Profits jump at Fabergé owner after strong sales of emeralds and rubies

Brand ambassador Mila Kunis (Getty Images)

The emerald miner behind jewellery brand Fabergé posted a sparkling set of results today, returning to profit.

Gemfields turned a loss of €20.1m last year into a €36.3m pre-tax profit this year as sales of emeralds and rubies more than tripled.

The precious stones miner saw sales jump 230 per cent to $160.1m and sales from its first ruby auction this year generated about $33.5m.

Gemfields currently mines emeralds in Zambia and rubies in Mozambique but is in talks for potential expansion into other countries such as Colombia, which is well known for its emerald deposits. It has also recently entered a joint venture to search for sapphires in Sri Lanka.

Ian Harebottle, chief executive of Gemfields, said: “Gemfields has enjoyed a stellar year which has seen a threefold increase in revenue.”

He said its Fabergé brand, which it bought in 2012 and currently employs actress Mila Kunis as its brand ambassador, reported a 12 per cent increase in gross profit margins.

His plan is to grow demand for colour gemstones through marketing and he said there are synergies with this and the planned expansion of the Fabergé brand as an upmarket jewellery label. He hopes the demand for coloured gemstones will eventually rival the desire for diamonds.