Photo by: Duane Daws
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – De Beers’ diamond brand Forevermark announced on Friday that 2013 had been a strong year of growth, driven predominantly by continued consumer demand in its core markets China, the US, India and Japan.
“The brand has performed exceptionally well in the last year. We are now fully established as a globally recognised brand with presence in over 1 300 retail outlets across 12 major markets,” commented CEO Stephen Lussier.
Expansion had progressed “rapidly” since the brand launched in 2008, with the number of stores selling Forevermark diamonds increasing by almost 40% in the last year alone.
The company’s licensee programme also saw launches in Australia, Brunei, Kuwait and producer country Namibia, in 2013.
Forevermark recently announced that a second inscription and grading facility would open early next year in Surat, India, to meet the continued demand.
Since 2009, grading and inscription numbers had increased by 666% and 426% respectively, with over 870 000 diamonds having been inscribed with a unique Forevermark inscription number and icon.
The second half of 2013 saw the launch of the brand’s fourth design collection, Cornerstones, which helped to drive significant sales for its partners during the key end-of-year sales period.
Lussier added that the company had ambitious plans for 2014.
“We are excited about the year ahead; increasing distribution in our core markets and expanding into new markets remain our priorities. We are in a very strong position to realise our goal to become the world’s leading diamond brand,” he noted.