JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Global diamond miner De Beers is expanding its Forevermark in key European countries, with the brand entering the German market and potentially also France and Italy.

The Anglo American subsidiary is aiming to bolster the diamond brand’s visibility in key European countries, which attract a flow of international travellers from large diamond consumer markets, such as the US, China, India and Japan.

In Germany, Forevermark has partnered with Idar-Oberstein-based diamond jewellery specialist Heinz Mayer, which will launch the collection at this week’s Baselworld trade fair, paving the way for the brand to reach the consumer audience later in the year.

In France, Forevermark is in discussions with Groupe Marcel Robbez Masson and, in Italy, it is in negotiations with World Diamond Group.

“We have sought out strong partners whose values match our own, and who can deliver a locally relevant range of Forevermark diamond jewellery in their countries. We now look forward to further expansion through the year as we continue to offer more consumers the opportunity to buy Forevermark’s beautiful, rare and responsibly sourced diamonds,” comments Forevermark CEO Stephen Lussier.

The expansion into new European markets comes on the back of successful global performance last year, during which Forevermark posted a 19% increase in the number of diamonds sold.

De Beers has increased its investment in diamond marketing to more than $140-million last year – its biggest spend since 2008 – to target diamond jewellery consumers. The Forevermark and De Beers Diamond Jewellers brands were the main beneficiaries of the marketing spend.

Each Forevermark diamond is inscribed with an icon and individual number as an assurance that it has met Forevermark’s standards of beauty and rarity and that it is responsibly sourced. The Forevermark inscription is placed on the table facet of a Forevermark diamond. Invisible to the naked eye, the inscription can only be seen using a special Forevermark viewer.

De Beers states that less than one percent of the world’s diamonds are worthy of the Forevermark inscription.