Wishing You a Prosperous 2026 – Industry Insights & Exciting Updates from The Gem Lab
Dear Valued Colleagues and Friends,
As we step into 2026, the entire team at The Gem Lab extends our warmest wishes to you and yours for a year filled with prosperity, health, and success in all your endeavours. We hope the festive season brought you time to recharge and reconnect with what matters most.
REFLECTIONS ON THE 2025 FESTIVE SEASON
The holiday retail landscape painted an interesting picture this year, one that tells us much about where our industry is heading. While we saw encouraging growth of 5-10% across the board, the story beneath these numbers reveals important shifts in consumer behaviour that I believe we should all be mindful of. What stood out most clearly was the pronounced movement toward affordability and practicality. Consumers are navigating their purchasing decisions with greater caution, showing a distinct preference for silver pieces and lighter-weight gold items. This isn’t necessarily a downturn—rather, it’s an evolution. People still want beautiful jewellery; they’re simply being more strategic about their investments. For those of us in the trade, understanding this shift means we can better align our offerings with what today’s customers are actually seeking.
THE LABORATORY GROWN DIAMOND REVOLUTION
The most dramatic transformation we’ve witnessed over the festive period—and indeed throughout 2025—has been the explosive growth in laboratory-grown diamond sales. The demand isn’t just increasing; it’s absolutely booming, and the primary driver is crystal clear: affordability. Consumers who previously might have hesitated at natural diamond price points are now able to access larger, higher-quality stones through laboratory-grown alternatives. This democratisation of diamond ownership is reshaping conversations at the retail counter and redefining what’s possible for customers at various price points. Whether we embrace it or approach it with caution, this is undeniably the reality of our current market.
A CRITICAL ALERT: MIXED PARCELS ON THE RISE
This brings me to something we’re increasingly encountering in our laboratory that demands your immediate attention: the mixing of laboratory-grown and natural diamonds within the same parcels or pieces. We’re seeing this more frequently than ever before, and I must stress how serious this issue is. Whether intentional or accidental, mixed parcels present enormous risks—to your reputation, your customer relationships, and potentially your legal standing. We’ve just invested in upgrading our diamond testing equipment specifically to stay ahead of these challenges, and even with state-of-the-art technology, we’re sometimes getting overlapping results that require additional, more sophisticated testing protocols. The sophistication of laboratory-grown diamonds has reached a point where standard testing is simply no longer sufficient. This is why maintaining rigorous testing standards and working with accredited laboratories has never been more critical. Please, verify every stone, every time—especially when dealing with new suppliers or unusually attractive pricing.
A CRITICAL ALERT: MIXED PARCELS ON THE RISE
As always, The Gem Lab team remains committed to supporting you with reliable testing, timely service, and the expertise you’ve come to depend on. As our industry continues to evolve—and it certainly is evolving rapidly—we’re here to help you navigate these changes with confidence.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions, concerns, or simply want to discuss any of the topics I’ve touched on here. Your success is our success, and these conversations help all of us stay sharp and informed.
Wishing you a fantastic 2026. Let’s make it a remarkable year together.
THE COSTLY LESSON: WHY PRE-CERTIFICATION MATTERS
Let me share a story from just after we closed for the holiday season. It’s one that perfectly illustrates a point I’ve been making for years, but which still catches colleagues off guard. A tanzanite supplier contacted me in a state of some panic. He had a jeweller client who was sitting across from a tourist customer, and one who was very interested in purchasing a substantial tanzanite. However, he absolutely insisted on seeing a gemstone report before committing to the purchase. Despite us having closed for the season, I agreed to help. Unfortunately, by the time we could arrange everything, the tourist had already left the country. The sale was lost. And given that this was a large tanzanite, the financial impact was significant. This scenario plays out somewhere in our industry multiple times every year, and it’s entirely preventable. Modern consumers, particularly international buyers, are educated, cautious, and increasingly insistent on documentation and certification before making significant purchases. They’ve read the articles, heard the stories, and done their research. A gemstone report isn’t a luxury anymore; for many buyers, it’s a prerequisite.
My plea to you is this: have your stones checked and certified before your client sits down across from you requesting one. By then, it’s too late. The moment of sale is not the moment to scramble for documentation. Build certification into your inventory management from the start, and you’ll never lose another sale because a report wasn’t available when it mattered most.
EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES: YOUR INPUT NEEDED
Last year’s one-day symposium in Namibia exceeded our expectations, and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. We’ve been asked to repeat it, which is wonderful. However, we’ve been thinking about how to make quality gemmological education accessible to even more of you. We’re considering offering an online seminar via Zoom webinar, structured as three focused one-hour sessions held on consecutive evenings. This format would allow participants from different time zones and with varying schedules to benefit from professional development without the travel and time commitments of in-person events.
The proposed curriculum would cover:
- Practical gem identification techniques
- Coloured stone grading and pricing methodologies
- Laboratory-grown diamond identification protocols and best practices
This would be particularly valuable for those who couldn’t make it to Namibia, or for team members who would benefit from this training but can’t spare a full day away from the business. I’ve included a brief poll below, and I’d be genuinely grateful if you’d take just a moment to share your thoughts. Would this format work for you? Is the content relevant to your current needs? Your feedback will directly shape whether and how we move forward with this initiative.
P.S. — A reminder that having your gemstones certified before they’re needed isn’t just good business practice; it’s increasingly becoming a competitive necessity. Let’s chat if you’d like to discuss how to build this into your workflow more seamlessly.
Basic Gem ID Course – One Day R2800
13 February
6 March
10 April
Practical Diamond Grading – Online plus One Day Practical R6500
20 February
13 March
24 April
Rough Diamond Course
R10000 run throughout the year