De Beers brand building

De Beers opened its second US store in Los Angeles last month and promises further expansion, although no details have been disclosed. Guy Leymarie, the man in charge to build De Beers into a profitable jewelry brand says �It will take at least 10 years to consolidate in the competitive world of top-end jewelers such as Graff, Tiffany and Harry Winston�.

�De Beers LV is not about mass luxury, hence they have to build image and can not take any chances. It will take years before they can manufacture overseas. If you look at Italian fashion brand Prada, it does not use a label made in Italy. You have to have guts and the arrogance to be able to do this,� says Dilip Mehta, Rosy Blue. There are more successful fashion brands than jewelry brands, due to lower entry price possible.

Although De Beers dismisses the challenge claiming it is able to get supply from any source in the market and assure the best selection according to its specifications, some analysts are uneasy with the structure. �While the De Beers / LVMH joint venture may have opened its third store, the restrictions under which it must operate in terms of supply make it more difficult," said Des Kilalea, analyst at Nedcor Securities in Johannesburg.