How do high street jewellers get away with it?!

[denverappraiser]

The traditional business model for jewelry stores has been to make money on diamonds and give away things like appraisals and even repairs for ‘free’. Certainly customer education was (and is) assumed to be free and one on one, for as long as you want. Nothing is free, so that leads to the need for higher markups to cover all of the costs. They also tend to occupy extremely high rent locations. A 10-foot booth on the ground floor in the diamond district will run tens of thousands of dollars a month plus a commission on sales. Malls in the suburbs are better, but not all that much. This led to Internet merchants with a different business model. They have lower prices and they simply don’t do all that free stuff. No, you can’t go in and ‘browse’ for hours with their salespeople without actually buying anything. Shop on the street or in the mall if you want, and no, it shouldn’t be illegal for them to charge whatever they must. If you don't like the model, shop somewhere else.

 

[OoohShiny]

You guys definitely ED daylight robbery when you charged a tax on Windows leading to houses with few or no windows.
Hence the English term hahahaha.

Is that where the term 'daylight robbery' came from??

I never knew that!!

I just thought it might be something to do with being victim of a highway robber in olden times in the daytime, lol.

 

[prs]

Is that where the term 'daylight robbery' came from??

I never knew that!!

I just thought it might be something to do with being victim of a highway robber in olden times in the daytime, lol.

The English invented just about everything, including daylight robbery. Of course shortly after they invented daylight robbery, they had to invent the police force!

 

[X5M]

This is a good example $10,600

This is enough to make me cry! PI clarity?!

 

[barbie86]

I have wondered this too and compared online just for fun. The specs I’d get at Zales etc for the same money we spent at HPD are shocking. I think these places simply rely and prey upon on clueless customers.

Not judging those shoppers at all - before stumbling upon PS I was completely uneducated about diamonds, and had we been in the market for a diamond we’d have been prime candidates to get ripped off for a dud!

I don't judge much, but, I do think if you are spending a decent amount of money in something you should do your research. I can't fathom spending even a couple thousand without a bit of research (depending on the item).

I think one issue though is people simply not being aware that places like Hatton Garden/Birmingham Jewellery Quarter/online companies exist.

Emotional advertising to a generally unknowledgeable public accounts for a fair amount of the reason, but I would venture that the in house financing that many of the chains offer is a better explanation. A quick google search tells me that one doesn’t necessarily need to have good credit in order to finance a ring with most mall chains. And that consumer pays in both quality and price.

The credit point is very true (although makes me shudder even more: as you could then be paying £15k for a ring worth about £2-3k). However, you can get credit with Hatton Garden companies. They are a little more picky, but not overly picky, interest is lower, and again, the cost is so much lower. So I don't think that's it.

 

[barbie86]

You guys definitely ED daylight robbery when you charged a tax on Windows leading to houses with few or no windows.
Hence the English term hahahaha.

The English invented just about everything, including daylight robbery. Of course shortly after they invented daylight robbery, they had to invent the police force!

So I used the term daylight robbery without realising how British this is lol. Much like how I used high street which has also caused major confusion.

Will think harder about terminology before posting in future!

 

[MillieLou]

My original e-ring was from Blue Nile, a decade ago. There was a lot of stigma and suspicion around buying diamonds "online" in the UK. I also got my husband online, but no-one seemed to mind that

 

[dk168]

I started importing jewellery in the mid to late 90s, and discovered PS when I was looking for suitable vendors where I could inspect and pick my own diamond for my 40th birthday.

It was via PS that led me to Diamondhouse in Antwerp where I purchased my EC in mid 00s.

EC was, and still is uncommon, except in Hatton Garden and the posher shops in and around the Bond Streets.

Not entirely sure if I got a better deal than buying in UK or not, however, I enjoyed the buying process for certain!

DK

 

[barbie86]

My original e-ring was from Blue Nile, a decade ago. There was a lot of stigma and suspicion around buying diamonds "online" in the UK. I also got my husband online, but no-one seemed to mind that

I bought a pendant off Blue Nile at a similar time: had a cheap one from Ernest Jones which I lost, and with the insurance payout bought something better from BN.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

You guys definitely ED daylight robbery when you charged a tax on Windows leading to houses with few or no windows.
Hence the English term hahahaha.

Well i learn something every day
but that makes complete sence

That window tax was so dumb its corrupt

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

So I used the term daylight robbery without realising how British this is lol. Much like how I used high street which has also caused major confusion.

Will think harder about terminology before posting in future!

Nooooooo !
This is what the internet is for !
Learning about different peoples and their customs and terminology
Please be as British as you want to be
Otherwise it just wouldn't be cricket

 

[barbie86]

So I know this is an old post, but I tried a few wedding bands at a high street jeweller on Sunday (got engaged on the Sat, heading into lockdown for a month or more, was over excited lol; I had zero intention of buying, just wanted to look at widths/diamond vs non diamond).

Anyway, goodness gracious, the mark up was insane! Everything I tried was honestly about 3x the cost of the company we bought my engagement ring from (and other companies in Hatton Garden); as in, £600 for a very light 3mm 18ct YG band that costs like £200 most other places.

And then the SA got mesmerized by my engagement ring (I had to take it off to put on gloves, to try the rings on over..). She was openly staring and commented how nice it was (I was like 'ahh, thanks!', still trying to get the gloves on), and then she asked to see it, as in, hold it. Ok, cool. But awkward. So there's me still struggling to get the stupid gloves on (apparently a tighter fit is 'more realistic' for the rings.. hmm...) while she's gawking at the ring and asking if I chose it myself, if it was custom made, etc.

In the meantime, there's a couple behind me clearly actually buying their wedding bands, after clearing having bought the engagement ring from the same place. I despair.

We have the internet! We can research! Just why?!

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

So I know this is an old post, but I tried a few wedding bands at a high street jeweller on Sunday (got engaged on the Sat, heading into lockdown for a month or more, was over excited lol; I had zero intention of buying, just wanted to look at widths/diamond vs non diamond).

Anyway, goodness gracious, the mark up was insane! Everything I tried was honestly about 3x the cost of the company we bought my engagement ring from (and other companies in Hatton Garden); as in, £600 for a very light 3mm 18ct YG band that costs like £200 most other places.

And then the SA got mesmerized by my engagement ring (I had to take it off to put on gloves, to try the rings on over..). She was openly staring and commented how nice it was (I was like 'ahh, thanks!', still trying to get the gloves on), and then she asked to see it, as in, hold it. Ok, cool. But awkward. So there's me still struggling to get the stupid gloves on (apparently a tighter fit is 'more realistic' for the rings.. hmm...) while she's gawking at the ring and asking if I chose it myself, if it was custom made, etc.

In the meantime, there's a couple behind me clearly actually buying their wedding bands, after clearing having bought the engagement ring from the same place. I despair.

We have the internet! We can research! Just why?!

So think about this from another point of view Barbie.
1. many people will happily pay Tiffany et al prices which may have even higher markups than where you shopped.
2. What you were doing is called "showrooming" by retailers. People come into shoe shops, clothing stores and jewellers to try things on because it makes their selection process easier. Meanwhile the store is paying staff to assist you. They are paying rents that add up often to more per sale than the actual cost of the product you buy (as a % of overall operation costs).

If online wipes out 80% of B&M stores in businesses that are needed for service of the products we buy it will be a sad thing.
Imagine you bend a ring and there is no one within 100 miles to fix it. You have to ship it to an online repair business?
Already we dispose of a huge amount of household products that cost a fortune to repair - at astronomical environmental impact.

It is a conundrum for sure. We want nice restaurants, but Uber Eats et al are charging restaurants up to a third of the price to take orders and deliver. Then pay the delivery people who risk their lives peanuts.

I wonder how all this will change our lives and if it will always be for the better?

It will be

 

[barbie86]

So think about this from another point of view Barbie.
1. many people will happily pay Tiffany et al prices which may have even higher markups than where you shopped.
2. What you were doing is called "showrooming" by retailers. People come into shoe shops, clothing stores and jewellers to try things on because it makes their selection process easier. Meanwhile the store is paying staff to assist you. They are paying rents that add up often to more per sale than the actual cost of the product you buy (as a % of overall operation costs).

If online wipes out 80% of B&M stores in businesses that are needed for service of the products we buy it will be a sad thing.
Imagine you bend a ring and there is no one within 100 miles to fix it. You have to ship it to an online repair business?
Already we dispose of a huge amount of household products that cost a fortune to repair - at astronomical environmental impact.

It is a conundrum for sure. We want nice restaurants, but Uber Eats et al are charging restaurants up to a third of the price to take orders and deliver. Then pay the delivery people who risk their lives peanuts.

I wonder how all this will change our lives and if it will always be for the better?

It will be

I hear what you are saying. However:

A) Hatton Garden does have B&M stores. Every single jeweller there at least has a workshop where you can try jewellery on
B) When I say high street, I don't mean just a regular B&M store. I mean chain (eg Kays/Zales/Ernest Jones/H Samuel etc)

Personally I don't have an issue with 'using' chain stores, where the mark up is WAY high, to try things. I figure a) I am in the minority and b) the mark up is so high that they can afford it

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

So think about this from another point of view Barbie.
1. many people will happily pay Tiffany et al prices which may have even higher markups than where you shopped.
2. What you were doing is called "showrooming" by retailers. People come into shoe shops, clothing stores and jewellers to try things on because it makes their selection process easier. Meanwhile the store is paying staff to assist you. They are paying rents that add up often to more per sale than the actual cost of the product you buy (as a % of overall operation costs).

If online wipes out 80% of B&M stores in businesses that are needed for service of the products we buy it will be a sad thing.
Imagine you bend a ring and there is no one within 100 miles to fix it. You have to ship it to an online repair business?
Already we dispose of a huge amount of household products that cost a fortune to repair - at astronomical environmental impact.

It is a conundrum for sure. We want nice restaurants, but Uber Eats et al are charging restaurants up to a third of the price to take orders and deliver. Then pay the delivery people who risk their lives peanuts.

I wonder how all this will change our lives and if it will always be for the better?

It will be

And B&M places keep people employed
We can't all be doctors and lawyers