// Pandora will ditch mined diamonds and switch to lab-grown stones
// The new Pandora Brilliance range is described as its “first lab-created diamond collection”
// The range includes earrings, necklaces and rings, with prices starting at £250
Pandora has announced it will stop selling mined diamonds with the switch to lab-grown stones billed as making its jewellery more affordable.
The jeweller said it is the first big retailer to completely switch to lab-grown stones following increased ethical concerns.
Pandora’s new Pandora Brilliance range is described as its “first lab-created diamond collection”.
READ MORE: Pandora sales rise despite lockdowns closing 25% of store estate
The range, which includes earrings, necklaces and rings, features lab-grown stones made in the UK, with prices starting at £250.
“It is now possible to mimic nature but at a very, very different price,” Pandora chief executive Alexander Lacik said.
“Lab-grown diamonds could be produced for a third of what it is for something that we’ve dug up from the ground.”
Concerns about the environment and working practices in the mining industry have led to growing demand for alternatives to mined diamonds.
Pandora sells 85m trinkets a year, but only 50,000 feature diamonds making it a small player in the gems market.
Pandora said demand for lab-grown diamonds was growing faster than the overall diamond jewellery market.
The stones are graded by the same standards as mined ones known as the “4Cs” – cut, colour, clarity and carat.
The Brilliance range is going on sale in the UK first and is advertised as carbon neutral because the diamonds are made with 60 per cent renewable energy.
It is set to go on sale in other markets next year.
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