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A century of jewellery heritage has come full circle in Botswana, with the Udell family, owners of US luxury retailer London Jewelers, visiting Orapa Mine alongside the Klein family as part of the company’s 100th anniversary celebrations.
The visit brings together two fourth-generation family businesses whose relationship is closely tied to the natural diamond value chain. London Jewelers has built its legacy as a luxury jewellery and watch retailer in the United States, while Grandview Klein Diamonds specialises in sourcing, cutting and polishing natural diamonds, including through its manufacturing operations in Botswana.
The Botswana visit offers the families an opportunity to experience the beginning of the journey behind the stones that ultimately reach luxury consumers around the world. That connection carries particular significance during London Jewelers’ centenary. Earlier this year, London Jewelers and Grandview Klein unveiled a 63 carat Botswana-origin rough diamond that is being transformed into a 20.26 carat D-flawless Old Mine Cushion-cut diamond in Botswana to commemorate the retailer’s 100th anniversary.
The stone is being cut in its country of origin through De Beers’ Origin programme, which documents its journey from rough to polished diamond. Against that backdrop, the Orapa visit connects the heritage of a century-old American jewellery house with Botswana’s position at the heart of the natural diamond story.
It also brings together generations of the Udell and Klein families, highlighting a relationship built not only around diamonds but around trust, craftsmanship and long-standing industry connections. From the mine to manufacturing and from craftsmanship to the final consumer, the visit captures the increasingly connected story behind a natural diamond, one that begins in Botswana and ultimately reaches the global luxury market.
