Tiffany Celebrates Cutting and Polishing Center Opening

Yesterday Tiffany & Co. celebrated the opening of its Laurelton Diamonds cutting and polishing center located in Yellowknife in Canada's Northwest Territories. Local dignitaries and civic leaders attended the Founding Ceremony, including Northwest Territories Premier Stephen Kakfwi.

The facility is a 12,000-square-foot facility, designed to ultimately accommodate 75 employees. The workforce, currently in a start-up mode with 6 polishers, will support Tiffany's diamonds needs and desire to better control the processing of the gems set in its jewelry.

“Laurelton Diamonds is an important link in a chain of supply that gives us more control over the sourcing of our diamonds. This new facility also helps achieve our stated objective of providing meaningful economic opportunities to the local community and establishing closer ties to our Canadian partners,” says Tiffany Chairman Michael J. Kowalski.

Kowalski also announced a $25,000 contribution to the Stanton Territorial Hospital Foundation to assist with “Operation Looking Glass,” a fundraising effort to purchase endoscopic equipment for the Stanton Territorial Hospital.

In 1999, Tiffany purchased a 14.7 percent equity investment in the Aber Diamond Corporation, a 40 percent owner of the Diavik Diamonds Project in the Northwest Territories of Canada for $71 million. Tiffany also entered into a diamond purchase agreement with Aber to purchase a minimum of $50 million in diamonds, subject to Tiffany's quality standards, annually for 10 years.