JCK is always a fun, fast-paced, and exciting trip to Vegas. There are trends to see, friends to meet, and new ideas to discuss.
Here are a few big takeaways from JCK 2023.
Retailers are positive. Business is within range of 2022, a banner year.
Classic Styles
Design trends are focused on classic styles. Tennis bracelets, riviera necklaces, hoops, and eternity bands were on display.
Similarly, bridal styling was concentrated on solitaires, 3-stones, elegant diamond shanks.
Lab diamonds are ubiquitous - LGD were on display throughout show. The increase in lab diamond supply has outpaced demand growth; hence the lower prices.
Raising the average retail ticket (either by selling more carats and/or natural diamonds) was a key discussion topic.
Fancy-shape natural diamonds especially ovals are very popular, while round demand is muted. There is a shortage of desirable natural diamonds, and production is expected to decrease over summer months.
Attendance/Traffic: On Friday morning, there were long registration lines, but the aisles felt empty on Saturday and Monday. The ground floor with tools and international exhibitors was quite busy.
Coolest Thing I Saw: Imagine a future where diamonds are cut by machine, save final polish. With an $800K price tag, the Synova diamond cutting solution automates the diamond cutting process. While expensive, the DaVinci cutting tool may disrupt the generations old pipeline and democratize diamond cutting.
