I decided to venture into one of the big National mall chain stores to see if all the B&M horror stories I have heard are true. I ask if their diamonds are certified and the salesman said many of them are GIA Cert and that GIA is the ONLY certification they would carry. I ask to see loose diamonds. He shows me a GIA certified round 1.07, J, SI2. The price tag said Retail price $10,000 (ha!), Our price: $4959. I ask him about cut and he said it is not ideal but very good. I asked about getting detailed cut information and he said he didn't have immediate access to that info. Then he goes on to explain that the lower price they were selling it for was due to the J color. However, he assures me that a GIA J is really like an H because the GIA is "so strict."
It was hard not to laugh out loud.
It was hard not to laugh out loud.