Pilot: New Year Edition

The Jewelry District

0:35 Melissa Rose Bernardo shares a 140-year-old article from the archives of JCK Magazine on lab-grown gems.
4:25 Rob Bates and Emili Vesilind discuss holiday jewelry sales.
9:10 Rob and Emili discuss lab-grown diamond sales and the future of lab-grown.
22:06 Emili’s Golden Globe jewelry fashion report.
25:40 Emili covers the new year fashion trend “maximalism.”
34:05 Rob tells the "Weird Jewelry Story of the Week
39:37 Rob interviews diamond analyst Paul Zimnisky about lab-grown diamonds and the future of the industry.

Hosted by: Rob Bates
JCK Staff: Melissa Rose Bernardo, Emili Vesilind
Guest: Paul Zimnisky, Diamond Analyst
Engineers: Levi Sharpe, Ed Patenaude
Editor: Jamie Berger
Producer: Natalie Chomet
Plugs: jckonline.com, @jckmagazine, paulzimnisky.com

Show Summary

From the Archives

In honor of JCK magazine’s 150th anniversary, Managing Editor Melissa Bernardo dug up an article from the February 1878 issue of The Jewelers Circular and Horological Review, which is what JCK magazine was called at the time. This over 140-year-old news item concerns something we think of as the latest technical innovation: lab-grown gems. This vintage article documents a “highly successful” attempt at producing artificial rubies and sapphires in France that “might perhaps lead to the manufacture of diamonds.” A century ago, JCK covered the prediction that lab-grown diamonds could be on the horizon.

Holiday Sales and Trends

Emili Vesilind reports that jewelry retailers had a solid, strong season, though she reads that traffic was slightly lower in stores, along with a more dramatic rise in online traffic. Rob says that sales went up, but not as much as it did the year before. Hopes were high, and the trends stayed fairly standard rather than having a dramatic rise. Rob and Emili also discuss lab-grown diamonds, and whether their attractive prices or their eco-friendly pitches mark a trend that has staying power.

Golden Globe Trends

Emili observes that the trend that emerged at the Golden Globes was a parade of glamor and maximalism. The Golden Globes marked a break from the past, when simple everyday pieces and “daily gold” had been the most prevalent trends. Now, chunky pieces are entering the scene. Emili also marks a return to ‘70s and ‘80s-style layering, as opposed to the single statement pieces of the more recent past.

Weird Story of the Week

Rob tells the story of a British Reddit user who gets swept up into the trend of New Years’ Eve proposals. The confused fellow who lives with his long-term girlfriend purchases an engagement ring with the intent to propose to a love interest he’s started seeing at work. On New Year’s Eve, he spontaneously proposes to his girlfriend, giving her the ring, and turns to Reddit for legal advice: is it possible to call the whole thing off and return the engagement ring? Tune in for the exciting conclusion!

Interview with Diamond Analyst Paul Zimnisky

Rob interviews Paul Zimnisky about how he got into the business of diamond analysis. They delve into the supply and demand of the diamond business, and their effect on pricing.

Paul has observed demand for diamonds grow for the last four to five years, despite talk of fewer millennials getting married. He sees the incremental increase in supply in 2017 as a contributing factor to the pressure on diamond pricing in the recent past.

Rob gets Paul’s take on how lab-grown diamonds fit into the supply/demand equation for the rest of the diamond market. Paul raises the concern about accurate sourcing of diamonds, and small lab-created diamonds making their way into the natural supply chain. They share their opinions on the future of lab-grown diamonds, and whether the end consumer will differentiate between lab-created and natural. Will they prefer one over the other and why?

Though opinions may differ about the future of the natural and lab-grown diamond industry, Paul reminds listeners that diamonds are luxury items, ones that are often purchased for emotional reasons, and this makes their future harder to predict than items purchased for practical reasons.