New Umbrella Diamond Industry Organization: Role Endorsed

The second meeting of a new diamond industry organization that will manage generic marketing was held in London Tuesday, focusing on suggestions on how the organization should operate, financed and governed.

The meeting, widen from 17 participants at the initial meeting at St Petersburg to more than 60, discussed the opportunity of a new diamond industry organization to engage in category marketing and advocacy of major industry issues the group said in a release Wednesday morning.

“Participants in the London meeting focused on the results of research on the role similar organizations effectively play in other industries, the business case for category marketing and related governance and funding issues,” the release states.

“It was agreed to form a working group including leading diamond producers, the existing industry organizations IDMA, WFDB and GJEPC, and leading representatives from the diamond cutting and wholesale sector to further pursue the concept and to communicate on progress to the broader industry.”

After De Beers chose to relinquish its custodian role, it wished to end its heavy investment in generic advertising in the U.S., calling on the industry to pitch in. Alrosa’s President Sergey Vybornov initiated the first meeting, and the proposed body is the outcome of that meeting.