Delster
Ideal_Rock
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2007
- Messages
- 2,231
Saturday BF and I went ring browsing, to see whether diamonds in Dublin are overpriced, and if so, by how much. We went to two jewellers on/off Ireland''s most expensive street, well known shops that play up their celebrity clientéle.
All of these prices are for VERY simple platinum settings so you I''ve given the Pricescope diamond search prices, and then added on what a comparable platinum setting would cost on the WF website (around $1,050 for the Legato Sleek Line solitaire, $1,500 for the RB + baguette setting). I limited the PS search engine to excellent / ideal cut diamonds only. The only diamond I got to examine the cert for in the B&Ms scored a 2.6 on the Cut Adviser.
SHOP # 1
RB .61ct, E, SI1 - in a 4 claw platinum solitaire setting - IGI certified
Dublin Price: $5,415 (€3,665)
PS Price: $1,640 (with setting probably around $2,700)
RB .90ct, F, VS2 - again, in a 4 claw platinum solitaire setting - HRD certified
Dublin Price: $14,375 (€9,72
PS Price: $8,157 (for a 1.01ct) (with setting probably around $9207)
SHOP # 2
RB 1.05ct, D, VS2 - in a 4 claw platinum solitaire setting - certified, but I didn''t catch the lab
Dublin Price: $17,725 (€11,995)
PS Price: $8898 (for a 1.02) (with setting probably around $994
RB .90ct, with two baguettes of .125 each, uncertified, G/H colour, SI clarity, set in platinum
Dublin Price: $13,883 (€9,395)
PS Price: $6,570 (for RB, G, VS1, tcw 1.17) (with setting probably around $8,082)
CUSTOMER SERVICE REVIEW!
SHOP # 1
Our SA was young, and giddy because the work day was nearly over. She showed us samples of "all" their selection - RBs, emerald cuts, and princesses. There was one square cut emerald. I asked if they had any cushions and after about ten minutes of searching they found ONE in the whole shop. It was huuuge though
This SA seemed confused and certainly didn''t know much about diamonds. At one point she told us that unless a stone is completely exposed at the sides, it won''t sparkle at all. One minute the store didn''t stock anything below VS clarity, the next she was showing up an SI1 stone. She also told us that the rising price of precious metals hasn''t affected their pricing "at all" because the cost of settings is "miniscule" compared to the diamond price. Huh? She NEVER ONCE mentioned cut other than to tell us that HOF are "supposedly" the best cut diamonds. She only told us that and showed us those after I specifically asked to see them. Their certified diamonds were GIA (but she didn''t show us any GIA certed diamonds), IGI, or HRD. The one cert I did get to scribble down the stats off of, that diamond scored a 2.6 on the Cut Adviser.
OK so we expected some degree of ignorance and we realised we were likely to be better educated than the average consumer (or SA!). But the final straw was the appalling customer service. BF asked for a written description of one of their settings, saying something like ''OK, so say she decides she loves this one and I come back and I want to buy it, can you write it down for me so I will be sure I get the exact same ring?''. The SA told him she couldn''t give him a description as it was "just an ordinary four claw setting" and he''d just have to come in and search for something that looked the same. BF was disgusted! Then I asked if we could choose a loose diamond from them and have them set it, and when she said yes I mentioned to BF that by doing that we could search for a diamond that just skirts under the one carat price premium, say a .98 or something, and the SA interrupted to say "well we couldn''t do that, you can''t just have whatever you want you know"
SHOP # 2
This shop had a sign on the consultation table explaining the importance of cut, which was promising! The SA brought up a selection of different cuts and setting styles, this time I had asked to see RBs and emerald cuts specifically. She gave tactful opinions on what styles suited my hand best, but only after we''d had plenty of time to play with all the rings and were leaning in particular directions. She also went off and brought up a selection of wedding bands once we had narrowed down the rings to our favourites, so we could play around with the overall look. And she was more than happy to write down all the details for BF on a piece of paper! Again, certificates (where provided) were GIA, IGI, and HRD.
All of these prices are for VERY simple platinum settings so you I''ve given the Pricescope diamond search prices, and then added on what a comparable platinum setting would cost on the WF website (around $1,050 for the Legato Sleek Line solitaire, $1,500 for the RB + baguette setting). I limited the PS search engine to excellent / ideal cut diamonds only. The only diamond I got to examine the cert for in the B&Ms scored a 2.6 on the Cut Adviser.
SHOP # 1
RB .61ct, E, SI1 - in a 4 claw platinum solitaire setting - IGI certified
Dublin Price: $5,415 (€3,665)
PS Price: $1,640 (with setting probably around $2,700)
RB .90ct, F, VS2 - again, in a 4 claw platinum solitaire setting - HRD certified
Dublin Price: $14,375 (€9,72
PS Price: $8,157 (for a 1.01ct) (with setting probably around $9207)
SHOP # 2
RB 1.05ct, D, VS2 - in a 4 claw platinum solitaire setting - certified, but I didn''t catch the lab
Dublin Price: $17,725 (€11,995)
PS Price: $8898 (for a 1.02) (with setting probably around $994
RB .90ct, with two baguettes of .125 each, uncertified, G/H colour, SI clarity, set in platinum
Dublin Price: $13,883 (€9,395)
PS Price: $6,570 (for RB, G, VS1, tcw 1.17) (with setting probably around $8,082)
CUSTOMER SERVICE REVIEW!
SHOP # 1
Our SA was young, and giddy because the work day was nearly over. She showed us samples of "all" their selection - RBs, emerald cuts, and princesses. There was one square cut emerald. I asked if they had any cushions and after about ten minutes of searching they found ONE in the whole shop. It was huuuge though
OK so we expected some degree of ignorance and we realised we were likely to be better educated than the average consumer (or SA!). But the final straw was the appalling customer service. BF asked for a written description of one of their settings, saying something like ''OK, so say she decides she loves this one and I come back and I want to buy it, can you write it down for me so I will be sure I get the exact same ring?''. The SA told him she couldn''t give him a description as it was "just an ordinary four claw setting" and he''d just have to come in and search for something that looked the same. BF was disgusted! Then I asked if we could choose a loose diamond from them and have them set it, and when she said yes I mentioned to BF that by doing that we could search for a diamond that just skirts under the one carat price premium, say a .98 or something, and the SA interrupted to say "well we couldn''t do that, you can''t just have whatever you want you know"
SHOP # 2
This shop had a sign on the consultation table explaining the importance of cut, which was promising! The SA brought up a selection of different cuts and setting styles, this time I had asked to see RBs and emerald cuts specifically. She gave tactful opinions on what styles suited my hand best, but only after we''d had plenty of time to play with all the rings and were leaning in particular directions. She also went off and brought up a selection of wedding bands once we had narrowed down the rings to our favourites, so we could play around with the overall look. And she was more than happy to write down all the details for BF on a piece of paper! Again, certificates (where provided) were GIA, IGI, and HRD.
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