Reputation/experiences with online vendors (WF, JA, BG)?

[bigbaguettes]

I'm sure I should be able to find this somewhere but it's not in an obvious place, so forgive me for the newbie question. Is there anywhere to get good objective information about customer experiences with James Allen, Whiteflash, and Brian Gavin?

 

[tyty333]

Your best bet might be to google the name then look at the threads in the "Show me the bling" forums because those
would be bought items.

There have been countless purchases from all 3 of those vendors. And I can say most have been no problem. Occasionally,
someone will purchase a stone then find out it has already been sold. This can happen because lots of vendors have
access to virtual stones.

I can tell you that we recommend all 3 vendors. They are all well respected vendors and we (PSers) recommend stones from
them every day. If anyone of them was having major customer service issues we would stop recommending them.

 

[MarionC]

Your best bet might be to google the name then look at the threads in the "Show me the bling" forums because those
would be bought items.

There have been countless purchases from all 3 of those vendors. And I can say most have been no problem. Occasionally,
someone will purchase a stone then find out it has already been sold. This can happen because lots of vendors have
access to virtual stones.

I can tell you that we recommend all 3 vendors. They are all well respected vendors and we (PSers) recommend stones from
them every day. If anyone of them was having major customer service issues we would stop recommending them.

+1

I haven't read the testimonials page in a long time, but did post there after some of my purchases[must go there now & add Grace]. That might provide some references too. The nice thing about our vendors is that their business practices are very transparent here. I always feel as though sellers and buyers are on the same page and would not hesitate to work with any of them.

 

[Mrs2Ouch]

I found BGD on here, Yelp and other diamond review sites. Good Old Gold was my second choice. I also noticed BGD diamonds are cut with closely related precision. I figured I couldn't go wrong with any diamond with them once I put in my standards of the Cs. The ring was much more beautiful in person, the pictures do them no justice, and the diamond takes my breath away. They responded to my questions quickly (I had many). So, whether you go with them or not there is Yelp and this website that I rely on for so many things, I am pretty helpless when it comes to opinions of diamonds.

 

[ame]

I have had fantastic experiences with Good Old Gold, Wink (High Performance Diamonds) and Brian Gavin Diamonds. Enough that I've made repeat purchases at all, and I am plotting more... We even bought my brother's wife's gorgeous monster from Wink this time last year when we came upon a winner of a deal. All of the above have been SPECTACULAR, and ABOVE AND BEYOND customer service. I have not purchased from James Allen, but I have recommended them to several friends and acquaintances and all have reported back positively.

Despite all the raves on here, I personally did NOT have a great experience with Whiteflash related to workmanship and customer service. For diamonds, I'd still recommend them, not above anyone else I mentioned, but I don't for anything else.

I am one of the..um..harshest critics when someone screws up. I think a lot of the older posters here will attest to that. It's maybe a fault of mine, but I worry about things down to the atomic level, I am a perfectionist, way too OCD for a lot of people to tolerate and most vendors won't work with me--I am convinced there's an "FBI POSTER" of me that says "THIS CHICK IS NUTS" on the trade forums somewhere, and my reputation precedes me. I am overly particular and I say so up front, as fair warning. If something doesn't meet my approval, I WILL let them and everyone else know. I am fun I feel like if these vendors have made it work for me, that says a LOT about them. They're either really good, or really willing to be gluttons for my punishment! The former is definitely true. (The latter is also possible.)

 

[wmbjr]

I admit I am VERY new to the whole buying a diamond online process. I was referred to Brian Gavin by Todd at Niceice.com and then saw numerous references here on PS with recommendations. I ended up purchasing a diamond from them and their customer service has been truly amazing. Answering every questions, working with me on any slight modification, being flexible when dealing with shipping and timing of production, and even expediting things to help me out when I ended up needing to be out of time when the ring was originally going to be shipped. This for a fairly low budget purchase. I can highly recommend them for their customer service and willingness to be patient. The fact you get an unbelievably beautiful diamond is a significant added bonus!