamond miner, reported in February its worst set of earnings since Anglo American acquired it in 2012.

Source: Mining.com