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Surat’s lab grown diamonds market soars amid talk of a recession
Despite claims that the diamond industry is in a slump, the city's lab-grown diamond production and sales have increased by 500 to 600 percent.
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Greenlab artifically grown diamonds in Surat. / Courtesy Photo-Greenlab
The city of Surat in the western Indian state of Gujarat has emerged in the past five or six years as a center for labgrown diamonds. There has been a steady rise in the demand for labgrown diamonds, particularly in the American, Japanese, and Hong Kong markets.
Diamonds found in the valley are formed naturally beneath the earth's surface over time. Laboratory-grown diamonds are created in the same way, but in a shorter time frame. These diamonds are created in two steps over the course of a few weeks.
Despite claims that the diamond industry is in a slump, the city's lab-grown diamond production and sales have increased by 500 to 600 percent. Locals who are making it big in the diamond trade claim business is booming right now.
Mukesh Patel, a prominent figure in Surat's diamond industry and creator of the product under the brand name Green Lab, claims that labgrown diamonds are identical to natural diamonds. He used the analogy of a baby born through in vitro fertilization to explain labgrown diamonds, noting that while the process is different, the end product is identical to that of naturally occurring diamonds.
According to Patel, 50 to 40 percent of Hong Kong's natural diamond offices have closed in the last six months. Even at low prices, Chinese consumers are unwilling to purchase these diamonds. The demand for lab grown diamonds has increased in America, Japan, and China. “If we talk in America, if a diamond with a cross goes for $15000 a piece and I have a demand of 3000 pieces in a month. That means there is no recession in the market,” he said.
"The saying goes that diamonds are forever, but I want labgrown diamonds to be for everyone," Patel continued, noting that approximately 60 percent of gem artists now work in lab grown diamonds, and their standard of living has improved even further than before.
Kurjibhai Makwana, a jeweler working in Greenlab, said,”I have been working as a jeweler for the last 30 years, I have worked in natural diamonds for 25 years; and I have been working here in labgrown diamonds for the last five years. What I earned in 25 years, I have earned in these five years. There was a time when I was earning 25,000 (approx.$300) a month, currently I earn two lakhs ($2400).”
Smit Patel, another diamond manufacturer, commented on the ongoing recession in the diamond industry, saying, "If I talk about myself, I do not have enough time to talk about the recession because I have many orders from America, which is the biggest lab grown market and I am not getting time to fulfill those orders so I don't think it is time for a recession in the diamond industry.”
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