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De Beers Group Auctions is pleased to announce the appointment of Alastair Bickerstaff (pictured) as the Head of Product Development and Sales. The new role, which was created following the departure of the Head of Sales and CRM, is an amalgamation of two instrumental elements of the business – Product Development and Sales.
As the Head of Product Development and Sales, Alastair’s aim is to develop more synergy between the two functions and better address our customers’product needs.
“The products we sell and how we sell them are intrinsically linked. Both must complement each other without exception,” says Alastair. “Only when industry-leading products are sold through an industry-leading platform will we truly be enabling our customers to have control and confidence in their purchasing.”
Working alongside an experienced 12-person sales team who are well-acquainted with our customers, Alastair will also be leading the Product Development and Supply Teams. This will allow the correct products to be created and shipped through our technology-driven production facility in the Singapore headquarters. With his appointment, De Beers Group Auctions becomes better placed to market their products in a more targeted way whilst ensuring customer feedback is acted upon by production in a much more responsive way than previously possible.
Starting with De Beers Group as a Trainee Diamond Valuer in London 14 years ago, Alastair has experience working in rough diamond sorting departments and business units across various geographies, including London, Botswana, Belgium and South Africa. He has spent much of his career in Large Stones valuation and was also a Technical Manager in Global Sightholder Sales (GSS) in Botswana where he was responsible for monitoring Sightholders global polishing factories and keeping up to date with current manufacturing processes and technologies.
“The time spent with polishing factory managers has given me great learnings and insight into the importance of building rough diamond products which are relevant and reactive to our customer’s needs,” Alastair adds. “This isn’t necessarily an easy task to achieve on the scale that we sell and the size of our customer base, however we have a few new solutions to help us which we will be rolling out soon.”
Alastair has been with Auctions (formally De Beers Auctions Sales Singapore PTE LTD.) since 2016 when he relocated from GSS in Botswana to Singapore to take up the role of Production Manager. He progressed on to become Head of Production where he streamlined operations and implemented technology solutions whilst working very closely with the Sales team and GSS. Alastair played a significant role in reinstating market rough purchases to complement the De Beers mines intake and ensure that Auctions can now provide a more comprehensive supply offering for our customers.
James Kirby, Senior Vice President of Auctions, commented on this appointment, “digital transformation is underway in many industries to further enhance sales models, build stronger connections with customers and optimising production. Auctions on our end sees this as a great opportunity.”
“Together with Alastair’s extensive product knowledge, customers can expect us to introduce more product- and service-oriented solutions in the very near future where we put technology to great use to better address their needs quicker than before.”
About De Beers Group Auctions
De Beers Group Auctions is a global leader which has pioneered the use of online auctions to negotiate the sale of natural diamonds to an international customer base. We act as a catalyst for change towards a more efficient diamond auction sector in which greater value for customers and shareholders can be delivered.
Originally established in Antwerp in 1964, our network of offices has progressively expanded to include Tel Aviv, Hong Kong and Mumbai. With the combined expertise of our teams around the world, we aim to develop unique and compelling products to meet the evolving needs of our customers, providing all with an equitable opportunity to purchase the products they require.
We have consistently been at the forefront of developments in diamond auctions. In January 2008, we successfully ran our first online auction sale of rough diamonds involving bidders from around the world. This was unprecedented in the diamond industry. More recently, we also launched a Viewing App, which has garnered a lot of positive feedback from our customers.
Visit auctions.debeersgroup.com for more information.
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About De Beers Group
Established in 1888, De Beers Group is the world’s leading diamond company with expertise in the exploration, mining and marketing of diamonds. Together with its joint venture partners, De Beers Group employs more than 20,000 people across the diamond pipeline and is the world’s largest diamond producer by value, with mining operations in Botswana, Canada, Namibia and South Africa. Innovation sits at the heart of the De Beers Group strategy as it develops its portfolio of brands, including De Beers Jewellers and Forevermark, and other pioneering solutions, such as recently launched diamond sourcing and traceability initiatives Gemfair and Tracr. De Beers Group employees are committed to ‘Building Forever’, a holistic and integrated approach for creating a better future – one that is fairer, safer, cleaner and healthier; where safety, human rights and ethical integrity continue to be paramount; and where communities thrive and the environment is protected. De Beers Group is a member of the Anglo American plc group. For further information, visit www.debeersgroup.com.