In a world oversaturated with hyperpop “performers” who rest on imitation and gimmick, Diamond delivers pure artistry. Her set was a mixture of singles from her 2019 record Reflections and highlights from her career. It was also a great reminder of how far she has come as a performer since her debut album Perfect Picture.

While short-term market trajectories are shaped by traditional industry factors such as affordability and desirability, long-term growth is likely to be driven by value chain efficiency and the buying experience. Achieving efficiency requires smooth inventory transition processes, price parity that allows players to earn sustainable profits and reinvest into marketing support and new products. The buying experience is influenced by the availability of retail outlets, omnichannel access and delightful customer experiences, including phygital interactions.

A digital pipeline for business-to-business (B2B) trade emerged during the pandemic, with a number of platforms launching or expanding UNI diamonds, Get-Diamonds Diamond Ltd and Clara Diamond Solutions. Online sales for consumers continued to grow as well, with some major retailers reporting up to 20% of their sales occurring online during 2020. The online channel also offers new opportunities for the industry to promote diamond certification initiatives and to offer warranties and generous return and delivery policies.

The diamond industry has also been embracing beneficiation and mine-to-market partnerships to improve transparency. In addition to the resumption of the De Beers-led Code of Conduct, many miners are deploying a variety of traceability measures – from the mining giant’s tracr platform to the noninvasive laser marking technology developed by Sarine – in order to provide consumers with the ability to track their diamonds and their journey to market.

Consumers are becoming more discerning, which is driving a new generation of jewelry stores and e-tailers who offer an array of brands and product types. The era of one-size-fits-all marketing is over, and in order to succeed going forward, diamond companies need tools to monitor shifting customer sentiments and priorities, leverage data analytics and ramp up personalization.

Aber’s rough diamond marketing operations are based in one of the world’s diamond centres, Antwerp, Belgium. In the retail segment, the Company participates through its 51% controlling interest in Harry Winston, Inc. (“Harry Winston”), a renowned brand with a 70-year history of selling high-end diamond and jewelry to a selective and elite clientele. Aber’s management believes that it is unlikely that any significant changes to its current marketing strategy will have a material adverse impact on the Company’s future results.