Boucheron's diamond commitment

Boucheron is an internationally renowned brand, whose reputation as one of the most respected jewellers in the very exclusive world of high end jewellery goes back nearly 150 years. This respect has been founded on the company's exceptional know-how as well as its strict standards in the raw materials used.

 

Boucheron has been using diamonds in jewellery and other crafts, and they constitute its material of first choice, being present in around half of its turnover. For several years now, the brand has been concerned with tracing the provenance of its diamonds and has been developing long term partnerships with its suppliers to ensure that its diamonds come from legal sources. The aim is to monitor the diamonds at each main step along the way and guarantee the origin of each stone used.

 

With this system of tracking Boucheron can stay within the guidelines of the Kimberley Process which aims to certify the origin of diamonds sold on the international market. This agreement was initiated by the UN, the diamond producing countries, the diamond industry and the NGOs, to fight against the financing of military actions through the sale of diamonds coming from zones controlled by forces or factions opposed to the legal governments.

 

For Boucheron, the process is a continuation of the commitments it had already made with regard to its suppliers and has allowed it to formalize its demands. Boucheron now systematically insists upon a certificate of origin from every one of its diamond suppliers, and requires them to include a statement confirming their adherence to the Kimberley Process on each invoice. Today each diamond sold by Boucheron came with a numbered and unfalsifiable certificate of origin delivered by the government authorities of the exporting country. This certificate accompanies the stone from its source, from the mine to the cutting by the lapidary.

 

In addition, Boucheron also hopes that its teams become ambassadors for the brand's undertakings. As a member of international organisations such as the World Diamond Council  and the Diamond Trading Company , Boucheron has distributed documents to its employees concerning the Kimberley Process and its application. Besides, its sales staff has received a special course on the subject, taught in groups of fifteen. Launched in France and the UK, the courses are to be rolled out internationally.

 

In the hope of helping spread these practices, Boucheron decided in 2006 to become a member of the CRJP  (Council for Responsible Jewellery Practices), a non-governmental organisation of jewellers concerned to guarantee the certification of the diamonds which they use, and on a wider front to certify the whole supply chain, in liaison with its partners, following precise ethical, ecological/environmental, and human/social standards.