Industry Launches New Lab-Grown Association

RAPAPORT... Two jewelry veterans have debuted a group that aims toincrease awareness of, and demand for, lab-grown diamonds in the US. The Lab Grown Diamond Council (LGDC) will introduce newinitiatives for the synthetics market, including research services, socialmedia and education about sustainability. Chris Casey, the former publisher of National Jeweler,will serve as the group's president, and Michael Barlerin, director of theSilver Institute's Silver Promotion Service, will be its chairman. "LGDC has been established to create a unified voice tomaximize the growth of lab-grown diamonds," Casey said last week. "Our intentis to provide members with the tools they need to continue to drive the growthof this revolutionary product." Membership in the council is open to all companies active inthe synthetics market, or contemplating entry, LGDC noted. "Many leading companies in the lab-grown market haveapproached me over the last year regarding the need for focused, research-basedmessaging on advocacy, communications and education of the unique offering oflab-grown diamonds," said Barlerin. "The LGDC creates the platform to bothdevelop and deliver on these needs." Another group, the International Grown Diamond Association (IGDA), was launched by more than 10 lab-grown-diamond producers in 2016 to represent the sector. It also aims to promote synthetics and educate consumers about them. Image: Chris Casey. (Chris Casey/LinkedIn)