Lab Glow’s ambitious plan revealed

Sanket Patel

diamond cutting, polishing and jewellery making with the ambition of being the largest global integrated player in the LGD sector.

I was very impressed with the positive energy within the team. True to its name, there is greenery everywhere in the campus. Construction activity is in full swing as the group is consolidating all its manufacturing activities at its Ichhapore facility in Surat. Secrecy is the hallmark of CVD manufacturing and very rarely is one able to visit the shop floor. I was therefore pleasantly surprised to have a glimpse of the state of the art manufacturing facility at close quarters when Smit graciously took me on a round.

Green Lab uses solar power for its manufacturing. Smit informs me that they have 66KV substation right on their premises, to minimize the transmission losses. They have applied for LEED certification and aims to the highest rated green building in the platinum category. He says that the first step was to outsource jewellery manufacturing and then set up an in-house unit. The progress is right on track. Smit agrees with the views of Piyush Goyal, the honorable minister of Commerce and Industry that LGDs have the potential to become middle class fancy. However, for that to happen educating the trade as well as consumers is very important as there are many misconception about lab grown diamonds that need to be cleared.

Initially Green Lab will get into jewellery wholesale before entering the retail space. Sanket Patel, Smit’s younger brother is in charge of growing and manufacturing activity. Under his leadership, the firm cultivated three unique diamonds named Om Namah Shivaya, Om is a Marquise step-cut diamond with a size of 27.27 carats and Namah is a Pear Rose-cut 15.16-carat diamond. The third diamond, Shivaya is a 20.24-carat emerald cut that exudes

Smit Patel

charm and elegance to add grace. Greenlab proudly introduced Om and Namah as the world’s largest certified lab-grown, polished diamonds with absolutely no colour enhancement. They were a major attraction at the JCK Las Vegas 2022 show. The multifaceted Sanket has worked in diverse sectors ranging from real estate to hospitality and agro chemicals. He hails from a third generation family of wellestablished diamantaires, with a legacy of 50 yrs. Green Lab is a family managed company headed by Mukesh Patel, Sanket’s father. Green Lab Diamond reinforces care in the public conscience and nurtures both people and the environment. As a result, they created a unique product of high quality - Better Lab grown Diamonds for everyone, with a vision of offering sustainable luxury that nurtures the people and planet. Sanket says the mission of Green Lab is to give back to the community and society. For the industry as a whole to do well, every stakeholder’s role is important. Every individual unit needs to survive and thrive. That is the essence of Sabka saath sabka vikas. In order to demonstrate the future and potential of Lab Grown Diamond sector & how it can be helpful for the Government’s Make in India initiative, a delegation headed by the Chairman of Green Lab, Mr. Mukesh Patel met the Prime Minister, Piyush Goyal and Nirmala Sitharaman, India’s Finance Minister.

To maintain its lead over China in CVD manufacturing, certain benefits such as tax holiday, export subsidies and subsidized power are sought from the Govt. of India. The Government is likely to respond favorably and positive developments are expected in this regard soon.