Jared.. cheaper than online?

[mvyoung2]

So I went into Jared about 4 weeks ago to start looking for engagement rings. I''ve bought a couple pieces here and there from them but the guy who helps me out unfortunately has moved on to open a store in CA. Bummer! So I started working with another salesperson and it wasn''t that bad. The first guy who started helping me out actually was very polite even when I told him I was just looking and had to inclination to buy today. He showed me everything he had from peerless to leo to the regular diamonds. Unfortunately he had to go on a lunch break in the middle so he delegated me to another woman who started to show me diamonds.

Keep in mind this is the first time I actually associated prices with diamonds but after taking the stats and prices from some of the diamonds and compared it with online brokers. They haven''t even come close to what Jared quoted me. So.. tell me what you think!

1.21 ct.
round cut
colour: H
Cert: GIA
sym/pol: vg/vg
clarity: I can''t remember if it was vs2 or si1 but when I compared next to another diamond it was actually nicer looking than a diamond which had a higher clarity rating.
price: 5800.00

They were even generous enough to price out the diamond with a mid-priced setting (one with some accent diamonds) , tax, warranty, and it came out to about 7400.00 out the door.


I''ve looked at many online businesses since then and still haven''t found any price quotes close to this. Am I missing something?

 

[stone-cold11]

What is the cut grade of that stone you are talking about? That makes a big difference in price too.

 

[MissGotRocks]

Their Peerless line contains their diamonds that they sell as ideal cut stones. The Leos are not in this mix either. You''d have to have the info from the certificate - crown and pavillion angles as well as depth and table to really compare to diamonds online. Do you have this information on that particular stone?

 

[neatfreak]

Let's put it this way, Jared's is NEVER known for their value priced stones. If anything, they are known for their very overpriced stones. So something sounds off here, and I am willing to bet that the cut of the diamond (which is really the most important C if you want that baby to sparkle) is really bad here...but we need more information from the cert to be sure.

We need:

Depth, Table, Crown and Pavillion Angles and then we can help determine if it's a good cut for you.

 

[denverappraiser]

Usually people evaluate the diamond and the mounting separately because the issues are so different. There’s nothing like enough information to know if $1,800 is a good price on the mounting. Some are and some aren’t.

Jared’s is certainly capable of offering terrific prices if they want and they have lots of happy customers but most shoppers find that they are more expensive on most diamonds than the more aggressive online sellers. It’s sort of expensive to maintain all of those showrooms and employees and usually price is not their primary selling point. You’re correct that the price you quoted looks attractive but I would want a bit more information before I took the plunge. If you looked over the peerless and Leo lines, you know how much difference cutting can make to both the price and the look of the stone.

If the lab exam was done after 2006, there’s a pretty good chance you can look up the data asked for above on GIA’s website at www.gia.edu/reportcheck by entering the report number and the weight of the stone.

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

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 9/29/2008 9:22:38 AM
Author: denverappraiser
Usually people evaluate the diamond and the mounting separately because the issues are so different. There’s nothing like enough information to know if $1,800 is a good price on the mounting. Some are and some aren’t.


Jared’s is certainly capable of offering terrific prices if they want and they have lots of happy customers but most shoppers find that they are more expensive on most diamonds than the more aggressive online sellers. It’s sort of expensive to maintain all of those showrooms and employees and usually price is not their primary selling point. You’re correct that the price you quoted looks attractive but I would want a bit more information before I took the plunge. If you looked over the peerless and Leo lines, you know how much difference cutting can make to both the price and the look of the stone.


If the lab exam was done after 2006, there’s a pretty good chance you can look up the data asked for above on GIA’s website at www.gia.edu/reportcheck by entering the report number and the weight of the stone.


Neil Beaty

GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA

Professional Appraisals in Denver

Neil says it well enough to negate the need for me to say anything.

I will add however that at least the local Jarads has educated their people very well. I recently had a lady''s diamond recut to Infinity standards by Infinity and while she was waiting for the diamond to arrive she went shopping at Jarads.

When she was looking their she mentioned that she was having her diamond recut, they asked where. When she told them Winfield''s they were very complimentary to me and said that I was one of the best in town.

This did several things that are all good.

One, it took the whole "I am good, everyone else is bad" thing completely off the table.

Two, it made my client feel good about having her mother''s poorly cut diamond recut by someone reputable.

Three, it actually allowed them to make the mounting sale rather than have my clients come back to me to tell me what bad mouthers they are.

Four, it also let me know that they are not just competitors, but honorable competitors. This type of comment by a sales associate takes training from corporate on down, and results in every one having a better experience. I truly hope that this is not just an isolated example.

If you are finding what you want and are pleased with how it looks and with good local service, it is alright to pay more, even a lot more. Sometimes it might even be better to pay more if the service and satisfaction with that service is higher than what you are finding on line. You are the one with the gold, you get to make the rules, and the choices.

Wink

 

[orbaya]

I can''t really help with the diamond aspect of your post, but I''m shocked that a salesperson went to lunch in the middle of a sales presentation?? That would have put a bad taste in my mouth right there.

 

[mvyoung2]

The cut of the diamond I believe was very good however I didn''t write down the angles or anything like that. For what it''s worth I do remember that when I was reviewing the angles nothing looked out of the ordinary. Then again I''m a novice at this! Is there a general rule of thumb when looking at proportions?

 

[stone-cold11]

Yes there are. These are AGA guidelines.

http://diamonds.pricescope.com/round.asp

Basically for ideal cut 1A, table is 53-58%, Depth 58-62.3%, crown angle 34-34.7, crown height 14-16.3%, pavilion depth 42.8-43.2%, girdle in the thin to med or med to slightly thick range and plish and symm in the ex-vg range.