The winner of the newly-added “Lab-Grown Diamond and/or Gemstone Jewelry” category in 2016 JCK Jewellers’ Choice Awards, Chatham’s 14-karat yellow gold pendant sets with a 4.71-carat synthetic padparadscha sapphire and natural diamonds priced at US$1,995. The synthetic jewel apparently embodies the merits of synthetic gemstones: beautiful, reproducible and affordable. As synthetic gemstones are gaining momentum thanks to the changing global economic and market situations, Hong Kong Jewellery speaks with industry players to find out more on the status and future of synthetic gemstones.
Since about 10 years ago, synthetic gemstones and especially cubic zirconia (CZ) have become more and more popular and fashionable in every market, said Clément Petit of Dalloz, France. Currently, CZ constitutes around 70 to 80 percent of Dalloz’s sales of synthetic gemstones worldwide, followed by synthetic spinel and corundum. Each year they produce a billion stones with 80 percent of their CZ sales coming from white CZ. In addition, they started producing nano stones a few years ago and are now developing new colour ranges. Although nano stone remains one of their subsidiary activities, they are willing to support the increasing demand for it.
According to Petit, the synthetic stone industry seems to be more concentrated. A lot of new manufacturers entered a few years ago, which resulted in a price war especially in CZ. Consequently, prices dropped dramatically and it was tough for many manufacturers. Some of them could not keep the quality and supply, and some went out of business. He expected that it will remove weaker businesses so fewer players will stay in the future.
In terms of price, the rough prices of both CZ and other synthetic gemstones have decreased. For white CZ, rough prices have been divided by three to four between 2006 and 2016. For coloured CZs, rough prices have been divided by two over the last five years. The prices of synthetic rough spinel and corundum are now two times less than 10 years ago, Petit revealed.
A key advantage of synthetic gemstones is reproducibility. Walter Barshai of Tairus (Thailand), manufacturer of synthetic emerald and alexandrite explained: “If you want to make 1,000 identical rings with nine by seven emeralds, it’s very difficult with natural stones.” Originally from Russia, Tairus now has their stones cut in Thailand and keeps the rough production in Russia. Currently, their monthly production is between 50,000 to 100,000 carats. Apart from trade shows, they are selling online. Barshai observed that supply of synthetic gemstones has increased by 20 times since 1989 while the market price has dropped 10 times.
Within the family of synthetic gemstones, some are produced with natural gemstone scraps. Anupam Gems Japan, founded in 1975, specialises in recrystallised ruby, sapphire, emerald and alexandrite made from natural materials which are purchased from Colombia, Sri Lanka and Burma. The owner Anupam Thapar said his gemstones take approximately six months to grow. During the process natural-looking inclusions are formed, which give the product a realistic appearance. Recrystallised gemstones have the same chemical and physical properties as their natural counterparts, while the price is about 95 percent cheaper, so it is the choice of price-sensitive consumers, he said. He observed that the market of recrystallised stones has been growing since 20 years ago and the industry is expanding every day, while the reception of their product is the best now, given the current economic situation. The company currently boasts a monthly production of 10,000 carats, offering sizes up to 150 carats.
Louis Lo, director of Inter-Pacific Holdings Ltd and honourary chairman of Gemmological Association of Hong Kong recently talked about the production of various types of synthetic gemstones at a seminar. According to his estimates, about 30 tons of synthetic ruby or blue sapphire rough is produced monthly by Swiss, French and mainland Chinese manufacturers, and 100kg of synthetic emerald rough is produced monthly in Russia and mainland China. Over his career in the synthetic gemstone business of four decades, Lo witnessed that product innovation consistently drives prices of rough synthetic gemstone lower. Referring to the many terms used by the trade such as ‘created’ and ‘lab-grown’ for synthetic gemstones, he frankly said it is to make the product sound more expensive and special. Due to market and technological considerations, not all gemstones are synthesised. Examples include tourmaline which has a complex chemical structure and chrysoberyl cat’s eye which is complicated to replicate.
Lo predicted that demand for synthetic gemstones will grow due to several factors: affordability, design-friendliness (because if larger sizes), triumph over scarcity of the natural gemstone, more stable structure and the changing consumers behaviour which results in less spending on jewellery. Using opal as an example, while synthetic opal offers consistent play of colour, it could accommodate more designs than natural opal does. Natural opals may crack over time, while it will not happen to synthetic opals.
Speaking of the future of synthetic gemstones, Clément Petit of Dalloz thinks using natural gemstone for jewellery is not an end in itself. Synthetic gemstones can be used in the higher end if people find the right way to market it. In Lo’s view, as the supply of natural gemstones is diminishing, the high-end jewellery market is beginning to accept synthetic gemstones. He added that to maintain turnover and adapt to the younger generation’s buying behaviour, jewellery manufacturers will have to start using synthetic gemstones for their high-end collections.
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