The World Gemological Institute (WGI) recently conducted a consumer survey in America, to gauge the acceptance and awareness about gemological labs, and their success quotient at making the gem and jewellery trade more transparent. The research was undertaken in association with the Jewelry Consumer Opinion Council (JCOC), the research division of MVI Marketing Ltd. (MVI) – on defined issues - consumer awareness of the various existing diamond grading laboratories, the perceived necessity of grading reports to accompany diamond purchases, and willingness on the part of consumers to accept grading reports from laboratories that were unfamiliar to them. The WGI is part of the Israel Diamond Institute Group of Companies. %% Eli Avidar, Managing Director of the Israel Diamond Institute Group of Companies, said, “The findings are very important for us in formulating our U.S. marketing strategy. The American consumer has a very high awareness of diamond grading, and knows exactly what he or she wants when buying a diamond. The U.S. is the largest market for Israeli diamonds and as such plays a very important role in WGI’s business decisions.” The study findings revealed were encouraging as mentioned by Liz Chatelain, President of MVI and JCOC. “Although consumer awareness of the importance of grading reports was very strong (over 50 per cent stated that it is somewhat to extremely important) and there seemed to be a somewhat strong awareness of the larger established labs such as AGS, GIA, and IGI, the consumer respondents also seemed to display a confusion about the various labs and a difficulty in telling them apart.” The WGI will be further analyzing its findings form its survey and will share the same with global industry players including retailers. %% To the retailer’s interest, the report did throw light upon the retailer’s concern of consumers not buying diamonds if they did not recognise the grading lab. Chatelain said “I believe what we found will surprise many in the industry. Only 13% of respondents stated that they would not accept a diamond if it came from a lab they did not recognise. We believe that those that stated they were unsure could be convinced of the legitimacy of a report with simple informational materials and quick over-the-counter education about the lab in question”.