I wish I hadn't made that purchase and return...

[erinl]

Bit of a long story, bear with me...



I recently purchased a gemstone from a less-frequented vendor--not one of the precision gem cutters so many pricescopers frequent, not a Thai-based, Africa-based, or ebay-based vendor either. I asked to purchase one stone, and this vendor encouraged me to also look at two other stones as well for comparison. I was a little hesitant to do so, since I knew I only wanted one and I would definitely be returning all but one--which I even said to the vendor on the phone. There was a chance I would be returning all of them if all the stones weren't what I hoped for. But I agreed to all three being sent to me, as the returns I have previously made have been easy and pleasant, even to overseas vendors.

I gave the vendor my credit card number, the vendor said there would be a 100 dollar deposit placed on the card, and the stones were sent to me. I believe they reached me on Wednesday the 28th of June, maybe the 29th. On Saturday the 2nd I received an email from this vendor saying that he/she hadn't charged the card and wanted to know what was up. The email was not friendly in tone, that is for sure.

I wasn't particularly thrilled with any of the stones, actually was pretty disappointed with them, especially for the price. Since the long holiday weekend was coming up i ran to the post office, mailed them back (in one of those small priority mail boxes), with full insurance on them.

I sent an email in reply to this vendor saying that I had mailed all three stones back--I said that the cutting was lovely, but I wasn't expecting quite as much zoning in the stones, especially the one I had originally asked to purchase. I told the vendor I had sent it insured as well.

In reply I was told that I should look at some synthetic stones, that this color was the best there is. I didn't reply to this email, what would I say?

Today I get an email from this vendor again, wish a message line saying "You should respect the property of others and slow down."

This was the rest of the message:

"I haven't talked on the phone to a person who is running on higher speed more than you, I think you should have looked the package over before you mailed it. You didn't even tape one end, anybody could have opened it and closed it at whim.

To avoid loss of property that doesn't belong to you it would be nice to have the courtesy to TAPE the box closed.

Slow down the pace and have a nice summer."



I would love any advice of how to respond to this vendor? I am a bit upset at the moment, but really don't want to open myself up to an email flame--I generally don't do that, imo this vendor has an issue that I can't fix, and responding in kind seems counterproductive. Selfishly, I don't want to get any more crap emails from this person.

The box was taped at the top and had a side sticker tape on one side. I would agree that it could have been taped a little more securely--the postman was adamant about it being completely secure, even when I said it had several hundred dollars of items in it. But the items were received safely by him/her as far as I can tell from the rude email above. By the way, this vendor packaged these stones only in small gem ziplocs (not sure the accurate name) within wadded newspaper, which was pretty junky/careless to start with in my opinion.

The attacks on my taste in gems, and general demeanor are really not welcome or necessary, right??? I don't need to make explanations, but this vendor called me at dinnertime and I have two toddlers.....

 

[VapidLapid]

What is great from this story is that you never need to have another experience like this from that vendor. Watch you credit card to make sure you get refunded the hundred and after it is all over put his/her email address on your spam/block list. Then put the whole thing out of your mind.

 

[erinl]

Vapidlapid: Interestingly enough the vendor never charged my card at all. I didn't notice that until today when I checked up on it.

 

[VapidLapid]

Was this the 7.76 four peaks you had sent? I had my eye on that one too. I have never bought from them but I have had them on my list for a while.

 

[erinl]

Vapidlapid: Yes, that's the one.

 

[VapidLapid]

I am sorry you had an unpleasant experience with them. Someone else in here has bought from them and had good experiences but I can't remember who it was right now. I had been really hopeful about them. Was that stone seriously zoned, showing all that color throughout the stone only from that one view, but blank colorwise in large areas visible from other angles? That is a worry I had about it. Hard to tell from only one static photo.

 

[erinl]

Vapidlapid: The 7.76 stone, in my opinion, had visible areas of no color, from most angles. These areas weren't huge, but were noticeable to me. It was pretty, but didn't do it for me, for that price. It kind of reminded me of dye in water before you completely stir it. There was a much smaller one that was in the shipment that had even more exaggerated zoning-- I would have kept that one for sure if it weren't so heavily zoned, as I want a 4 peaks. I contemplated the third one, the color was probably the best but it was in an odd shape, had some visible imperfections, and was the most expensive of the lot. All three were classic emerald cuts and I am not sure that cut did those stones any favors

They just weren't for me, I had no clue I would irk the vendor that intensely with a return, especially with two stones that were pushed on me..

 

[VapidLapid]

In general I dont think you have to explain to a vendor why a stone is not for you. Most vendors understand the vagaries of buying stones from pictures on websites. I think it is enough to say thank you but this stone is not what I am looking for. The only time I think one might want to make a detailed explanation is if the vendor is actively trying to source a stone for you. Then any clarifications, addenda or refinements to the specifics of what you want will help in the search.
Amethysts are so quirky sometimes. Often in a stone with great deep color, if the color is relatively continuous throughout, the stone can just be too dark. Then too, some stones will have a drop of color and clear zones around it. Sometimes there are more than one drop. It is a huge challenge to a cutter to orient a stone for the best color. Since it can be impossible to orient that for all angles of view, it becomes common practice to prioritize the top down frontal view. In many cuts the color gets reflected internally enough that the whole stone will appear filled with color. Other cuts unfortunately aren't so forgiving.
One should never feel pressured to take a stone that doesn't live up to one's wants and expectations. Keep looking, you will find one that matches or exceeds those.

 

[T L]

I would love any advice of how to respond to this vendor? I am a bit upset at the moment, but really don't want to open myself up to an email flame--I generally don't do that, imo this vendor has an issue that I can't fix, and responding in kind seems counterproductive. Selfishly, I don't want to get any more crap emails from this person.

Did you get your refund? If so, I would let it lie, and I would never ever ever buy another thing from him/her again. Sorry you had to deal with such unprofessional behavior.

Incidentally, amethysts, as well as blue sapphires, are stones that are very prone to zoning. Whenever buying a pricey amethyst, or sapphire, I always recommend the vendor provide a shot showing the pavillion. Videos are even better. I know Gary Dutton of diamondexpert.com will provide such photos of his Four Peaks material upon request.

 

[VapidLapid]

If you are set on four peaks you could contact the mine directly
http://fourpeaksmining.com/
they also have links to some vendors who stock their stones. This one doesnt have loose gemstones on their website, but they may have them anyway, so it could be useful to contact them:
http://www.arizonagems.com/?page=azgems&gem=amethyst

 

[LD]

You don't have to reply at all. Just leave it be but keep an eye on your credit card just in case.

Sorry to hear about this. It's not pleasant when this happens.

 

[minousbijoux]

erini: I hope it is you who just bought the new Namibian Gary Braun just put on his website - you deserve a happy ending from a good, customer service-oriented vendor like Gary.

 

[erinl]

Minousbijoux: Nope, it wasn't me--but I did get some lovely JXR amethyst from The Gemtrader!

 

[erinl]

I just took a look at that amethyst--darn, I wish I had purchased it!

 

[Lovinggems]

Sorry to hear that, I was going to to make a purchase from them as well. Now I won't bother enquiring.

 

[Allison D.]

erini: I hope it is you who just bought the new Namibian Gary Braun just put on his website

Errrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.......that was me.

 

[erinl]

Allison D: Post pics when you get it!!!

 

[movie zombie]

for those of us that do not know the vendor, i think you should say who this is. to hold back this info could be to the detriment of another pricescoper.

if it is ok to post praise re vendors here, the reverse should also be ok.


you did nothing wrong. no further communication is necessary with this vendor. just watch your card.

 

[erinl]

Movie Zombie: I mentioned the vendor in my previous thread on Jackson Crossroads Amethyst...

 

[athenaworth]

I would like to know who the vendor is.

 

[brandy_z28]

I wanted to know also.

I believe I tracked the gem back to Colorado Gem and Mineral. Please correct me if I am wrong.

 

[movie zombie]

i do not believe that because you mentioned the vendor in a prior thread you are prohibited from mentioning it again here......

in a thread in which a buyer is rightly unhappy with a vendor it would seem that in the same thread mentioning the vendor would be appropriate.

those that find this thread may not find your other thread....link to the prior thread or "out" the vendor here please.


btw, a search did not easily link to your other thread......if i had found it i would have added it to this message.

 

[erinl]

Movie Zombie: I know I am not prohibited, I just don't want any more unpleasant emails from this vendor, but I guess I opened myself up to that when I started this thread.....

Brandy_z28, yes that is the vendor..

 

[movie zombie]

thanks, Brandy for tracking the vendor down.....

 

[chrono]

Erin,
I understand that it's not easy to complain about any vendors on PS. Believe it or not, most posters are concerned that they will be flamed on PS while everyone is shooting questions left and right in attempts to understand the situation better from both the perspective of the vendor and the customer. Thank you for stepping up and sharing with us who the vendor is.

 

[Aoife]

I'm so sorry for the negative experience. What unprofessional behavior on the vendor's part.

 

[pregcurious]

Sorry you had an unpleasant experience.