DPA to develop ‘Diamonds as a Brand’; launches India operations

In the last few decades, world had almost forgotten that diamonds are crucial for celebration of love, commitment and achievements. Over the years, value of diamonds as a physical asset has grown steadily. However, amongst the bevy of other luxury attractions, diamonds were losing their sheen. The industry was busy telling the consumers about the characteristics of a diamonds rather than trying to find connect of the diamonds with consumers.

However, gradually the industry is waking up the importance of diamond marketing and promotions. Formation of the Diamond Producers Association (DPA) was one such step. The DPA is an alliance of seven of the largest diamond mining companies in the world, which together represent over 75 per cent of the world’s diamond production. Its members– ALROSA, De Beers, Dominion Diamond, Gem Diamonds, Lucara Diamond, Petra Diamonds and Rio Tinto, are the leading miners globally.

The DPA recently launched its India operations as India is one of the important potential markets to grow diamonds as a brand. India, which accounts for a mere 7 per cent of the global diamond consumption, provides a huge growth opportunity in the global consumer matrix. Talking about India’s association with diamonds, Jean-Marc Lieberherr, CEO, Diamond Producers Association, said, “India is the natural home of diamonds.  It is where they were first found and where they are being cut and polished.  It is only natural that the DPA should focus its efforts on working with the local trade to realise the potential of India as a diamond market”.

DPA is working closely with the Gem Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) to build trade relationships, best practices and a strong consumer connect through various market development initiatives. The first of such, is the launch of the India diamond marketing campaign under the global umbrella “Real is Rare, Real is a Diamond”, which is promoting a new message about diamonds.

During the press meet held in Mumbai, Jean Marc Lieberherr introduced Richa Singh who has been roped in as a Managing Director India for the DPA. Talking about her role, Richa said, “I am focused to working towards the goals of the Diamond Producers Association in India. Our core objective would be to strengthen DPA’s engagement with industry, non-industry organisations and create a strong connect with consumers to build the diamond category”.

The Campaign

“Real is Rare, Real is a Diamond” is promoting a new message about diamonds.  As billion-year old natural and precious stones, diamonds are the ideal way to celebrate the uniqueness and authenticity of the love which unites a modern couple. The Indian campaign is directly inspired from in-depth research about modern Indian relationships and multiple interviews with young couples from all over the country.  It is based on the key finding that every couple has a unique story, a journey made of rare moments that are worth celebrating for themselves. These unrecognised moments of bonding and intimacy are often the defining moments in journey of a couple in creating something unique and real between them.

The DPA will soon be launching two TVC advertisements, each of 45 seconds durations. Both the advertisements subtly try to send across a message to married couples that ‘a diamond is rare and real as your relationship’. The DPA is targeting married couples who have been married for 5 to 10 years. They are investing US$7 million for media promotions during 2018, which would be spread across social media, digital, cinema halls and PR. The TVC would be in five Indian regional languages like Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, etc.

Commenting the importance of developing diamond as a brand, Jean Marc Lieberherr said, “We are here to develop a powerful, emotionally and culturally resonant promise for diamonds in the Indian market. Our idea is to build the future of diamond in India by linking diamonds to personal emotions. The advertisements are about promoting diamonds as a mark of couple’s achievements in a relationship.”