Harry Winston's sales are down by 30.4 percent per article on Reuters. There is not much of demand for diamond necklaces or even engagement rings since there is no more fancy parties to attend or not many shopping sprees are affordable, people are cutting down their expenses, this is a result of everybody feeling the hit of the economic crisis. As a result, prices are on the rise for precious stones & designer is hoping for the increase in sale closer to the end of the summer.

We can tell that summer is the slowest season for retail because of the summer vacations, 4th of July weekend celebrations and other summer activities. Chief Executive Robert Gannicott also mentioned that diamond production has dropped compared to other years and the industry soon should rebound with the positive come back & all of us hope for the same for the economy in overall.

Everybody is talking about shut down of the Rio Tinto's (RIO.L) Diavik diamond mine in Canada's Arctic which was struggling since last year due to its decrease in the capital & low demand for diamonds. The mine will be shut down for a couple of weeks this summer to resolve major financial problems but the expected winter shut down might be cancelled due to possibly improving market.

Lets hope for the better days to come for Harry Winton's company & his customers. Being in the business since 1920 when he first started his shop, must be tough to see some of it soaring after almost 100 year in the business. Winton took some risks in his early years like sending his Hope Diamond, 45.52 carats (9.10 g),[1] fancy deep-blue diamond, in the U.S. Mail in a plain brown bag when he donated it to Smithsonian Institution in 1958. Hope Diamond, until our days, is a part of the priceless national gem collection and the most visited exhibit at the Smithsonian.