De Beers bets on India’s rich to boost natural diamond demand

De Beers is betting on India’s surging affluent class to fuel growth in natural diamond demand, even as the global market remains challenging and a pending US-India trade deal disrupts supply chains.

The unit of Anglo American Plc is opening its fifth and largest global ‘Forevermark’ store in Mumbai this week and plans to reach 25 outlets nationwide by the end of 2026, chief executive officer Al Cook said in an interview. Demand in India has grown in “double-digits” annually over the last four years and it “should continue” into 2026, he said.

Yet the optimism comes against a tougher backdrop. Globally, De Beers has been grappling with weak diamond demand in key markets such as China, where economic uncertainty has curbed luxury spending. Rising competition from cheaper lab-grown diamonds — popular among younger buyers — has further squeezed margins in traditional markets.

In India, structural hurdles remain. Steep 50% tariffs by the US have rattled India’s diamond cutting and polishing industry, which exports to the American market, with trade flows “down by around half,” Cook said. He did not elaborate on the details of the trade flows, but said he is hopeful of a pact being signed soon between the two countries.

It would be the “biggest tailwind” heading into 2026, Cook said.

Even so, De Beers is leaning on India’s luxury boom, banking on rising affluence to sustain demand for diamonds and jewelry as global retailers move in.

India is now the firm’s second-largest market after the US. Long a hub for cutting and polishing rough stones, the country is increasingly central to its consumer-driven growth strategy.

100 stores

De Beers is eventually targeting a network of 100 stores by 2030, according to Shweta Harit, global senior vice president of De Beers Group and CEO of Forevermark. Some of these stores will run on a franchise model, she said.

Expansion is focused beyond top metros, targeting smaller cities where new wealth from entrepreneurship is reshaping consumption. A store in Chandigarh will open in February, with outlets in Lucknow and Jaipur to follow.

These customers are “actually going to be the game changer,” Harit said. “We’ve got to grab that opportunity.”

(By Satviki Sanjay)