ALROSA, the world leader in diamond mining, and GfK research company conducted an extensive research of diamond consumers in the US and China. Among other things, it demonstrates that consumers of both countries are interested in buying diamonds, they are planning to buy them in the future, and that they purchase for themselves much more often than as a gift.
Today, the USA is the world’s largest consumer market of diamond jewelry, and China is the most rapidly growing market.
The research was conducted in the autumn 2017. More than 4 thousand people from the USA and China – men and women aged 25 to 55 years, with average or above average income who bought or received diamond jewelry as a gift within the last 12 months were questioned for the research.
Following traditions
First of all, the results of the research confirm that consumers continue to show great interest in diamond jewelry. From the total number of interviewed people, 86% of Chinese respondents and 59% of respondents in the USA plan to buy at least one piece of diamond jewelry next year.
According to the research, diamond jewelry buyers are not only loyal consumers thinking a diamond is a good acquisition for themselves, but they are also ready to share this opinion with their friends. According to the research, about 34% of respondents in China and 37% of those interviewed in the USA say that if their friends sought their advice on a present to a loved one, they would recommend diamond jewelry as a gift.
Shopping for yourself and tradition of giving gifts
On the average, 44% of Chinese consumers and 38% of US consumers buy one piece of diamond jewelry a year. 34% of respondents from China and 30% of respondents from the USA make two purchases a year. Every seventh consumer in China and almost every fifth consumer in the USA buy three pieces of jewelry a year.
Almost 73% of respondents in China and 71% in the USA replied that over the last year they bought diamond jewelry for themselves. Less than in 30% of the cases in both markets, diamond jewelry was purchased as a gift.
Most often, it was a gift for a husband or wife – in about 60% of the cases in all the markets under study. In the USA, jewelry gifts were given to parents (14%) and friends (12%) more often than in China.
Most often, gifts with diamonds are given to people aged 26 to 45 years – they account for 71% of gifts in China and 57% in the USA. In China, less than in the USA, gifts are made to people over 46 years old – they account for just 16% of gifts (in the USA – 25%). In the USA, more often than in China, diamonds are given to teenagers – the share of gifts to children aged 11 to 17 years is 4%, while it was only 1% in China.
Diamonds are given to women more often than to men – accounting for approximately 94% of the cases in China and 87% in the USA.
GfK (“Growth from Knowledge”) – international group specialized in research and analytics of consumer behavior and public opinion. GfK connects data and science. Innovative research solutions provide answers for key business questions around consumers, markets, brands and media.