Signet Will Become More (Lab-Grown) Fashion-Focused, Says New CEO

By Rob Bates | January 21, 2025

Signet Jewelers sees significant potential in lab-created diamond fashion, as customers seek “bolder” looks at lower price points, CEO J.K. Symancyk told an audience of business analysts on Jan. 14 at the ICR Conference in Orlando, Fla.

“There’s growth and momentum within fashion that we need to do a better job of tapping into,” he said. “There’s customer demand within the sub-$1,000 and sub-$500 gift-giving price point, but the way the customer shops that category has changed. Within our assortment, there’s an opportunity to amplify lab-created diamonds more in that space.”

Signet’s sales of lab-created diamond fashion have risen more than 30%, he noted.

“Unlike the way this dialogue happens with regards to engagement, that’s a good thing, as it pushes [average unit retail] up and helps margin, because it’s a chance for customers to trade up in what they’re buying,” he said. “Lab-grown diamonds make diamonds more accessible to categories of fashion that they didn’t exist in before.”

Symancyk added that Signet views a move toward fashion “as an opportunity to expand self-purchase, become more relevant with female customers, and become more relevant with a younger customer base.”

None of this means Signet is moving away from bridal, he stressed.

“I don’t want anyone to read this focus on fashion as a shift away or deprioritization of engagement,” he said. “That is a core part of our business, and it’s a strength.”

Signet’s engagement ring sales, however, have not yet fully rebounded from the pandemic-era dropoff, chief financial and operating officer Joan Hilson said during the conference.

“We did see some positive signs for engagement in the fourth quarter,” she said, but the growth was “slower than we expected.”

Symancyk said that while the number of engagements does appear to be rising, “I don’t believe that trend plays out with the level of precision or predictability that I would love to be able to see.

“This pivot to a little more focus on fashion—don’t read that as a lack of confidence or pullback from the engagement side of the business. Look at that [as leaning] into something that we have control over, as opposed to being beholden to a trend that we don’t have complete control over.”

On another topic, Symancyk commented that Signet has a “tremendous opportunity to rethink [its] marketing.”

“We invest a lot there,” he said. “We also have some evidence that there’s a way to refocus that effort to meet customers where they are and [be] a little bit more balanced as to the shopping occasions where we see customers showing up.”

Symancyk’s remarks at the conference occurred the same day that Signet announced that comps fell 2% over the holidays, a disappointing result given the company had anticipated a same-store sales gain.

(Photo courtesy of Signet Jewelers)