Lab-made diamonds are posing threat to the natural ones

(The Business Insider) - Lab-made, synthetic diamonds are becoming increasingly similar in quality, cut, and clarity to natural ones. Technological advances has resulted in their growing use and acceptance in industry – but cracking the luxury consumer market is the final frontier. An immediate threat that synthetic diamonds pose to the traditional industry is from those that are falsely marketed as natural. But this is a relatively manageable threat. The bigger threat comes from losing market share to consumers who might consciously choose synthetic diamonds over natural ones. The natural diamond industry is still suffering from increased awareness of “blood diamonds” – diamonds that have been used to finance conflict. The synthetic diamond industry has exploited this trust by marketing theirs as “conflict-free” and “ethical”. But there’s another issue, which cuts to the core of why diamonds are considered so valuable and are such a mainstay of the jewellery industry. It’s all to do with what people perceive to be valuable.