Turning NWT diamonds into less of a ‘secret’ in Yellowknife

“My love letter to the diamond industry is this company.”

Robert Purcka is part of a push to make the Northwest Territories’ diamonds more visible in Yellowknife, a city that’s at the heart of Canada’s diamond industry but where the diamonds themselves are normally out of sight.

The NWT has three active diamond mines: Ekati, Diavik and Gahcho Kué. Purcka, who is a member of the Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation, was in high school when those mines were just starting production.

After more than two decades crossing the globe in the diamond industry, he has established Northern Indigenous Diamond Company (NIDC). He is modelling the firm on the offices of diamantaires – expert diamond cutters and dealers – found in Antwerp, the European diamond capital.

“Yellowknife needs as much diamond representation as we can get,” Purcka told Cabin Radio. “Every block of the city should have a diamond store.”

His vision isn’t quite a walk-in store, but more of a middle man. Got an idea for a diamond? Want something specific sourced from an NWT mine? Purcka wants to be able to help with that. He sees his company as primarily one you collaborate with to get a unique project done.

He has brought to the studio a 1.8-carat gem fashioned from a Gahcho Kué rough diamond that was the first his company purchased. Eventually, he hopes the diamond – worth upward of $8,000, he says – will end up on a necklace.

“I’ll take on the responsibility of trying to acquire rough diamonds to manufacture into polished goods for the consumer,” he said, setting out his plan.

“The consumer would be able to pick what they want – a specific type of stone, specific weight – and they’ll have access to that.”

‘We’ve always been hidden’

Strolling into a Yellowknife store and selecting a gem from a specific Northwest Territories diamond mine isn’t as easy as you might think, Lyssa King says.

King and her husband, Ben, just opened a service in Yellowknife to offer that opportunity.

You can call 844-722-2588 to book an appointment (or do it online), then you are given a tour where you can see a diamond be scanned, planned, cut and polished. You can even take a turn on the polishing wheel yourself. Diamonds from the three NWT mines are available for purchase.

The Kings’ company is Diamonds de Canada, which the NWT government declared four years ago to be an “approved NWT diamond manufacturer,” giving it access to the territory’s rough diamonds in return for a promise that the diamonds will be cut and polished within the territory.

“We’ve always been this hidden secret,” said Lyssa King.

“There are places in town where people can buy Canadian diamonds, but there’s really not a lot where they can specifically buy Gahcho Kué, Ekati or Diavik.”

Diamonds de Canada has turned each of those mines’ diamonds into a separate collection: De Beers-run Gahcho Kué is Spirit, Burgundy Diamonds’ Ekati is Earth and Rio Tinto’s Diavik is Ice.

King compares each mine to a different vineyard. Changes in the earth give the grapes and wine from each place a distinct taste, and she applies the same lens to diamonds.

Gahcho Kué gems have a “glowing energy” and a blue sheen, she said. Ekati diamonds have a “Valentino look,” she added, referring to the Italian fashion designer, while Diavik is “very classic.”

“We do a personality quiz for customers,” King said. “If they want to take it, it’s two minutes and it matches them to their collection.”

King said her old office has been cleared out to make way for a showroom. The decision to open to the public was taken, she said, after a conversation with the GNWT in which government officials expressed exasperation that NWT diamonds were being marketed practically everywhere in the world except Yellowknife.

“We’re in the US. We’re on cruise ships. We’re on British television. It’s growing globally and really telling the story of the land and the people that it comes from, to connect people to why the Canadian diamonds speak for themselves,” said King.

“The GNWT said it’s wrong that you are all over the globe and not in Yellowknife. You have to open this up to everybody.”

‘Positive vibe’ for the future

The Kings have decades-long histories in the diamond industry that led them to launch Diamonds de Canada. They are primarily Wisconsin-based, making regular trips to and from the NWT.

The company operates in the US market among other places, and is keeping a wary eye on the sudden talk of tariffs affecting US-Canadian trade. Tariffs would have an impact on its business.

More broadly, diamonds are in what Purcka called a “turbulent” period. Lab-grown diamonds, synthesized from scratch without having to be dug out of the ground, are increasing their share of the market.

That competition has suppressed diamond prices and made margins ever tighter for the mining giants running operations like those in the NWT.

In response, backers of natural diamonds are focusing on the stories they can attach to their product – the journey a diamond takes from the mine to the wearer.

Purcka is deeply aware of this issue as he works to grow his business. Right now, he is working on a “comprehensive business plan so that I can have a consistent allocation of rough diamonds on a regular cycle.”

“The whole natural diamond industry is suffering from it. It’s almost like two different communities that argue online against each other,” he said of lab-grown diamonds, which he abbreviated to LGD.

“LGD is trying to do everything cheaper, they’re paying their employees less.”

King said she is “not afraid” of synthetic competition.

“It’s a different category. It’s its own category for fashion, for a tennis necklace, tennis bracelet, something like that. If someone wants to grab something at a lower price, if that’s what they want to do? That’s their choice,” she said.

“I think the differentiation is that lab-grown has no history, no story, and no ‘hand down from generation to generation’ appeal to it. That’s why the story of the Northwest Territories and the diamonds they have is what’s important.”

King does not see the same precipice that others have said the northern diamond industry and NWT economy are approaching. (Diavik is set to cease commercial operations by early 2026, and the remaining life of the two other mines is unclear.)

She dismisses those as “doomsday” visions.

“There’s so much exploration happening and there’s so much demand for Northwest Territories diamonds. I want people to know that and feel that positive vibe of what is happening for the future, that they don’t hear about every day,” she said.

“We feel optimistic that the Northwest Territories is going to supply diamonds for many, many years to come. There’s over 70 exploration projects happening right now. I think that’s a big number.

“We felt good enough to set up a manufacturing plant four years ago, and we’re still glad we did that.”