Markup of family-owned jewelers vs. online???

[candlelite80]

Hi all, as I said in my other post we are going to a local family-owned jeweler that comes highly recommended this weekend to get a better idea of what things look like in person. My question is, in the off chance that I see something there I like, what are the markups like for the average family-owned jeweler (not a maill chain store) compared to the online retailers? If I see something I love and it seems well priced I would consider it but if the markup is outrageous then I would rather put the money towards a better ring online... what are your thoughts?

 

[mrssalvo]

I have found most family owned jewelers to be very nice and helpful. However some are still old-fashioned in the way they do business and get offended if you don''t just trust them when they select a stone. others however understand the internet and have changed their business models so they can be very competitive with online pricing. it also can help if you buy the stone and setting from the same place, you can normally get a little more of a price break. doesn''t hurt to ask!!

 

[Regular Guy]

At least, for yourself, know your BATNA. Consider sharing about it in a level headed way.

 

[neatfreak]

I am guessing that it totally depends...but when we were looking ours was about 20-30% above online prices on most things. But also willing to negotiate 10-20% so it ended up being not too great of a difference. But we bought online anyway due to other factors.