De Beers grants co-op marketing funds to Sightholders

In a gesture to awaken the industry to take individual responsibility to promote diamonds and diamond jewellery sales, De Beers management has announced funding marketing activities of the sightholders during the fourth quarter of 2008. This exercise of granting funds is an effort to show the Sightholders that the De Beers management is alert to listen to and work hand in hand with them.

The funds will be allotted to qualifying sightholders, decided on the basis of those fulfilling a set of objective marketing, goods and BPP (best practice principle) focused criteria. Not all sightholders qualified for the funds. The sightholders will further deploy the co-op marketing funds to support the marketing initiatives of their downstream partners, in increase demand for diamond jewellery in the last quarter of the year. The company said that the funds were made available to all sightholders who were able to drive incremental sales with their downstream partners, wherever they operate.

De Beers had taken a decision to reduce its spending on generic advertising, rather inspire the industry to initiate its own effort.