HRD Antwerp Mumbai welcomes HRH Princess Astrid Of Belgium and reveals expansion plans
HRD Antwerp was very honoured to welcome HRH Princess Astrid of Belgium, Representative of His Majesty the King, to its world leading diamond-grading lab in Mumbai, India last Tuesday. The visit of HRH Princess Astrid was part of the Belgian Economic Mission to India this week.
Besides visiting the diamond grading lab, HRH Princess Astrid took the opportunity to officially open HRD Antwerp’s brand new jewellery lab in Mumbai, in the presence of HE Didier Reynders, Deputy Prime Minister of Belgium and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and European Affairs and HE Kris Peeters, Minister-President of the Government of Flanders, Flemish Minister for Economy, Foreign Policy, Agriculture and Rural Policy. Following the visit to the HRD Antwerp diamond lab, local businesses and Antwerp diamond traders had the opportunity to network during an informal get-together. In addition, the official delegation visited the Antwerp Diamond Bank, Mumbai Branch. The AWDC Board of Directors was represented by Ramesh Patel, Kaushik Mehta, Koen Vandenbempt and Shailesh Javeri.
Underscoring the fundamental ties between leading diamond trading centre Antwerp and the Indian production hubs of Mumbai and Surat, HRD Antwerp intends to raise its scope in India by actively promoting its grading services, educational programmes and the sale of HRD Antwerp equipment. Looking at the future, Serge Couvreur, CEO of HRD Antwerp, plans to expand HRD Antwerp’s presence in India with new ventures: “We will open a second office, with a showroom and a diamond equipment shop in Surat, which will essentially focus on high tech instruments and diamond equipment. In New Delhi, we are currently launching a pilot project for in-house diamond jewellery grading services”, he explained.
For decades, Antwerp and India have exchanged knowhow and technological expertise. In the early sixties India took the first steps to become the world’s leading diamond processing centre. At the same time, Antwerp, the world’s leading hub for diamond trade, became the single largest supplier of rough diamonds to India. Furthermore, the country is one the fastest growing economies in the world and a booming diamond jewellery market.
