Ethica Diamonds

The journey towards our ethical jewellery business has been an organic process from humble beginnings. It entwines several different passions, environmental and ethical good practice, sustainability and the delivery of excellent customer service, but most of all… making people happy! I realised that most people looking to purchase meaningful jewellery for the first time, are left feeling nervous and disempowered, often browsing countless shops trying to make sense of what they are looking for. They feel pressure to overspend, expecting to know all the questions to ask and make a decision quickly in a glass countered shop with intimidating pushy, suited and booted salespeople who falsely tell them natural diamonds are an ‘ethical choice’ and a ‘sound investment’. Most of us will make a purchase not knowing if the jewellery is actually made in an ethical way, not fully understanding why it has cost a fortune and the whole experience felt more stressful than meaningful.”

“Whilst I was drawn to the imaginative possibilities of creating meaningful jewellery for people, I was also disillusioned by industry standards that turned a blind eye to the harmful, widespread effects of diamond mining. So, in 2010, I committed to doing things better — for the earth, our customers, and in turn, our business. We spent the first 5 years educating and teaching people that there is a better way of purchasing jewellery that is genuinely meaningful. Where materials used are sustainable, practices that are not harmful and pricing is fair. I wanted to create a safe place for people who wanted to ask all the questions they needed to, without time pressure, or pressure to go over budget. I wanted everyone to feel equally important, regardless of what they could or couldn’t spend and I wanted everyone that came to us to understand the truth about the diamond industry’s outdated practices and why choosing a more modern forward thinking approach to purchasing fine jewellery was the only genuinely meaningful option.

Ethica is moving the jewellery industry forward. We carefully choose suppliers and manufacturers that share our strong passion for sustainability and that are already carbon neutral, or working towards it. We use lab grown diamonds and gemstones grown above ground and have never, and will never use diamonds that are naturally mined. Our packaging, manufacturing and gem setting practices are sourced as sustainably as we possibly can too. We choose ethical manufacturers and support local craftsman that use traditional methods, who create the most beautiful and exquisite jewellery. We also use recycled materials where possible and fair trade gold that provide a positive impact to responsible mining, reducing our role in today’s commercial mining practices. Our jewellery strives to support a better future for our world, with careful sourcing, planning, and learning — a complex process we work on every day.

Since starting out in 2011 to now, our team has grown into a dedicated and talented group of seven women (and four dogs!) It also wouldn’t be a teams page without mentioning Martin, our web developer and Colin, our stone setter. Both of which we have worked with for years, and have made Ethica the business it is today. Keep reading this page if you’d like to get to know the people behind our small business.