The E-Commerce Platform Dedicated to Lab-Grown: The Future Rocks
Anthony Tsang and Ray Cheng, co-founders and respectively Ceo and Chief Design Officer, explain the significance of a project that is as ambitious as it is consolidating for the industry
How did The Future Rocks come about?
The idea stems from our conviction that lab-grown diamonds are the stones of tomorrow. And this concept is exactly what we wanted to express in the name “The Future Rocks” itself. Moreover, having a background in the jewelry industry for generations, we wanted to find a way to merge traditional know-how with technology and innovation. This exploration led us to found an e-commerce specifically for all those designers who create the “jewelry of the future” by combining artisan and artistic skills with recycled materials and lab-grown stones (not necessarily diamonds), always with a mindful and conscious consumption perspective. The designers we select share our vision of sustainable luxury. They often use discarded materials from electrical and electronic waste and focus on innovation.
What do lab-grown stones represent?
The appeal of lab-grown is often the coexistence of a highly technological digital world with human sophistication. In short, the scientific wonder of lab-grown stones offers endless opportunities to designers, who can then experiment and create jewelry with unprecedented designs that customers find highly desirable. Their technological versatility makes it possible to work with infinite combinations of different cuts and styles that cannot always be achieved with natural stones.
Images from The Future Rocks campaign.
Who are your customers and which markets are most open to labgrown?
Our customer profile mainly consists of Millennials and Gen Z, let's say, people of 25 and over. They are bold, proud, with a touch of innocence, inquisitive and open to new discoveries. But while Gen Z seek sophistication, Millennials look for novelty and seek inspiration. They are intellectually curious, well informed about the world of luxury, aware of choices, desires and what to buy, but they don’t want to be defined by any archetype. In terms of markets, followed by Japan and Europe, North America is still our key market, due to its growing demand for lab-grown diamonds. Japan is also very interesting and is our second market, due to its art and innovation values, which are similar to, and in line with, the fundamentals of The Future Rocks. It is also interesting to point out that both lab-grown diamonds and the trend towards a sustainable approach are considerably new aspects for Japanese culture and this generates a lot of curiosity in the market. So much so that we have planned to open a pop-up store in Tokyo in January to strengthen the physical relationship with customers and connect them emotionally to the world of lab-grown jewelry.
What do you see in the jewelry industry’s future?
The Future Rocks shows the path that jewelry should take towards a future that will combine heritage, craftsmanship and technology. We expect the market to present more distinctively designed and customized jewelry as designers decide to use new materials born out of science, including recycled materials and lab-grown diamonds and stones.
Are Italian designers ready for lab-grown?
In 2022, we worked closely with French and Spanish designers and we are now considering working with an Italian designer. What we can say is that some very exciting collaborations are in the pipeline for 2023 and we are extremely curious to find out how the Italians will perceive the concept of future-forward, future-oriented jewelry made with lab-grown diamonds. We have had great feedback in France and now we are waiting for the reaction of the rest of Europe.
