Robbins Brothers Retail Price vs Wholesale Price

[solgen]

It's difficult to say whether the OP is a shill or troll.

Living in the SoCal area I can say that Robbin's Bros are doing a heavy amount of advertising so I can see why there is an influx regarding them.

 

[Andelain]

Actually if my suspicion is correct they (RB) DO need us ... very much.
In my 10 years reading PS I've been surprised how many posts document customers getting ripped off at Robber's Brothers, I mean Robbin's Brothers.

I suspect this another of our recent surge of RB fight-back threads started by a shill for Robbin's Brothers.
Then again, perhaps the OP is someone who bought from them, learned their mistake, and is trying to feel better by improving RB's image.

I agree that legitimate posters need us, but not the shills. That's why I told the OP to take a long walk.....

 

[Texas Leaguer]

I think in John's analysis there are several important facts.

First, a 100% trade up benefit with "no strings attached" is essentially a one-sided guarantee of a specified amount of stored value. That is a major benefit for the consumer and a financial liability for the company offering it. Someone said recently, it might have been Warren Buffet, that "predictions are hard to make especially when it comes to the future".

As a consumer you may or may not ever have the need or desire to execute on the benefit, but it is always in your back pocket. Most buyers of engagement rings tend to think they will never upgrade. But things change and many of them do end up taking advantage. Others end up wishing they had that option.

In light of what Neil said about the various overhead costs that are involved on the part of the merchant that are not recoverable, there is another way to look at trade-up that does not require accounting for those things, and I think it speaks to John's point and the confidence the merchant has in the value proposition of the original sale in the first place. If the diamond is a solid value and can be resold at the original price, it is essentially a new purchase at the original cost (because margin given up on the original is included in the new stone pricing). It usually facilitates both a bigger sale and provides a service to a loyal customer.

Buy back is a different nature, where those overhead costs need to be accounted for because there is no counterbalancing transaction. That is why you see even the best buyback policies including a reasonable margin/overhead factor. The beauty of a buyback guarantee for the young person getting engaged and who is feeling a certain amount of anxiety over the whole process is the fact that it takes the transaction from say a $5,000 risk and reduces it to say a $1,500 risk.

These kinds of value added benefits were rarely if ever part of the traditional jewelry value proposition. The emergence of e-commerce has been a boon to consumers in terms of pricing ,selection and information, but also in new and improved assurance policies.

 

[Rockdiamond]

I totally agree that any seller offering a "No Refund" policy is telling the consumer something very important. Standing behind the merchandise for a reasonable period of time past the point of sale is crucial.

On trade up/buy back:
Trade up is, for us, a valuable asset to offer our clients- and it's structured so that we know we can fulfill the promise.
I honestly would be afraid to guarantee any sort of buy back program.
Not because I might not want to buy the goods back on any given day- but rather because such a policy leaves a seller with a potential liability I think is unacceptable.
If 10 people call on the same day to get a buy back, a seller could face an untenable situation- which could conceivably force them to reneg on the policy.

 

[ChristineRose]

It's difficult to say whether the OP is a shill or troll.

Living in the SoCal area I can say that Robbin's Bros are doing a heavy amount of advertising so I can see why there is an influx regarding them.

If they are using the "why pay for the certificate" gambit that's a very bad sign. Anyone still clinging to that is leaving themselves open to lawsuits.

 

[MollyMalone]

Actually if my suspicion is correct they (RB) DO need us ... very much.
In my 10 years reading PS I've been surprised how many posts document customers getting ripped off at Robber's Brothers, I mean Robbin's Brothers.

I suspect this another of our recent surge of RB fight-back threads started by a shill for Robbin's Brothers.
Then again, perhaps the OP is someone who bought from them, learned their mistake, and is trying to feel better by improving RB's image.

Think folks should take another look at the original post. sunkissed is not trying to sell his friend on buying a diamond from Robbins Brothers; he is trying to convince his friend to buy a a diamond from a so-called wholesaler because that will be cheaper than buying a comparable stone from RB.

 

[ChristineRose]

Actually if my suspicion is correct they (RB) DO need us ... very much.
In my 10 years reading PS I've been surprised how many posts document customers getting ripped off at Robber's Brothers, I mean Robbin's Brothers.

I suspect this another of our recent surge of RB fight-back threads started by a shill for Robbin's Brothers.
Then again, perhaps the OP is someone who bought from them, learned their mistake, and is trying to feel better by improving RB's image.

Think folks should take another look at the original post. sunkissed is not trying to sell his friend on buying a diamond from Robbins Brothers; he is trying to convince his friend to buy a a diamond from a so-called wholesaler because that will be cheaper than buying a comparable stone from RB.

I didn't think it was clear which jeweler was which, but there appear to be at least two involved, yes.

 

[kenny]

... he is trying to convince his friend to buy a a diamond from a so-called wholesaler because that will be cheaper than buying a comparable stone from RB.

FWIW, both are a scam.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Actually if my suspicion is correct they (RB) DO need us ... very much.
In my 10 years reading PS I've been surprised how many posts document customers getting ripped off at Robber's Brothers, I mean Robbin's Brothers.

I suspect this another of our recent surge of RB fight-back threads started by a shill for Robbin's Brothers.
Then again, perhaps the OP is someone who bought from them, learned their mistake, and is trying to feel better by improving RB's image.

Think folks should take another look at the original post. sunkissed is not trying to sell his friend on buying a diamond from Robbins Brothers; he is trying to convince his friend to buy a a diamond from a so-called wholesaler because that will be cheaper than buying a comparable stone from RB.

That's kind of the way I read it too Molly.

 

[MollyMalone]

So no one has to scroll back to the first page of the thread:

Hi All,
Had a quick question, how much do you think a 1 carat diamond from Robbins Brothers would cost vs a wholesale price?

Also, what would this specific diamond cost in retail prices? I searched on Pricescope but there were too many varying numbers.

Color: H
Cut: Ideal Plus (Hearts and Arrows)
Clarity: SI2
Carat: 1.77
Wholesale Price: $8300 (from my jeweler)

Tring to convince my friend that this a good price compared to if he bought it from a retailer.
Thank you everyone if you can help!

 

[Diamond_Hawk]

These kinds of value added benefits were rarely if ever part of the traditional jewelry value proposition. The emergence of e-commerce has been a boon to consumers in terms of pricing ,selection and information, but also in new and improved assurance policies.

I have really enjoyed following this discussion. Neil, Bryan and John, in particular for your discourse on 'reasonable' vs. 'pragmatic' vs. 'expected' return and buy-back policies.

John noted:

We're living in a customer-friendly age. It's everywhere around us. "No-hassle returns, satisfaction guarantees, etc," and not just online. Look around and you'll find liberal return periods and 100% trade-up policies among the best brick & mortar jewelers.

This speaks, I think, to an interesting part of this question…Is it a generational concern?

The larger the quantity of information available to us and the faster we can discover it, the more consumer-friendly the players in any industry must be to survive. We saw the way cars were sold change dramatically when you could find the 'actual dealer cost' online...misnomer though it may be. We see stores (especially this time of year) advertising items that they will intentionally lose money on (the loss-leaders) in hopes that consumers will shop at their store instead of the competitor and buy enough other items to compensate for the loss of the "unbelievable" deal they advertised.

I say all that to say this: The expectations are different, I believe, in each generation. Few people I know under the age of 30 feels the need to spend days and days searching and researching to make sure they get the best deal on the barbecue grill, television, or mattress. They can, literally, stand next to the item they want - search it online - and insist the store match the online price, with full 'store benefits' that they may not get from the online retailer.

Diamonds, we know, are different. Item A: a 1.33 G VS2 Princess may be substantially different than item B: A 1.33 G VS2 Princess. People unfamiliar with the industry, though, may be truly baffled by this. They want to know, right now, which is the better price - it works in almost every other facet of their life. And here's the hardest part - they EXPECT, as with every purchase they make online, to be able to 'return it' - full value - no-questions-asked - just like the lawnmower or ceiling fan that just 'wasn't what I thought it was.'

As a natural inclination, then, the perception of the retailer who does not offer a return policy like Am*zon, Home Depot or Wal-mart must 'have something to hide' or 'won’t stand behind their merchandise' and can be perceived as not as trust-worthy as someone who does.

Imagine the B&M Jeweler, family owned and run for the past 80 years who has a 10% restocking fee, or a store-credit type buy back policy which allows them to recoup some (not all) of the money lost on any item returned. People in Generation X (or even Y) have spent a lot of time talking, individually, to retailers and are accustomed to the back-and-forth interchange of information with a sales-person when evaluating a purchase. They themselves have worked stocking shelves, driving a forklift or sacking groceries and understand the sheer man-hours involved in these types of logistics and see re-stocking and buy-back policies as a normal part of doing business.

Not so much for those under 30. The convenience of instant information and the ability to “spread the word” about bad experiences (or good ones) through social media is part and parcel of their existence. They have never actually ‘dialed’ a phone, picked up a line in the house where someone else is talking and had to wait, nor spent much time without the internet available to them. When this shopper arrives they can be put off a bit by this ‘unexpected’ policy – no one else does this. Then, this retailer begins to explain why his GIA G might be different than the competitors EGL G just around the corner. The skepticism rises and the return policy (read this as – the trustworthiness of the jeweler) is a red flag now. The idea of an EGL vs. GIA vs. AGSL lab grade can become secondary in this type of scenario because the purchaser is now skeptical.

However it needs to be done, I suspect all retailers (B&M and Online) will have to find a way to offer these types of generous add-ons as part of the sale.

Who knows what the ‘expectations’ will be in the future – maybe the customer will expect to pick a diamond via Video-chat and have it delivered via Drone by 2pm that day, on memo, so he can try it out in his holographic settings.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Wassup Hawk!

I agree that we have entered a new age and we're catering to an altogether different kind of shopper today. Having grown up with the information age and with e-commerce, this new consumer has much different expectations. To a large extent, online merchants have contributed to unrealistic expectations that now all merchants are having to struggle to meet, lest they appear non- competitive (or worse).

With regard to the diamond business this was pretty much unavoidable given the requirements imposed on the early pioneers who were attempting to make e-commerce work, despite the overwhelming doubts of almost everybody! The pricing and assurance policies had to be absolutely compelling in order to give consumers incentive to take the enormous leap of faith of buying a diamond online in the early days. And we are really still in the early days I believe.

As someone who entered the business in the 1970's it has been absolutely fascinating to see the transformation in this industry.

Go SeaHawks (and Texans!)

 

[Diamond_Hawk]

Wassup Hawk!

I agree that we have entered a new age and we're catering to an altogether different kind of shopper today. Having grown up with the information age and with e-commerce, this new consumer has much different expectations. To a large extent, online merchants have contributed to unrealistic expectations that now all merchants are having to struggle to meet, lest they appear non- competitive (or worse).

With regard to the diamond business this was pretty much unavoidable given the requirements imposed on the early pioneers who were attempting to make e-commerce work, despite the overwhelming doubts of almost everybody! The pricing and assurance policies had to be absolutely compelling in order to give consumers incentive to take the enormous leap of faith of buying a diamond online in the early days. And we are really still in the early days I believe.

As someone who entered the business in the 1970's it has been absolutely fascinating to see the transformation in this industry.

Go SeaHawks (and Texans!)

Right, understood.

The challenge now is capturing the 'attention span' of the 20-something consumer who may only spend 20 seconds on an app before getting bored and moving on. Even signing on to a forum such as PS may become too cumbersome when the expectation is to 'google it' and have your answer instantly.

Incidentally it also gives google (and Internet Service Providers) a lot of power to sway people toward or away from particular companies, products or even ideas.

**Hijacked Thread Alert*** - Sorry OP

and Leaguer - BJ Daniels is going to be a game changer for you guys I think. Good get.