Leon''s Diamond Concierge Service - tell me more!

[iota15]

After seeing Diamondband's spectacular beauty, I'm settled; I want an antique cushion (See https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-leon-mege-3-carat-cushion-halo.139071/)

Diamondband, if you have time, could you tell us more about Leon's concierge service?

I hope you don't mind that I'm about to go into 20 question mode but - Did you work directly with Leon for your gorgeous cushion? How did it compare to the others you saw? Did Leon give you a variety of cushions to choose from, or just one? What did you think of the process?

I'd love to hear the thoughts of anyone else who's working or worked with Leon for cushions or other shapes too.

 

[diamondband]

Hi iota15, I always have time to answer questions about diamonds! Thanks so much for the lovely comments about my ring

.

Yes, I worked directly with Leon for my cushion. However, this was right before he hired Perry (I think that''s his name) to manage the diamond concierge service. I actually think that having a dedicated person who deals only with diamonds is a fantastic idea. That way, you can focus on talking about your setting with Leon and talk with Perry for hours about the diamonds.

I''m sure that Leon would also provide an opinion about the cushions too if you wanted his thoughts. Personally, even though Leon is known on this board more for his amazing settings, he also had very strong recommendations regarding diamonds given that he sees so many stunning center stones which are sent to him for settings and also choosing side stones for his settings all the time (the sidestones that I have seen on PS look beautiful). I mentioned to Leon that no one had seen his sourced center stones on PS before and he was very surprised, saying that he has done many rings where he sourced the center stone.

Leon called his cutter and found out what was available for cushions in my spec range. There were only 3 that he liked and suggested. One of them was already called out at another dealer. He sent me the GIA reports for the other 2 and then called them in to look at them. He then took some pics of the two and sent them to me for review. I talked on the phone with him and he said that the 3.15 F was a definite winner.

Leon then shipped out the diamond to me to see. I think that I had up to 30 days to spend time with the diamond to see if I liked it! When I finalized my purchase, I sent the diamond back to him for setting. Then less than 4 weeks later, it came back home

.

Also, I could not go to New York, so everything was done over the phone and through shipping!

Please don''t hesitate to ask any further questions! This is a HUGE purchase and this board has been so helpful that I would love the chance to help others if I can!

 

[diamondband]

Just wanted to add one other comment. For me, my priority was finding the perfect diamond for me. I really didn''t care who found me the diamond, as long as they were very nice to work with! I also did a lot of research on my own, searching the web for new cushions and asking vendors about them. It was really shocking to me how few cushions there were available in the antique cut for my specs. Definitely not like looking for a round diamond! In a way, it makes the search easier, less to choose from

!

 

[iota15]

Thanks for answering these questions, Diamondband. Like you said, no one else here has really worked with Leon for a center stone and then posted their Leon pick. I'm seriously considering using Leon's eyes for this (since I can't go to New York again either). Then he can set my beauty and plus, the stone can go with the setting I have in mind.

Did you ever speak to Perry? Do you know anything about his background?

You also said Leon's cushion prices were very competitive. I know you looked at ERD's and HW stones too. How did they compare?

Did ERD give a top recommendation for one of their stones? How did it look to you compared to Leon's "definite winner".

 

[iota15]

I assume there''s no tradeup policy or anything like that. 30-day return period is a looong time though.

 

[iota15]

It turns out I'm wrong. I just found the following policies on his site:

Stone purchase
You have 5 (five) days to inspect the stone from the day you receive it.
In order to keep the stone for inspection up to 30 days you will have to agree to put a $1000 retainer to be used toward custom work by Leon Mege.
We will refund the full cost of the stone excluding the shipping cost within 30 days from the date of purchase.
ONCE THE WORK ORDER for custom work is signed the stone can be returned within 30 days for store credit only. You are still responsible for the full cost of the custom mounting.

Lifetime Upgrade Policy:
Any loose diamond purchased from Leon Mege may be exchanged for a 100% credit towards any replacement diamond of at least 50% more in value. The diamond being upgraded must be in it's original condition and be accompanied by the original laboratory grading document.
Diamond Purchase Program:
Do you have a diamond you would like to sell, even though you did not purchase it from us? Contact us for a free purchase quote on any diamond of any size and cut.

 

[diamondband]

Did you ever speak to Perry? Do you know anything about his background?
- I have never spoken with Perry since he was working with Leon yet while I was looking for my diamond (though that would have been nice since I probably drove Leon crazy with my diamond questions

! Leon did mention once that Perry was part of the same "family" as the cushion cutter, so that would provide Leon with a great opportunity to find out about cushion availability.

You also said Leon''s cushion prices were very competitive. I know you looked at ERD''s and HW stones too. How did they compare?
- It is very easy to price out a diamond once you have selected one since they are all listed on major websites. Leon''s price for my particular cushion was the best I was offered. HW stones are VERY expensive, I tried on a 3.17 D VS1 cushion at HW and it retailed for $155,000.00!!!

Did ERD give a top recommendation for one of their stones? How did it look to you compared to Leon''s "definite winner". - I found that every cushion is very different. It''s hard to find 2 stones that are exactly alike to compare. I did compare a couple of cushions that ERD recommended, however I simply loved the shape of the cushion that Leon recommended. I really didn''t want something perfectly square, they reminded me too much of a traditional round. I didn''t want something too skinny and rectangular either, so my final options were pretty limited given the carat size!

Hope this helps!