A short introduction to World Diamond Day
By Nicolas Chrétien, Founding Member of the World Diamond Heritage Board Dear IDMA Members and industry colleagues, Below, I’ll tell you about an exciting project – initiated by the World Diamond Heritage Board (WDHB) – that we would like to share with you and engage your support for: World Diamond Day. Going forward, World Diamond […]
Skin in the Game
When my daughter gets proposed to someday, I hope my future son-in-law has skin in the game.Because it’s not supposed to be easy.Not the saving.Not the waiting.Not the moment you decide she’s the one. Real love isn’t impulsive — it’s intentional. It’s lasting. It’s earned. When a man works, saves, and sacrifices his time and […]
Botswana’s Diamond Destiny: Time to Take Control
The nation must turn its heritage into a timeless global brand By Chaim Even-Zohar Most people do not know the term “Dutch Disease.” It describes what happened to the Netherlands after discovering natural gas in Groningen in 1959 — the place where I was born. The sudden wealth pushed up the currency, strangled manufacturing, and […]
Introducing the NDC’s Diamond Learning Center
Coinciding with ‘Diamond Month’ this April, the Natural Diamond Council announced the launch of the not-for-profit, free Diamond Learning Center at diamondlearningcenter.org. Its primary objective is to engage jewelry salespeople at scale, equipping them to be better informed and inspired to confidently and clearly distinguish the value propositions of natural diamonds, laboratory-grown diamonds, and diamond […]
What we talked about and resolved at the IDMA Presidents’ Meeting in New York, March 16-17, 2025
On March 16 and 17, we held the 23rd Presidents’ Meeting of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA). Below, I’d like to copy and paste the spot-on report by Kathy Hillelson, CEO at OWL Financial Group and a member of the Diamond Manufacturers and Importers Association of America(DMIA) On her LinkedIn page, she listed the […]
Looking back at the inaugural Doha International Diamond & Gem Conference
The International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA) will hold its 23rd Presidents’ Meeting in New York, March 16-17, 2025. The event is organized with the support of IDMA’s U.S. member, the Diamond Manufacturers & Importers Association of America (DMIA). On Sunday, March 16, IDMA and DMIA will host a mini-conference addressing the need for category-wide promotion […]
Can SADPO introduce diamond manufacturers to viable alluvial mining projects?
Loyal readers of IDMA’s WINC, our Weekly Internet News Collection newsletter – will have noticed that we often publish links to stories that report on the dire situation of the artisanal diamond industry, particularly in South Africa. Take a few minutes to listen to an interview with Lyndon de Meillon, vice chair of the South […]
Talking on the Hill about the proposed G7 diamond import restrictions
In mid-June 2024, I was honored to join a delegation of key industry stakeholders to Washington, D.C., to meet with top lawmakers and share concerns about implementation plans for import restrictions of Russian diamonds into the United States. The delegation, headed by Jewelers of America (JA)President & CEO David J. Bonaparte, consisted of Bonaparte; Jon […]
“It’s been a bit of a muddle”
IDEX’s Editor, Joh Jeffay, this past Friday began his weekly Memo with a question: “Baffled by the G7 sanctions on Russian diamonds?” he asked. “You’re not alone. Frankly, it’s been a bit of a muddle, and you’d be forgiven for losing track. The simple version is that the G7 nations – US, UK, Canada, Japan, […]
The G7 Sanctions and the Impending Storm
Reflecting on the ongoing G7 sanctions on Russian diamonds and its expected impact on an already shaky diamond and jewellery market, I am reminded of an old episode of the podcast ‘Cautionary Tales’ by Tim Harford. The episode dealt with the story of the Torrey Canyon disaster. For those of you too young to know […]
Back from Las Vegas
I have just returned from the Vegas shows. I loved seeing, meeting, and greeting customers, colleagues, and friends, networking and socializing (during the many dinners and events), and most importantly for all of us there, doing business. I can guess our readers’ first questions: “How did diamonds do?” and “What did people talk about?” Of […]
Shooting for the moon
January 12, 2023 – The preliminary results of the 2022 holiday jewelry sales season indicate that it was a ‘mixed bag’ but that, in general, most retail jewelers were pleased with and mostly relieved about their year-end performances. The next obvious question is: what will 2023 bring? It naturally will all hinge on how well […]
Diamonds in The Age of the Consumer
September 11, 2022 – Not all is well in our industry, as the diamond mining sector faces multiple challenges. In South Africa, disaster struck at the Jagersfontein diamond mine when a dam broke, flooding a nearby neighborhood and killing several people. Illegal mining is just one of the many problems the diamond and precious metal […]
How do you cope with the changes in the diamond supply chain?
September 7, 2022 – In early September 2022, Industry analyst Edahn Golan issued a mini survey via his Twitter account, asking” “What do you think are the most pressing issues in the diamond industry?” He listed Edahn’s questions can be condensed into a single question: How do you cope with the changes occurring throughout the […]
We’re in this all together
March 2, 2022 – Since coming back to my office after a week in the United Arab Emirates to attend the Dubai Diamond Conference (DDC), the Jewellery, Gem and Technology (JGT) show, and the 2022 Presidents’ Meeting (PM), our world was turned upside down. After Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Russia’s sovereign neighbor Ukraine, the DDC’s […]
Revenge spending
June 11, 2021 – Summer is upon us, and the countdown to the holiday sales season has begun. In earlier, ‘normal’ times, the above sentence would have been greeted with a shrug and the remark, “So what else is new?” Not anymore. Now, this plain sentence, “Summer is upon us, and with that, the countdown […]
Be glocal!
January 31, 2021 – A few days ago, I sat down to write out a check. But I had to throw it out and write a new one, as I had inadvertently written: “January xx, 2020.” Thank heavens, 2020 is gone – and for good. We are now going forward and already a full month […]
Semper Paratus
January 21, 2021 – Earlier this month, I gave an interview to the Madrid-based, Spanish-language gem and jewelry trade publication Gold&Time. This news source serves Spain and the Mid- and South-American gem and jewelry markets. Asked what lessons we had learned in the past year. Here are some excerpts for my reply: “In our industry […]