Diamonds in Amsterdam.. rip off?

[andrew]

I''m an Aussie with no diamond experience what-so-ever. I live in Holland curently and am looking for an engagement ring.

Amsterdam seems to be one of the big diamond places, and there are some "big name" cutters/polishers here.

Has anyone had any good / bad experiences buying in Amsterdam? Am I better off buying a stone "direct from these factories" or just going to a retailer?

Thanks, have a great day!

Andrew

 

[pqcollectibles]

You might contact Paul-Antwerp. He's a regular contibutor on the Forum and a diamond cutter. Just do a member search for his name. You can PM/email him thru PS. He's worked with several folk and had glowing reports.

 

[WinkHPD]

That would have been my advice, but it may be too late, Paul is headed to the States and will be here on Thursday evening, so he may still be there at this time.

I think you will find better pricing in Antwerpen, which is only a train ride away from Amsterdam, 5-15% is what I am told by people I know who have been to both areas.

There are a LOT of diamond dealers in Antwerp, many of them are members of this forum or associated with members of this forum, perhaps some of them can share ideas with you also.

Wink

 

[andrew]

Thanks guys!

 

[diamondsbylauren]

I've been to both places.


Amserdam was one of the places that the modern diamond industry developed- but today there's only a token diamond business there.


Antwerp does have quite a large diamond business- but this does not neccesarily translate into a good retail selection.


Most of the diamonds sold in Antwerp are for export.


Large diamond dealers generally do NOT maintain retail selling spaces- and I did not see a good retail selection in Antwerp.


I did not do as you've done- check with the board before going- maybe others have had better results




Generally speaking, the US market's demand results in a lot of retail stores which carry a selection of 1.00+ size diamonds.


IN Europe, generally, it is currently difficult to find larger diamonds in retail jewelry stores- although this may be changing.