Post by Rosa » October 28th, 2009, 9:17 pm
So, b/c I can''t sleep right now, I''ve been reading and surfing the web, and checking out some stuff I''d bookmarked ages ago.

Specifically, I was looking at jewelry I emailed to myself notes about --> Pre-Lehman, pre-AIG, even pre-Bear Stearns collapse. So, what I''m really surprised at is how the prices haven''t changed at all.

I had emailed myself price & photos of some things I liked and the prices hadn''t budged one bit.

Here are two examples:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=200391649280&Category=164321&_trkparms=algo%3DLVI%26its%3DI%26otn%3D2 I had gone to see this in person and one of the citrines was scratched pretty badly...although the seller said it could be polished out. I sent myself this ebay listing in spring of 2008, saw it in person a few months later. It was $895 back then, and still is today. Wouldn''t you think the prices would have come down at least a little? .5 ct diamonds and over each citrine approx 2.65cts each. Pre-crash, I''d have paid $750. Now, more like $600.

http://www.firenzejewels.com/diamonds/info/43-Dangle%20Earrings-31-3234-000-Lady-s-.65ct-diamond-and-14k-yellow-gold-antique-style-dangle-earrings-000-.html Also saw these in person and couldn''t justify the price. They didn''t look like .65ct tcw (although they may be) and are 14kt instead of 18kt. $1,225 is too much. If they cut the price 25% I''d start getting to the point of buying.

There are a LOT of empty booths on 47th Street. Obviously, Deena and Firenze, the two companies I listed from above must have enough business not to adjust their prices. I do think they have particularly nice things style-wise in each booth - nicer than some, but not all, of the other places on the block(or maybe just more to my taste.)

I was just wondering though, if overall, having such sticky prices is good for the jewelry industry as whole. I think not - and here is why:

I have a lot of "pent up" desire to spend cash that I have saved especially for luxury items. However, I also have to feel like I am getting good value. I can''t enjoy a purchase if I feel like I overpaid. Incomes are down dramatically, employment is down dramatically, especially here in NYC where financial services have been eviscerated, real estate is down - why not diamonds and jewelry? So, my "pent up" spending on luxury goods, instead of being funneled to jewelry, is being spent on other items that have suddenly gotten a lot cheaper due to the economy. Anecdotally, from talking to friends, I know this is true for them as well. A female acquaintance asked for a new Mercedes instead of a ring as a "push present."

Anyone else in the same boat? Anyone want to shed light on why merchants still think they can charge 2005 -2006 prices in 2009?

Thanks,
Rosa