How to Source Lab Grown Diamonds for Your Jewellery Business

Begin with the customer order, collection design or stock requirement that creates the need for diamonds. Give the request a reference that can follow it through quotation, purchasing and receiving.

Describe the goods in terms the supplier and your workshop can both use. Include laboratory-grown origin, shape, quantity, carat or dimensional requirements, acceptable quality specifications and the intended use. Where an existing mounting determines the fit, obtain the required measurements from the setter.

Be precise about units. For example, an order for 12 pairs of stud earrings requires 24 diamonds arranged into 12 matched pairs. Requesting “24 diamonds” alone does not communicate that matching requirement. List any additional spare stones separately.

Separate essential requirements from preferences. This allows the supplier to identify acceptable alternatives without silently changing something your customer or workshop needs.

Choose the documentation requirements before requesting quotations. An individually reported centre stone and a parcel of small diamonds may require different supporting information.

IGI explains that its loose-diamond reports identify natural or laboratory-grown origin and document quality characteristics. Specify the laboratory and report type your order requires, and request the relevant report references for individually reported stones. IGI report information.

Check the actual reporting format. GIA’s current service for eligible colourless and near-colourless laboratory-grown diamonds uses Premium and Standard quality assessments. Do not assume that every laboratory’s document contains interchangeable grades or fields. GIA laboratory-grown diamond services.

For parcels, ask what testing or screening has been performed, which goods it covers and how those goods are identified. IGI describes screening as distinguishing natural diamonds, laboratory-grown diamonds and simulants. Screening for origin is a different service from issuing an individual grading report for every stone. IGI diamond-screening services.

Record any agreed requirements concerning growth method or treatment information in the brief, rather than leaving them to an assumption after delivery.

Send the same approved brief to each supplier from whom you request a quotation. Ask for any differences between the requested and proposed goods to be identified clearly.

For individual diamonds, obtain the stock references, available reports, measurements and images needed for approval. For pairs or parcels, request a description of the matching criteria and permitted variation. Our loose lab-grown diamond buying guide explains the individual-stone checks in more detail.

Make it clear who can approve the selection. A customer may approve appearance, while your setter confirms compatibility and your purchasing contact approves the cost. In a small business, one person may fulfil several roles, but the decisions should still be recorded.

Ask how availability and reservations work. A quotation does not necessarily mean the goods are reserved. Obtain confirmation before making commitments that depend on those particular stones.

Once the goods are approved, issue a purchase order or obtain a written order confirmation. It should identify the final specifications, quantities, agreed references, price, currency, documentation and delivery arrangements.

Record whether the transaction is an outright purchase or another specifically agreed arrangement, such as goods supplied for inspection. Establish the payment conditions, inspection period, return procedure and any applicable charges.

Include a clear substitution rule. If an approved diamond becomes unavailable, the supplier should obtain approval for the replacement before dispatch. Similar headline grades do not necessarily satisfy the same dimensional, matching or customer requirements.

Keep a record of amendments. If the quantity, specification or delivery arrangement changes, update the order and obtain acknowledgement so both businesses are working from the same version.

Before dispatch, confirm the delivery address, receiving contact and expected shipment details. Agree who arranges transport, what shipment coverage applies and which costs are included.

For an international shipment, have the supplier and the relevant transport or customs specialist confirm the paperwork required for the particular goods and route. Resolve missing commercial information before the parcel is sent.

Ask for the invoice and packing information to correspond to the order lines. Individually reported stones should be linked to their references, and parcels should have identifiers that remain associated with their supporting documentation.

Use clear product descriptions. CIBJO’s laboratory-grown diamond guidance recommends disclosure of laboratory-grown origin on sales invoices and consignment documents. Keep that identification consistent through the order records and the information supplied to your customer. CIBJO laboratory-grown diamond guidance.

Assign responsibility for receiving and inspection before the shipment arrives. Record the delivery reference and packaging condition, then reconcile the contents against the order confirmation, packing information and invoice.

Check the quantities and relevant weights, references, dimensions and matching requirements. For individually reported stones, arrange an appropriate comparison between the physical diamond and its documentation. A successful online report lookup confirms a document record; it does not, by itself, identify the delivered stone.

Plan material-identification checks using suitable equipment and trained staff or a qualified laboratory. RJC’s Laboratory Grown Material Standard provides an industry reference for documented controls and testing intended to prevent undisclosed materials entering the supply chain. RJC Laboratory Grown Material Standard, provision 27.

Keep goods awaiting checks separate from stock approved for use. Record the inspection outcome and the person authorising release. Where your procedure includes sampling, record its scope so it cannot later be mistaken for an examination of every stone.

If the delivery differs from the order, place the affected goods on hold and notify the supplier within the agreed inspection or notification period.

Describe the issue precisely. Identify the order line, diamond or parcel reference, the agreed requirement and the observed difference. Include relevant measurements or photographs, and retain the original packaging and documentation.

A quantity shortage, an incorrect reference and a concern about visual matching require different evidence. Where a grading or identity question needs specialist assessment, agree how that assessment will be obtained.

Record the proposed resolution, whether it involves replacement goods, a return, a credit or another agreed adjustment. Update the stock and purchasing records when the matter is resolved so held goods are not accidentally treated as available inventory.

Once accepted, assign the diamonds to the appropriate stock location or production job. Link the supplier, order, invoice and available report or parcel references to that record.

Maintain clear identification through storage, sorting and setting. CIBJO’s guidance recommends measures to keep natural and laboratory-grown diamonds separate during handling and trade. Clearly labelled packets and consistent workshop records help preserve that distinction. CIBJO laboratory-grown diamond guidelines.

If a parcel is divided between several jobs, keep the original parcel reference associated with each new packet. Record quantities issued to the workshop, unused stones returned to stock and any replacements introduced during production.

Carry the relevant diamond information into the finished jewellery record. This makes later customer questions, repairs and replacement requests easier to investigate.

Keep the approved specification for recurring products, including dimensions, matching requirements, documentation and any changes agreed after the first order.

For repeat purchases, use that specification as the starting point and request fresh confirmation of the proposed goods, availability, quotation and delivery arrangements. An earlier invoice is a useful reference, but it does not reserve stock or establish the price of a new order.

Review usable stock before reordering. Distinguish goods already committed to customer jobs, goods on hold and confirmed incoming deliveries from stock available for new work.

Track a few practical measures: whether deliveries met the agreed date, how many goods required clarification or replacement, and how long issues took to resolve. Use those observations to improve briefs, inspection planning and future order timing.

To start a sourcing enquiry with Uniglo Diamonds, share your business’s buying brief, intended use, quantities, documentation requirements and required delivery destination.

For an individual customer order, include any approved stone references or mounting constraints. For a collection or repeat product, provide the specification and matching requirements your workshop needs to maintain.

Explore our wholesale lab-grown diamond offering, then contact Uniglo Diamonds to discuss the proposed goods, availability, quotation and applicable order terms.