Fine jewelers like Monica Rich Kosann — in ways big and small — are upping innovation and sustainable jewelry offerings to get with the times.
The just-launched Diamonds Reborn initiative branches off into two collections — pairing repurposed century-old vintage diamonds (a repeat practice for the brand) with post-consumer 18k gold and post-consumer sterling silver with lab-grown diamonds.
With 20 pieces ranging in price from $245 to $895, Diamonds Reborn, the brand believes, broadens access to sustainability for its Gen Y (and especially) Millennial customer base.
As consumer behavior rapidly evolves, more companies are increasing their use of recycled precious metals while tapping into vintage diamonds and lab-grown options.
“We are looking for ways to build on those principles in every aspect of our brand,” said Monica Rich Kosann, the brand’s eponymous designer. “The idea is to make tomorrow better than today and continually improve.”
The 15-year-old fine jewelry firm has become increasingly digital-focused, launching a virtual try-on service in October, but in that pursuit the firm has not let its B Corp status as of September — a first among U.S. fine jewelers — slip under the radar.
“Our ethos is holistic in that it goes beyond recycled metals and ethically sourced diamonds,” said Kosann. “Ethically sourced diamonds, for example, have been a part of our brand since our beginning. We look at ethical sourcing as the entire supply chain. From start to finish. We carefully choose our metal sources and the factories we work with, looking at all of their practices and industry certifications. Most of our factories have received certifications from global organizations who set standards for best practices, and we screen our factories for social, workplace and environmental standards.”
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The recycled gold program has been steadily growing over the past two years, but the brand isn’t stopping there.
“Our usage of recycled gold in our 18-karat jewelry collection, for example, has grown steadily so it now stands at more than 60 percent plus of our total gold usage,” Kosann said. “A recycled silver usage program was launched in late 2020 and we will be announcing usage thresholds there for our overall production by mid-year. So creating Diamonds Reborn as a capsule collection using only recycled silver and gold was a natural next step.”
The brand’s recycled silver and gold are sourced from post-consumer products, industrial residues, existing jewelry, scrap and waste metals — to be refined into Monica Rich Kosann’s 100 percent recycled precious metal. The brand did not provide details on how it sources its lab-grown diamonds.
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