Larry Charridan, a jeweler, explains why lab diamonds have captured 65% of engagement purchases in 2024. A 1-carat lab diamond costs $1,000 retail versus $5,000-$10,000 for natural, and they're visually identical. The tradeoff: lab diamonds have almost no resale value because they're not rare.
So today, I'm here with Larry Charridan at Great American Jewelry, and Larry is an expert in all jewelry, specifically diamonds, and even more specifically, lab-created diamonds. This guy knows everything, and he's my go-to. So today, we're going to go over some questions that a lot of people have, and we'll talk a lot about the lab-created diamonds and how everything goes with them. So, Larry, Husband and wife come in here and they're trying to figure out what's the best option. If they're thinking about lab-created diamonds, what would you tell them?
Well, first, the best option is to find something that you— a piece of jewelry that you love. Starting with the lab-created diamonds versus a mined diamond, the difference between the two In terms of what it looks like in a ring or in a necklace or in earrings, it's exactly the same because they're both diamonds and there's no difference between the two. The only difference is that one is created beneath the earth and one is created above the earth by man. In general, this lab term was— is the generic term that's become accepted by the jewelry industry and the public. It was kind of done for maybe to make these diamonds The first lab-created diamond was created in a General Electric laboratory in 1954 in upstate New York. So when you hear about a diamond that was created in a laboratory, that is where it first started. However, today these diamonds are created in diamond factories. They're not diamond laboratories. laboratories, the diamond factories that produce many diamonds, and after the rough part of it is cut, it is the same process of cutting the diamonds whether it's a mined diamond or a lab diamond. So I would say first, see something that you like. If you like a piece of jewelry or if you like a diamond and it's less expensive because it's created above the earth, then it's yours to choose. If you prefer a mined diamond because it came from beneath the earth, and it's natural, then that's the choose. In terms of the appearance of the piece of jewelry, they'll be the same.
So they'll be absolutely the same, and if, as a jeweler, if you see those 2 diamonds together, would you be able to tell the difference with your naked eye or even with a loupe?
The biggest fear of this as a jeweler is that when presented with these 2 diamonds, Either mounted or loose, it is virtually impossible to tell the difference. As a matter of fact, the US government, the Commerce Department, says that a diamond is a diamond is a diamond, whether it was discovered beneath the earth or it was created above the earth. They're 100% both the same. So it is virtually impossible to tell definitively whether this diamond was created beneath the earth by nature or it was created above the earth.
And what is the price difference?
On a retail level, the price difference is significant. A 1-carat diamond that costs $5,000 to $10,000 at retail price could be costing $1,000 in the same simple engagement ring. So the price is extraordinary. On the wholesale level, the price is even More powerful, the difference between a diamond created beneath the earth, which has more rarity, and a diamond created above the earth. The price on a wholesale level can be the difference between $150 to $200 for a wholesale 1-carat diamond. $3,000 to $6,000 for the same diamond in a mined version, which is overwhelming.
You have a lot more to choose from. In your— you do this for a long time, and anyone who gets married, Larry's the guy to go to when you're looking for a ring. What would you say percentages-wise are going lab as to In the past, let's say, year? It—
in the history of diamonds, it is fascinating that with the speed of light, the transformation in the percentage of people who select a diamond created beneath the earth— you can call it a natural diamond or a mined diamond— and a diamond that is created above the earth. the generic term being lab. So I would say if we went back 4 years ago, 12% of the engagement population purchased a diamond that was lab, diamond created above the earth by man in a diamond factory, a lab diamond. In 2022, it rose to about 25%. In 2023, it rose to about 35%, and in 2024, currently, the people selecting a diamond engagement ring created above the earth is 65% transformed their selection to a diamond created above the earth.
That's amazing. So you're saying that in today's world, more people are going lab than natural. And I should correct my terms speaking to Larry. So what was that? What's a better term than lab that I should use?
No, lab is the term that is chosen by the diamond industry. But I, as an independent jeweler, don't follow all the rules and regulations and traditions of the diamond industry. The point of engagement with a guest who comes into our store is probably the most important moment that we have the opportunity to create a lifetime relationship with the customers when they're getting engaged. When a man and a woman decide to spend one life together, and if we're able to share with them the purchase of an engagement ring, it's an emotional moment.
Yeah.
It's an exciting moment. It's a time when they're trusting in us to find the perfect gift to express their— and communicate their love for each other. It has nothing to do whether a diamond was created in a laboratory, which is a very— it's really not the most romantic expression. It's about the love. That's why I don't prefer, you know—
What?
We create— we are artists that want to create a magnificent piece of jewelry, an engagement ring that will sweep them off their feet. We don't want to get into this generic laboratory experience because love is not laboratory. Of course.
Yeah, it sounds like a little bit of a tricky term. The last question I have, which some people, many people ask, is Down the line resale value of a lab-created diamond, so to speak.
Yeah, what, what, what could you anticipate?
I don't know. I mean, I would assume that the price is— you're not going to get much money for a lab-created diamond once you go to sell it.
Okay, so because it's not as rare as a mined natural diamond, that price you pay less for when you buy it, and in the same turn, you're going to anticipate that you're going to pay less If you're selling it back to a wholesale buyer than a mined diamond, because you paid less initially because the going rate is less. So if you are looking at a diamond purchase as an investment, you're going to invest less. But if you're selling it back to a wholesaler, you can expect to get much less.
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