Turquoise, tourmaline, peridot, sunstone, sapphire and amethyst…these are just some of the extraordinary, natural gemstones that have been mined from American soil. From New England to California, the U.S. has long produced exceptional gems, some with origins of mythical proportions. Think of Sleeping Beauty turquoise or the richly colored tourmaline from Pala International’s Tourmaline Queen and Himalaya ventures in California. The mine, even if it’s no longer producing, has become the gemstone brand.
Yet despite America’s mining history and rich geology, U.S. production currently ranks well below other gem-producing countries, including Brazil, Madagascar, India and Russia. Domestic labor costs coupled with stringent land-use regulations are cited as reasons why American rough is too expensive and too difficult to mine to be profitable. And of course, there’s also the question of supply. New explorations are expensive to undertake and not without risk — of either the physical or financial variety.
But market forces may make the extra costs worth it all. Consumer interest in ethical sourcing is at an all-time high and there’s no easier way to determine provenance, safe conditions and worker health than with domestic mining operations. There’s also a growing fascination with bold, colored stone jewelry. Leading jewelry houses have all recently introduced gorgeous, brilliant new collections where colored gems, including ethically sourced product, serve as the fashionable focal point. These include Giardini Italiani from Bulgari, Cartier’s Étourdissant and Chopard’s collection, Rihanna Loves Chopard.
The Right Time
With the stars aligned, marketing gems with an established American pedigree is beginning to make sense, not only for dealers but for retailers as well. “Gems have always been mined in the U.S.,” says Eric Braunwart, president of Columbia Gem House, “but they are really enjoying a surging popularity today.” One of the company’s newest programs, GemAmerica, markets jewelry featuring American gems from small, artisanal miners throughout the country, including Arizona amethyst and peridot, Idaho garnet, Montana sapphire, Oregon opal and sunstone, as well as white and smoky quartz.
Jewelers that can impart a meaning to the gems they sell have done particularly well, says Braunwart. Despite a record closing of traditional jewelry businesses in 2016, small boutique operations, like the Williamsburg, Brooklyn–based Mociun, have flourished by embracing ethical practices. A jewelry salon with both brick-and-mortar and online stores, Mociun sells delicately designed, simple-yet-elegant jewelry using “quality sourced ethical gemstones and recycled materials.” These are businesses, says Braunwart, which have successfully embraced the Fair Trade message.
Sending a Fair Trade Message
In April of this year, one of the pioneering firms in the branding of American gemstones, Sapphires of Montana, united its efforts with the Vancouver, Washington–based Columbia Gem House to sell Fair Trade Montana sapphires in loose and finished goods. The resulting entity will be called, “Sapphires of Montana by Columbia Gem House.”
Lisa Brooks-Pike, who founded Sapphires of Montana with Margo Bedman in 2012, has always felt strongly about promoting mined in America. An early appearance on QVC gave Sapphires of Montana bolstered its reputation and gave it the volume they needed early in its rise. Now, as Sales and Marketing Director for Columbia Gem House, Brooks-Pike says she and Braunwart are set to promote finished jewelry with a tight chain of custody called Conscious Choice. The new “custom curated” line, which debuted at the AGTA GemFair at the JCK Show in June, includes jewelry and loose goods, all made in the U.S.A. using recycled precious metals and Fair Trade gems from levels 1 through 3. The levels are based on Fair Trade Protocols developed by Columbia Gem House in alignment with the Kimberley Process (KP) and established Fair Trade practices.
What do such levels mean? Simply put, Level 1 is the highest Fair Trade grade — the company can follow the gems straight back to the mine of origin and verify all areas of mining, cutting and procurement. Level 2 follows the gemstones to the rough broker who communicates the company’s Fair Trade principles to mine operations and verifies compliance. Level 3 guarantees that the gemstones’ country of origin is not financing any civil wars and the stones are legally exported and cut in workshops that meet Columbia Gem House’s standards.
In an effort to help Main Street jewelers to adopt and market both the Conscious Choice and other Fair Trade merchandise it sells, Columbia Gem House is providing easy-to-use social media materials to each customer. With a working title of “Fair Trade University,” product images and posts will focus on transparent Fair Trade sourcing, products and education.
It’s a program undeniably focused on Millennials — young consumers born between 1980 and 2000 who use social media as a way to promote the products they buy, aspire to buy or believe in. And those young customers, says Braunwart, are not going into jewelry stores. “Young people don’t think or buy the way their parents do,” he says. “We all have to adapt to thrive.”
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - July 2017. To subscribe click here.