Online or Jewelry Mart? Which is cheaper

[Couture]

I have been looking at loose diamonds and trying to discover where the best deal is. Has anyone compared online vendor like White Flash to private Jewelry Marts like the one located in San Francisco, CA? You have to have a retail license to get in to the mart in San Francisco, which I do, but I don''t want to drive all the way up there if prices are lower online.

Any ideas/experiences? THANKS!!



BTW: I am looking for a 2ct. modern cushion

 

[hlmr]

Hi Couture:

Welcome to PS!

I have never been to a jewelery mart in your area but I can''t imagine they have the best cut diamonds available.

I would suggest shopping on-line first. Cut is KING!

Heather

 

[flower12]

Date: 1/31/2006 10:17:07 PM
Author:Couture
I have been looking at loose diamonds and trying to discover where the best deal is. Has anyone compared online vendor like White Flash to private Jewelry Marts like the one located in San Francisco, CA? You have to have a retail license to get in to the mart in San Francisco, which I do, but I don't want to drive all the way up there if prices are lower online.

Any ideas/experiences? THANKS!!



BTW: I am looking for a 2ct. modern cushion

in fact, you don't have to retail license to get in gift center and Jewelry mart.
you just call to a vendor for list your name at front desk.

I use to go take a look jewelry at gift center and mart , I like Ritz ( at gift center) Derco etc
but I belive PS onlibe vendor like WF is way more good price.

 

[KristyDarling]

I''ve had lots of experience shopping at the GiftCenter/JewelryMart in SF (bought my original e-ring and wedding band there). Hands-down, you will get better service, better quality, and better prices online. I was very hesitant to buy online initially, but lurking and doing all my research here on PS changed everything. I''m a convert now. The B&Ms, including most of those at the JewelryMart, are staffed mostly with jewelry novices who are nowhere near as knowledgeable as any of the vendors you''ll find mentioned on this site: Whiteflash, James Allen, Good Old Gold, etc.

I thought for sure that the JewelryMart, being "wholesale" as they SO love to say, would have competitive pricing...but that was SO not the case. Plus, the stores there had surprisingly little inventory to choose from. (then again, I was shopping for a 3c stone and those are harder to find)

I highly recommend any of the 3 online vendors I mentioned above. If you''re in the market for a cushion, Mark at EngagementRingsDirect has been hitting lots of homeruns on PS lately with some excellent cushions! (for the latest one, see fatguy''s cushion)

 

[DaKine]

I am pretty much in the same boat as you. I am here in San Jose and just started to find out what reputable shop are out there. So far I have been to Derco (Santana Row), ShaneCo and Bailey Banks (Valley Fair). I am still looking
around for the best deal.

 

[Hest88]

I''ve made several purchases at Derco''s original store in the Jewelry Mart. They have nice stones, and I know people who have showed them online prices and have had Derco match the price. However, you do need to know exactly what to ask for. If you''re an educated consumer, you should be able to get a decent stone at a price not too much higher than you''d get online.

However, I personally prefer doing all my shopping online now. Less hassle, no negotiation, etc. I''d go to Derco only if you really NEED to see, touch, and compare various stones before buying.

 

[bookworm21]

I''ve been to Derco at both the JewelryMart and Santana Row locations. I''ve bought a stone from them, but I would go online for my next purchase. The online vendors, in my opinion, have better selection and more reports available for you to choose the stone.

Derco provided GIA and AGS reports, but they didn''t have any idealscope images or Sarin reports. Plus, some of the salespeople don''t really seem too knowledgable either.

 

[KristyDarling]

I totally agree about Derco -- when I was shopping for my upgrade, their salespeople didn''t know much about cut details, i.e. ideal ranges for crown/pav angles. However, they seem to be the most well-known of all the JM stores. I purchased my custom wedding band from them 5 years ago and was happy with how it turned out. If I were to do it all over again, though, I''d go with an online vendor.

 

[GGLW]

We checked out Derco and Giraux at the SF jewelry mart, and the main thing I noticed compared to online was a major lack of selection at these stores. Granted I was looking for less common shapes (emerald cut, cushion, and radiant), but they just didn''t have very many to look at. But since you are looking for a larger stone and a specific type of cushion cut, I''d definitely call them in advance to see if they have anything close to what you are looking for.
I second what people have said here about salesperson knowledge (or lack thereof) at the B&Ms. The online vendors seem to know much more about cut than the B&M salespeople.
The prices weren''t that much more than online at the B&Ms in the jewelry mart, but since I didn''t see very many stones, let alone very many GOOD stones, it was sort of difficult to make a fair price comparison to the online stores.
In any case, you can always check out the Derco on Santana Row if you don''t want to deal with the Jewelry Mart.
Good luck!

 

[d_vader]

If you can get into SF GC and JM then why do they ask for a business license? What do you do with that? Do you get bigger discounts if you are associated with a business?

 

[bookworm21]

Been to both. Go online. You'll find better deals, and they have much more info online.

I bought my 0.88 asscher from Derco at the Jewelry Mart. Wish I had gone to Good Old Gold instead. Would have gotten more diamond for my money.

ETA: Whoops, just realized that this is an old, revived thread, so I answered the wrong question.

I believe they require a business license because they TRY to be as exclusive as possible. Other than that, I really see no reason why they do that. I think it's a ploy to get the public to think that they really are selling jewelry at wholesale prices, which is definitely NOT the case.

And no, you don't get bigger discounts. You get bigger discounts if you personally know the owner of a store, but that's about it.

 

[tanuki]

It''s strange but this question came up at my house yesterday.

I had finally decided to order a diamond from an online vendor after probably over a year and a half of learning what was what on pricescope and my husband (who has a retail store and has access to the Atlanta Merchandise Mart) said "if you want to buy a diamond why don''t I take you to the mart?

I said, "because once I get there I doubt I would have as much information as I can get online".

I''m one of those people who think practically everything looks good under store lighting because I just don''t have the experience to be a judge in those conditions. I feel more comfortable looking at photos and diagrams that will hold still long enough for you to take a good long look.

Also I have astigmatism and "black floaters in the visual field" so there is really no way other than looking at a photo for me to tell if it is the diamond or just my eyes.

The internet method just really made me feel comfortable. I get the impression I would end up not being confident if I let my husband take me down to the Mart.

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 7/13/2006 12:34:14 AM
Author: Cinderella

I believe they require a business license because they TRY to be as exclusive as possible. Other than that, I really see no reason why they do that. I think it''s a ploy to get the public to think that they really are selling jewelry at wholesale prices, which is definitely NOT the case.

And no, you don''t get bigger discounts. You get bigger discounts if you personally know the owner of a store, but that''s about it.

Actually, you get bigger discounts if you are actually in the jewelry business and know what you are doing. As stated above they ask for a business license to create the illusion that they only sell to the trade.

Many years ago when I was attending GIA I (more than 30 years ago, dang I am getting long of tooth!) I went into the Mart on Hill Street in LA. (GIA was in Santa Monica then). I sat patiently on a stool waiting for a well known celebrity to finish his purchase from a parcel of emerald mele that I happened to need a carat or two of for a ring I was having made.

When the celebrity left, having paid $600 per carat for the stones, I mentioned to the sales lady not to put that parcel away as I needed some stones. After counting out the requisite number of stones she started to write the invoice up at $600 per carat. I made a clearing my throat noise and when she looked at me shook my head no. She blushed and rewrote the invoice at $250 per carat.

Had I not been in the industry and had I not known what I was doing, she would gladly have let me pay full retail for the goods.

Knowledge is the key to buying well, which is why Pricescope is such an incredible tool for you all!

Wink