Lab-grown Diamond Market in 2023: Looking Back And Forward
Last year proved to be quite unpredictable and unsteady at times for the diamond dealers and retailers. Despite that, the industry still developed over 2022 and the sales were on the rise, especially the man-made category. As the growing companies introduced new record-breaking sizes of polished stones, the business side of the market was peaking as well.
According to Tenoris consultancy, the engagement rings with lab-created diamonds reached the share of 10% of overall U.S.bridal sales. This almost doubled the calculations that had been made in 2021. Last year was successful for the global lab-grown industry in general. At the beginning of 2022, diamond analyst Paul Zimnisky had predicted that the total annual sales of jewelry with man-made gems would reach $8 billion. By the end of the year, he increased this figure to $12 billion. Based on this forecast, it seems that lab-created jewelry has exceeded 10% of the global diamond sales. At the same time, the margins for lab-grown diamonds remained higher than for the mined ones for retailers.
Loose lab-grown diamonds retail sales increased as well, from 5.3% in 2021 to 7%, according to The Edge Retail Academy. The larger man-made stones represented most of this rise. The 3 to 3.50 carat range showed a 194% increase in gross sales and a 114% increase in volume. The 4.50 to 5 carat range peaked with ourstanding 582% increase in gross sales, while the 5.50 to 6 carat category grew by 78%.
The diamond industry can go any direction from this point. “It is not easy to predict the way in which the market will develop,” Avi Krawitz of Rapaport News said. However, some things are easier to forecast, and with such a tremendous year for the lab-grown market, the analysts are expecting further records in 2023. According to Paul Zimnisky, the demand for man-made diamond jewelry increased by 38% in 2022, and this momentum continues in 2023. At the same time, more and more local jewelry retailers will have to adopt manufactured gemstones to compete with giants, such as Signet.
“It’s important to remember that lab-created diamonds are creating incremental demand for diamond jewelry that would otherwise not exist, especially at the lower price points. Looking longer-term, this incremental demand will likely continue to grow,” Zimnisky said. The global market of manufactured stones is projected to reach $49.9 billion by 2030, and 2022 showed that this projection is very likely to come true.
