Fair Lux Focus On: Stuart Pool, Nineteen48

Nineteen48 offers responsibly mined and fully traceable coloured gemstones from a number of carefully selected sources around the world, primarily Sri Lanka and Tanzania. Founded with the vision for the whole jewellery industry to use materials from traceable and responsible sources and to ensure their products are made without causing harm to people or the planet. Aiming to support miners and their communities and to offer peace of mind to their customers that their jewellery will be made with a stone that is guaranteed "conflict free" and conforms to the principles of full disclosure and fair trade.

As well as this, Stuart is a co-founder of Fair Luxury and has a wealth of knowledge of the jewellery industry, we wanted you to get to know Stuart better, we hope you enjoy this interview with him.

- What’s your background and what do you do?

My background is in IT, mostly web-related technology and generally more sales roles than technical. I was doing that for a long time until I came upon the world of gemstones. I am now a gem trader and campaigner for responsible sourcing in the jewellery industry.

- How did you get involved in the industry?

It was a crazy idea from a friend that caught me at a time when I was utterly bored with the IT industry and looking for a more fulfilling way to spend my life. You can read more about the story on my website.

- What part of your current role are you most passionate about?

Supporting the miners and the cutters. My whole business is about ensuring that the people in the jewellery supply chain who have been exploited historically receive a fair share of the profits we make from selling gemstones.

- In your opinion, what is the biggest consideration for a company who is wanting to operate in a more ethical way?

Be 100% transparent. Tell people what you know and what you don't know. No business is perfect and we are all on a journey of continuous improvement. Customers can forgive a lot if they are convinced that you are trying your best to do things the right way. Full disclosure is the way forward.

- What do you see as a boundary to companies using fully traceable stones and how can they overcome it?

Traditionally, companies have been secretive about their sources, but that isn't acceptable to the new generations of customers. They will have more inclination to buy from businesses who can clearly demonstrate where their gemstones are from.

Of course, just because a gem is fully traceable, it doesn't mean that it has come from a good place. Traceability is the first step. After that, we need to look more closely at the source.

- How has the gemstone industry changed over the years?

In the short time that I have been involved with gemstones, I have seen the topic of responsible sourcing achieve a much greater prominence. When I started out, it was hard to find any information or connect with like-minded people.

Now, we see the subject being discussed at almost every trade show and there has been widespread acceptance of our responsibilities as an industry.

- What are your opinions of lab-grown stones?

I have no problem with lab-grown stones in as much as the customer deserves the freedom to choose whatever they want to buy.

My main issue is when lab-grown stones are portrayed as the environmentally-friendly choice. That is not necessarily the case. Some are produced responsibly and others not.

The same is true for mined gemstones, of course. It goes back to my point about transparency. Give the customer all the facts you have and they can decide if that is sufficient.

Also, when consumers buy a mined gemstone, they are supporting a community in a way that is not usually the case for lab-grown stones. Whilst I accept that the customer is entitled to choose, I would always promote the fact that gemstone mining gives a livelihood to millions of people who probably don't have too many ways to make a living.

- Do you think we’ll ever be completely ethical as buyers and as designer/makers?

That depends on your definition of "ethical". It means different things to each of us. I think we will have to do a lot better or else we will not be in business. Customers are demanding that we play our part in the responsible consumption of resources. Most jewellery makers rely on mined materials and, for many people, mining is a big issue, especially mining for non-essential items, such as jewellery. Therefore, we have to show that we are using those resources wisely and we are doing everything we can to protect the environment.

There is still a very long way to go...

You can find out more about Stuart and the work he and his team does, and better yet, support the miners buy buying from Nineteen48.