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- Diamonds Aren't Forever, after all
Diamonds Aren't Forever, after all
& McD's CosMc’s Attempt
Diamonds Disrupted
Lab-grown diamonds are transforming the luxury jewelry market, capturing consumer interest with their affordability and eco-conscious appeal. Sales of lab-grown diamonds have soared by 63% from 2020 to 2023, while natural diamond sales have declined by 15% during the same period. Lab-grown diamonds now account for 14% of the diamond market by revenue—a figure expected to reach more than 21% by 2025.
Lab-grown stones are about 30-40% cheaper than their mined counterparts. A 1-carat lab diamond averages $2,500, while a similar natural diamond costs $4,000 or more. Additionally, growing environmental and ethical concerns around mining have nudged younger, sustainability-conscious buyers toward lab-grown options. This shift has shaken the metals and mining industry, with miners experiencing reduced demand. Natural diamond producers are exploring ways to bolster their appeal, including enhancing transparency in their sourcing processes.
Meanwhile, jewelers are adapting. DeBeers has a lab-grown sub-brand called Lightbox, Pandora saw a nearly 90% increase in lab-grown sales YoY, and Effy just announced a new collection made entirely of lab-grown products. This strategy has enabled retailers to meet diverse customer preferences without alienating traditional buyers.
Gen Z Sobers Up
Alcohol sales overall have slowed, with beer suffering the most and the non-alcoholic sector is thriving. Part of this is due to the normalization of sober lifestyles: a new Ipsos survey finds that 80% of NA (non-alcoholic) drinkers say that their choices are more socially acceptable than they were 5 years ago. NA (non-alcoholic) beer brand Athletic Brewing recently hit an $800 million valuation after raising $50 million in July 2024. Its revenue growth heading into 2025 is the strongest in its category, fueled by creative campaigns and a loyal consumer base.
Even celebrities are in on the action. Katy Perry’s De Soi—a line of NA cocktails—targets luxury sober drinkers (an 8 oz. serving retails at ~$5). Tom Holland’s has launched Bero which is a non- alcoholic beer brand. Traditional brands are adapting too: Guinness Zero (DEO) and Heineken Zero (HEINY) have joined the race for alcohol-free innovation.
McDonald’s is trying its beverage-first concept, CosMc’s
McDonald’s introduced its beverage-first, mostly Texas-based spin-off chain, CosMc’s in December 2023. But now, just over a year on, the fast-food icon is revising the restaurant concept slightly, shutting down three of its biggest locations and opening two smaller ones. While the chain has been almost exclusively confined to the Lone Star State in the trial phase (the first store opened in a Chicago suburb; the subsequent six have all been set up in Texas), McDonald’s execs are clearly keen to continue their “journey through the beverage galaxy” in search of profit pools.
Though it may not feel like it, Mickey D’s closing stores in America has become a lot more common, with the 85-year-old chain’s restaurant tally stalling in recent years. After growing relentlessly for decades, the number of stores with the golden arches above their doorway fell for the first time in 2015. Over the next six years, McDonald's went on to shed 912 net restaurants in the US, including 244 in 2021 alone, after the company reportedly looked to close struggling stores to boost its average sales figures.
Clearly, if you’re a McDonald’s executive tasked with finding new ways to grow the company’s footprint, you have a tough gig — especially on your home turf in the US. Does the answer to reinvigorating store growth lie in one of CosMc’s best-selling drinks, like the “Island Pick-Me-Up Punch” or “Sour Cherry Energy Burst”? Considering that the CosMc’s experiment has been going for just a year and it’s already getting downsized… maybe not.