Tiffany, Macy’s Among Retailers Closing US Stores

 A growing number of US retailers, including Tiffany & Co., are temporarily shuttering all locations across North America in an effort to stem the coronavirus spread.

“Effective immediately, we’re temporarily closing all Tiffany stores in the US and Canada, as well as many other locations globally, to protect our teams, clients and communities,” the jeweler said in an Instagram post Tuesday. “Now more than ever it is time for us to take care of the ones we love.”

Macy’s closed all its stores nationwide as of close of business Tuesday, including its Bloomingdale’s department-store chain. However, all its brands will continue to operate via online sites and mobile apps, it noted. 

“The health and safety of our customers, colleagues and communities is our utmost priority,” Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette said Tuesday. “We will work with government and health officials to assess when we will reopen.”

J.C. Penney followed suit Wednesday, shutting all stores and business offices in the country, noting operations were currently slated to resume April 2.

Nordstrom has also announced it will suspend operations at all its North American stores, yet the company has limited the closure to a two-week period, it said. During that time it will offer curbside pickup for online orders. Meanwhile, Saks department store has shut its New York and Philadelphia locations, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Meanwhile, Pandora will not only close its US-based stores, but will shut locations in Italy, Spain, Germany and France, among others. It has also encouraged its franchisees and multi-branded partners in affected markets to cease operations voluntarily.

Signet Jewelers has not declared official plans to close any stores, but said it would follow the advice of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our employees and customers,” David Bouffard, Signet’s vice president of corporate affairs, told Rapaport News Wednesday.

Signet shares were down 35% since start of trading on Wednesday, March 11, while Macy’s dropped 29% and Tiffany slipped 11%.

Source: DCLA

Tiffany, Macy’s Among Retailers Closing US Stores

 A growing number of US retailers, including Tiffany & Co., are temporarily shuttering all locations across North America in an effort to stem the coronavirus spread.

“Effective immediately, we’re temporarily closing all Tiffany stores in the US and Canada, as well as many other locations globally, to protect our teams, clients and communities,” the jeweler said in an Instagram post Tuesday. “Now more than ever it is time for us to take care of the ones we love.”

Macy’s closed all its stores nationwide as of close of business Tuesday, including its Bloomingdale’s department-store chain. However, all its brands will continue to operate via online sites and mobile apps, it noted. 

“The health and safety of our customers, colleagues and communities is our utmost priority,” Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette said Tuesday. “We will work with government and health officials to assess when we will reopen.”

J.C. Penney followed suit Wednesday, shutting all stores and business offices in the country, noting operations were currently slated to resume April 2.

Nordstrom has also announced it will suspend operations at all its North American stores, yet the company has limited the closure to a two-week period, it said. During that time it will offer curbside pickup for online orders. Meanwhile, Saks department store has shut its New York and Philadelphia locations, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Meanwhile, Pandora will not only close its US-based stores, but will shut locations in Italy, Spain, Germany and France, among others. It has also encouraged its franchisees and multi-branded partners in affected markets to cease operations voluntarily.

Signet Jewelers has not declared official plans to close any stores, but said it would follow the advice of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our employees and customers,” David Bouffard, Signet’s vice president of corporate affairs, told Rapaport News Wednesday.

Signet shares were down 35% since start of trading on Wednesday, March 11, while Macy’s dropped 29% and Tiffany slipped 11%.

Source: DCLA

Sarine Ushers In Era of In-Factory Grading

Sarine Technologies has launched a new platform enabling manufacturers to tap its automated grading systems and issue a report in-house to support the needs of jewelers.

The company this week introduced its eGrading innovation via a video campaign on YouTube claiming the concept would “change diamond grading forever.” It allows manufacturers to self-execute third-party grading of the 4Cs — cut, carat weight, color and clarity — along with other personalized parameters required by the jeweler, without having to send the diamond to a grading laboratory.

“We believe the market is moving in this direction and our technology is now mature enough to make that happen,” CEO David Block told Rapaport News in a briefing at Sarine’s innovation center in Hod Hasharon, Israel.

“The digital aspect opens up the possibility to customize the report, which is difficult for a lab to achieve,” Block explained. “Once you grade the diamond at the source, the manufacturer is now responsible for its own destiny.”

The initiative builds on Sarine’s automated grading systems, with the company first announcing its ability to automate the grading of color and clarity, and therefore all the 4Cs, in 2016. It uses artificial intelligence (AI) machine learning to assess the grading results of tens of thousands of diamonds to arrive confidently at its color and clarity decision.

Empowering the manufacturer to execute the report enables it to provide a more personalized service to the jeweler. Block believes eGrading will improve efficiency for manufacturers, since they don’t have to send the stone out to the lab, while still using third-party verification. This saves on the time, expense, and opportunity cost of not having the diamond available to sell. And the retailer benefits from being able to tap the right goods from its supplier in a shorter period.

Netflix vs. Blockbuster

He drew on the experience of the home-video market as an indicator of how eGrading could improve a jeweler’s sourcing capability.

Netflix can suggest movies you might enjoy based on your past viewing history and allows you to watch the trailer before deciding what to watch — from the comfort of your home. That’s a stark contrast to the Blockbuster model, where you had to go to the store and choose a movie you might not like, Block noted.

“Diamond grading is still in the Blockbuster days, where I need to send my diamond to the lab and wait for them to finish grading. They decide what goes in first and I get the stone back with certain criteria that are generally not good enough for me as I go out and sell the diamond,” he added, explaining that lab certificates are too generic.

While the retailer might want to emphasize other parameters such as the stone’s fluorescence, or different types of inclusions, among others, Block asserts it is difficult and expensive for the labs to go into the required level of detail.

Market ready

Sarine claims its technology will provide those details as the system evolves, using the same AI machine-learning principles in other parameters as it applies for color and clarity grading.

In that sense, its eGrading program isn’t a finished product, and probably never will be, because Sarine’s systems are constantly evolving and improving, according to Block. “We’re presenting our vision for where the market is heading and we have developed the technology that we believe makes this possible,” he stressed.

The company expects to reach several new milestones in 2020 as it rolls the program out to the market, Block assured, without divulging what those might be.

He believes the industry is more than ready to embrace the cultural change the company is proposing, observing that the “the midstream is very tech-savvy.”

A means to an end

Block also recognized that others may be entering the same space. Representatives from De Beers and the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) joined Block in a panel discussion at the Dubai Diamond Conference in September by asserting that automation of diamond processes will come “sooner than you think.” Each independently stressed that they’re ready to propose a solution.

Sarine is confident it can lead the way in the diamond industry’s “tech revolution,” given that technology is its core competency. Other companies that develop technology are also focused on other areas within the diamond pipeline. Technology, he emphasized, is going to play a big part in bringing about dramatic changes in the diamond industry.

In that spirit, the objective of Sarine’s eGrading initiative is to realign the emphasis currently placed on grading reports, Block added.

“Diamond grading is not a goal in and of itself. Rather, the objective is to help price a diamond and to help source what you’re looking for,” Block said. “We’re looking at how we can improve the process to get to that goal of how to source the diamond. How people source diamonds will change. It’s natural that the industry will shift in this direction.”

Source: DCLA

Sarine Ushers In Era of In-Factory Grading

Sarine Technologies has launched a new platform enabling manufacturers to tap its automated grading systems and issue a report in-house to support the needs of jewelers.

The company this week introduced its eGrading innovation via a video campaign on YouTube claiming the concept would “change diamond grading forever.” It allows manufacturers to self-execute third-party grading of the 4Cs — cut, carat weight, color and clarity — along with other personalized parameters required by the jeweler, without having to send the diamond to a grading laboratory.

“We believe the market is moving in this direction and our technology is now mature enough to make that happen,” CEO David Block told Rapaport News in a briefing at Sarine’s innovation center in Hod Hasharon, Israel.

“The digital aspect opens up the possibility to customize the report, which is difficult for a lab to achieve,” Block explained. “Once you grade the diamond at the source, the manufacturer is now responsible for its own destiny.”

The initiative builds on Sarine’s automated grading systems, with the company first announcing its ability to automate the grading of color and clarity, and therefore all the 4Cs, in 2016. It uses artificial intelligence (AI) machine learning to assess the grading results of tens of thousands of diamonds to arrive confidently at its color and clarity decision.

Empowering the manufacturer to execute the report enables it to provide a more personalized service to the jeweler. Block believes eGrading will improve efficiency for manufacturers, since they don’t have to send the stone out to the lab, while still using third-party verification. This saves on the time, expense, and opportunity cost of not having the diamond available to sell. And the retailer benefits from being able to tap the right goods from its supplier in a shorter period.

Netflix vs. Blockbuster

He drew on the experience of the home-video market as an indicator of how eGrading could improve a jeweler’s sourcing capability.

Netflix can suggest movies you might enjoy based on your past viewing history and allows you to watch the trailer before deciding what to watch — from the comfort of your home. That’s a stark contrast to the Blockbuster model, where you had to go to the store and choose a movie you might not like, Block noted.

“Diamond grading is still in the Blockbuster days, where I need to send my diamond to the lab and wait for them to finish grading. They decide what goes in first and I get the stone back with certain criteria that are generally not good enough for me as I go out and sell the diamond,” he added, explaining that lab certificates are too generic.

While the retailer might want to emphasize other parameters such as the stone’s fluorescence, or different types of inclusions, among others, Block asserts it is difficult and expensive for the labs to go into the required level of detail.

Market ready

Sarine claims its technology will provide those details as the system evolves, using the same AI machine-learning principles in other parameters as it applies for color and clarity grading.

In that sense, its eGrading program isn’t a finished product, and probably never will be, because Sarine’s systems are constantly evolving and improving, according to Block. “We’re presenting our vision for where the market is heading and we have developed the technology that we believe makes this possible,” he stressed.

The company expects to reach several new milestones in 2020 as it rolls the program out to the market, Block assured, without divulging what those might be.

He believes the industry is more than ready to embrace the cultural change the company is proposing, observing that the “the midstream is very tech-savvy.”

A means to an end

Block also recognized that others may be entering the same space. Representatives from De Beers and the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) joined Block in a panel discussion at the Dubai Diamond Conference in September by asserting that automation of diamond processes will come “sooner than you think.” Each independently stressed that they’re ready to propose a solution.

Sarine is confident it can lead the way in the diamond industry’s “tech revolution,” given that technology is its core competency. Other companies that develop technology are also focused on other areas within the diamond pipeline. Technology, he emphasized, is going to play a big part in bringing about dramatic changes in the diamond industry.

In that spirit, the objective of Sarine’s eGrading initiative is to realign the emphasis currently placed on grading reports, Block added.

“Diamond grading is not a goal in and of itself. Rather, the objective is to help price a diamond and to help source what you’re looking for,” Block said. “We’re looking at how we can improve the process to get to that goal of how to source the diamond. How people source diamonds will change. It’s natural that the industry will shift in this direction.”

Source: DCLA

Gem Diamonds recovers 100 diamonds larger than 100 carats

Commenting on the results, Clifford Elphick, CEO of Gem Diamonds, says:

“Gem Diamonds delivered solid operational results which together with the targeted gains of the Business Transformation programme and continued emphasis on cost controls, confirmed our status as one of the lowest-cost producers in the industry.”

“The operational results were characterised by the achievement of all guided operational metrics and the recovery of 11 diamonds greater than 100 carats each, which also brought the total number of diamonds of greater than 100 carats recovered at the Letšeng mine to 100.

“This, together with a 13.32 carat pink diamond that was recovered and sold for a Letšeng record of US$656 934 per carat, reaffirms the unique quality of the Letšeng production.

“The Letšeng mining lease was renewed for an effective 20-year period which creates long-term stability for Letšeng.

“This, together with the continued emphasis on cost controls, positions the Company well for an upturn in the market for Letšeng’s quality production which appears to have begun.”

Source: DCLA

Gem Diamonds recovers 100 diamonds larger than 100 carats

Commenting on the results, Clifford Elphick, CEO of Gem Diamonds, says:

“Gem Diamonds delivered solid operational results which together with the targeted gains of the Business Transformation programme and continued emphasis on cost controls, confirmed our status as one of the lowest-cost producers in the industry.”

“The operational results were characterised by the achievement of all guided operational metrics and the recovery of 11 diamonds greater than 100 carats each, which also brought the total number of diamonds of greater than 100 carats recovered at the Letšeng mine to 100.

“This, together with a 13.32 carat pink diamond that was recovered and sold for a Letšeng record of US$656 934 per carat, reaffirms the unique quality of the Letšeng production.

“The Letšeng mining lease was renewed for an effective 20-year period which creates long-term stability for Letšeng.

“This, together with the continued emphasis on cost controls, positions the Company well for an upturn in the market for Letšeng’s quality production which appears to have begun.”

Source: DCLA

Lucapa closer to uncovering Lulo kimberlite source

Lucapa Diamond Company has made some significant progress in its search for the kimberlite source of the high-value alluvial diamonds being mined at the Lulo diamond project in Angola.

Following highly-encouraging tributary sampling results in February 2020, the project Lulo partners commenced a drilling programme in the Canguige catchment area targeting five kimberlite pipes considered prospective to host diamonds, along with two additional priority anomalies.

Once the existing priority kimberlites are drilled, kimberlite bulk samples from these five pipes will be excavated for processing to test for diamonds.

Source: DCLA

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