Helzberg Diamond rep suggesting blue nile substitutes stones?

[ringguy21]

I was in the mall with my fiancee sporting her new bluenile.com diamond (see here) and we swung by Helzberg Diamonds for the heck of it (I wanted to ask about resizing and maybe take a peek at what they had for comparison''s sake). The sales guy I spoke with immediately claimed to know of "lots" of people who''d ordered from Blue Nile and found their diamonds didn''t match their certificates, and naturally said they had an appraiser on site who could do a "free" appraisal, as soon as I mentioned I''d bought online (and he asked specifically if I was within the 30 day return period still). A couple questions:

1) Are all jewelry salespeople this incredibly slimy? I thought used car sales people were the worst, but now I''m not sure.

2) Is there any even tiny grain of potential truth to what he''s suggesting? I know well enough to avoid the gigantic conflict of interest they''d have in trying to appraise my gf''s diamond so I''m not wasting my time, and in fact now I''m pretty turned off to Helzberg in general now due to this behavior, AND I know it seems like doing this even once for a huge online company like this would probably unhinge their reputation and send them down the tubes, but I still wonder if I shouldn''t look into getting a basic appraisal just for peace of mind. Do other people go through these doubts too?

 

[Missrocks]

Given the source of the information and my experiences I would not take the comment too seriously. IMO, the majority of salespeople that work in the mall / chain envirorment are going to be just that- salespeople. They tried to tell my fiance' (with me standing five feet away) that he could get me a moissonite for a center stone and I wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Seriously..

An independant appraisal is never a bad thing. Also, for BM stores in general, you may be able to find someone more reputable than Helzberg. Also checking out a non-commisioned envirorment may make a world of difference. Search above.

 

[Kaleigh]

Ugghhh, don''t walk but run. Yeah some are that slimy. Their product doesn''t hold a candle to BN or any other online vendor. They are not about CUT. Their clairty is P for Poor too. If you search under resources at the top of the page, you can find an independant appraiser near you. What Helzberg was offering is ka ka.

 

[monarch64]

It has been my experience that B&M stores are quick to emphasize any negatives about buying online. I guess I would too, if my commission depended on it...

Stick with your gut feeling and know that you''ve made a great decision already by buying online. Don''t worry about what a salesperson at Helzburg said.

 

[hairgirl95]

Have to throw in my 2 cents here about b&m bad mouthing online vendors. When I purchased my oval stone a month ago, I was questioning the MUCH higher prices at my jeweler compared to online vendors. My jeweler got a little pissy with me about the question. I ended up purchasing my stone through my jeweler anyway, but when I got the stone mounted, she made sure to tell me that all the online vendors I had on my reference sheet had horrible BBB ratings and many had been in court for fraud. The vendors on that sheet? JA, WF, ERD, and Abazias. It took a LOT of self restraint to not correct her and call her a liar. I know the truth. She was threatened and took the low road. So yes, it seems that slimy and smarmy (my fave moniker for used car dealers

) are protocol for many salespersons who are threatened by the world of online jewelry sales. I wouldn''t give what Helzberg told you a second thought. They prolly never saw a stone as nice as your BN before!!!

 

[denverappraiser]

I’ve seen quite a few diamonds shipped from vendors on behalf of Blue Nile and I’ve never seen one that doesn’t match the report. I dare say I see more of this than all but perhaps a a few people in the whole country so I think this makes me a reasonably credible source. I don’t always agree with the grading and there are occasionally other issues, especially simple disagreement with some of the grading details and craftsmanship problems with the mountings, but it’s always a diamond, it’s always the right diamond and, if I see it before it’s mounted it’s always been undamaged. 90%+ have no problems at all. This same thing is true of each and every one of the major online vendors that I’ve seen stones from.

The major problems with new purchases of ‘certified’ goods (both online and on the street) are:

1) Simple matters of taste. It’s hard to buy things sight unseen and sometimes that results in something that simply doesn’t trip you trigger. Not everyone even likes Hearts and Arrows symmetry for example. If it’s not for you it’s not for you but it’s hard to know if you’ve never seen one.

2) Craftsmanship issues with the mountings.

3) Damage during setting.

4) Cutting details. There’s a lot to cutting that goes beyond what appears on a lab report and customers tend to ask salespeople technical questions that are important to them that the salespeople count as irrelevant. They just make something up or brush it away with a term like ‘ideal’ or ‘premium’ and hope no one notices.

5) Inaccurate or missing data, especially from unusual or unknown labs.

None of this changes by shopping with a local store other than perhaps the questions of taste get resolved before they get to me. Mismatched diamonds with reports are incredibly unusual from credible vendors. It does happen, we all make mistakes, but, frankly, I think the risk of this is higher at the local stores than at the big Internet houses just because they are generally smaller operations and their systems are a little less refined. The real risk of this occurs when you buy from a source that has nothing to say for themselves beyond a low price and a webpage or an ebay advertisement. The risk here goes up both because this sort of dealer seems to be less careful about the details and there is a heightened risk of outright fraud by the seller. Your friend already knew this, that’s why she chose Blue Nile.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver

 

[Catmom]

Date: 3/25/2008 12:06:22 AM
Author: Kaleigh
Ugghhh, don''t walk but run. Yeah some are that slimy. Their product doesn''t hold a candle to BN or any other online vendor. They are not about CUT. Their clairty is P for Poor too. If you search under resources at the top of the page, you can find an independant appraiser near you. What Helzberg was offering is ka ka.

LOL, Kaleigh. Tell us what you really think!


Ummmm..........ditto above!

 

[CaptAubrey]

Date: 3/25/2008 12:03:38 AM
Author: Missrocks
IMO, the majority of salespeople that work in the mall / chain envirorment are going to be just that- salespeople.

This is really the key right here. Many of the salespeople who work in the mall chains sold shoes last year and will be selling clothes next year. The mall stores tend to have longer hours than independent stores, and so need more warm bodies behind the counter. Frequently only the managers will have much in the way of gem and jewelery expertise and sometimes not even then. The salespeople typically (there are exceptions) know only what the managers tell them. My guess is that this story the OP heard was just something the manager passed on to the salesman, and that the salesman doesn''t know Blue Nile from Blue Cross.

 

[niceice]

Date: 3/24/2008 11:46:01 PM
Author:ringguy21
The sales guy I spoke with immediately claimed to know of ''lots'' of people who''d ordered from Blue Nile and found their diamonds didn''t match their certificates, and naturally said they had an appraiser on site who could do a ''free'' appraisal, as soon as I mentioned I''d bought online (and he asked specifically if I was within the 30 day return period still).

Heh, heh, I for one would like to see a copy of that list, the list of people the sales person "claims" to know "who ordered from Blue Nile and found their diamonds didn''t match their certificates" because I''m willing to bet that the guy won''t be able to produce a single valid name - other than perhaps the people that they duped into believing that the diamond that they evaluated "out of courtesy" did not match the report. I wonder, might there be a direct correlation between the number of diamonds that did not match the report AND the number of diamonds which were still within the terms of the 30 day inspection period? Me thinks there might be

What a SKEEEEEZ!!! I''d like to think that more people recognize this "sales tactic" as sleazy than not...

Soap Box Moment: never rely on the "expertise" of in-store personell when asking them to verify the characteristics and quality of a diamond recently purchased elsewhere, it''s like driving a new Chevy truck on to the Ford lot across the street and asking "How did I do?" you''re just asking to be lied to, even if they guy was working across the street at the Chevy lot last month... Consult the services of an independent (thus impartial) GIA Graduate Gemologist or the equivelent thereof, a list is available via the Resources / Appraisers menu option provided at the top of this page.

 

[Elmorton]

Someday I''m going to post a pic of my first diamond, which was from Helzberg. It looks like it was rolled in tar and cut with an axe. Not at all a reputable source about diamond quality.

And yes, they''re all that slimy - but I think they honestly don''t know the truth about what they''re selling. They''re told things by managers, etc, and pass that "info" on to the customer.

Also, don''t let them size your ring - do jewelery repairs with a reputable jeweler.

 

[Fly Girl]

I have a channel set half-eternity ring that was purchased from Helzberg in 1991. Recently I was in there for an inspection, and the sales clerk was amazed at how sparkly the diamonds were. She showed me what they currently sell for channel set eternity rings, and they were so ugly, they made the 1991 model look like superideals (which, of course, they aren''t). Helzberg''s everyday quality has certainly gone down. But a visit there should make you appreciate what you got. Enjoy that Blue Nile ring!!!

 

[Jenn5504]

Date: 3/25/2008 12:06:22 AM
Author: Kaleigh
Ugghhh, don''t walk but run. Yeah some are that slimy. Their product doesn''t hold a candle to BN or any other online vendor. They are not about CUT. Their clairty is P for Poor too. If you search under resources at the top of the page, you can find an independant appraiser near you. What Helzberg was offering is ka ka.

Ditto what Kaleigh said! And please don''t even let Helzberg touch your ring.

I myself have my own personal issues with BN. But I would not worry for a minute that they diamond you paid for isn''t the diamond you got. They are a reputable online vendor.

 

[ringguy21]

Thanks everyone...I thought I knew what was going on but since I''m new to the whole diamond thing I figured I''d ping the experts just to be sure. I feel better now...thanks!

Oh, and I''m planning on getting the diamond appraised from a Pricescope recommended vendor just because this is my first big purchase, the appraisal is pretty inexpensive, and may help with insurance costs.

Thanks for all the advice.