Diamond World (DW) November- December 2020

Personality
How have exquisite rare gemstones
faired since Covid-19?
The situation created by Covid-19
has highlighted gemstones’ rarity and
coloured gemstone prices have not
dipped; if anything, their prices have
increased slightly. In times like these,
people who have money want tangible
assets -people want to put their money
into an asset. I think they are becoming
more aware of what rarity means.
Though the value of sought-after
gemstones like Pigeon Blood
Rubies or Kashmiri Sapphires
have markedly increased over the
years, the awareness regarding
these gemstones are still relatively
low (as compared to diamonds).
Especially in markets like India,
colour gemstones don’t hold the
same value – how can we as an
industry collectively change this
mindset?
We have had 100 years of De Beers
telling everyone that white diamonds
are rare and they have done a fantastic
job of marketing white diamonds. Never
underestimate the power of marketing.
If you throw millions at a concept over
decades, it gets ingrained in people’s
awareness. Going forward, writing
about the coloured gemstone market
is how we will collectively change this
market. I do love diamonds - out of all
the white stones it is the best stone by
miles, no other stone has its adamantine
lustre - but white diamonds are not rare.
There are more natural diamonds than
demand, whereas there are not as many
natural rubies. There is no comparison
between the two. You can afford an
untreated, no-HPHT white diamond,
but an unheated ruby is often out of
reach. People gravitate towards white
diamonds because they can afford
them, like for like with rubies.
In the auction world, there has
truly been a digital revolution
- do you think the good old days
of physical auctions and the whole
excitement of bidding live is going
to be less seen in the post-Covid
world?
I love the auction world; I was brought
up in it. I was an auctioneer and have
always found the excitement in the
room intoxicating. For the buyer, it
may be a time-consuming activity, but I
still think that the physical experience
is preferable. Timed auctions online
are stressful: they rush at the end and
you may not be able to get your bid
in. If you were there in person, the
auctioneer would see you trying to
place a bid and would wait. There is
Bina Goenka x Gemfields x WFG,
Palm Earrings
still an excitement of bidding live, but
it will just be online or by phone with an
auctioneer watching over. I believe you
still need to see the jewels in person, or
you need to have an unbiased opinion,
which often isn’t easy to find. (I have,
in fact, become part of Omnêque a
website selling antique and vintage
fine jewellery and every piece has been
seen and vetted by me. It will soon
also include gemstones.) The auction
world this year has proven that people
will still buy without seeing but, as
the 100-carat white diamond recently
showed, sometimes higher prices are
not achieved. People have had time to
slow down and consider what they read
and whose advice they take and this
new approach is reflected in jewellery
sales: good jewels (signed jewels) and
gemstones have done well, but large
diamonds have not.
What are some of the definitive
fine-jewellery trends (in terms of
design) can we expect world-over,
after Covid 19?
I don’t know… I don’t have a crystal
ball! What I like to promote is
real craftspeople and beautifully
handcrafted jewels, whether they are
antique or contemporary. Fine jewellery
DiamonD WorlD | November-December 2020 | 69