Lab-grown trade-in programs are becoming more common

More retailers are offering to take a lab-grown stone back against a future upgrade, as falling prices make older purchases look expensive by comparison.

• Because lab-grown prices have kept falling, a stone bought a few years ago is typically worth well under its original purchase price today, which has made straightforward resale a hard sell for owners.
• Trade-in programs address this by letting a buyer put the stone's current market value toward a larger or better stone, rather than trying to sell it outright at a loss.
• The trade-in value offered is based on current wholesale price for that specification, not the original receipt — buyers going in expecting to recover close to what they paid are often disappointed.

We offer trade-in against any lab-grown stone bought from us, valued at current market on the day, and can advise on trade-in value for stones bought elsewhere too. Contact us before assuming a stone's resale value from its original purchase price.