Shane Company BAD!!!

[ame]

I made the mistake one time (several months ago) of asking to view some loose stones in the the D-F and VVS range and the woman looked at me like I was on fire. She said with a bit of attitude "we don't keep those on hand as most of our clientele cannot afford such things. Can I show you these over here, they are of great quality" and those were something like L colors with I clarity. All she could say was "don't you just love these". When I asked why there was a chunk of something in the stone all she did was put it down and show me more. If you can see huge inclusions without a loupe, how can you get away with charging 7000 dollars for a half-carat? Their prices and quality are a laughing matter. I cannot believe people actually spend money there.

 

[KittenKat]

I'd almost suggest going to Tiffany & Co. over Shane... T&C prices aren't THAT much higher. And at least you's have their name...

 

[ame]

*gasp* Bite your tongue!

 

[filmaker]

hello, i am glad that i read your comment. i am engaged and looking for a ring for my fiance. i was going to go to the shane co. i am located in denver, where would you recomend i go? you can email at [email protected]. i hope to hear back from you if you get a chance. thanks, Ryan

 

[GD]

Shane Co, GREAT!!!
Sorry to walt who had a bad experiene at Shane Co. , but I just love the place! I have jewlry from other stores (Helzberg) and my diamonds look like frozen spit. The problem you had is that you walked into the Shane Co. already knowing you weren''t going to buy from there. Chances are you found a great diamond at a differnt store, but what happens when five years from now a prong breaks on your ring or a melee falls out? Shane Co. stands behind there jewlry 110%. Shane Co. will also price match! I don''t know of any other diamond sellers that will do that. So before you go running the Shane Co. name into the ground, look at what they are willing to offer their customers, then look at what you ended up with. I think you will see you made a BIG mistake.
Sorry for loss of a good diamond, and a great company-
GD

 

[GD]

Not True!!!!!
Shane Co. will do anything for their customers, including setting outside stones!! I should know, I have a lot to do with the Shane Co. Also, GIA certified IS a big deal!!! What? were you looking for a diamond that looked like frozen spit? Shane Co. is not a mall store, and it is not a chain store. So before you go making comments that could hurt their rep, maybe you should do some more (and better) research-
GD

 

[MrsFrk]

GD, you need to proofread your posts. This is a consumer forum, everyone is entitled to their opinion.

 

[Mara]

Also, GIA certified IS a big deal!!! What? were you looking for a diamond that looked like frozen spit?

GIA certified is great, my point was that there are many, many GIA certified stones out there. So just because a store sells a stone that's GIA certified does not mean beans to me other than at least it has a GIA cert. However, if one expects someone to purchase solely because they sell a stone with a GIA cert...not gonna happen.

As for frozen spit, my H&A stone is hardly frozen spit, but I can guarantee you that Shane didn't sell one stone as well-cut as mine nor with such an IdealScope image. If you have 'alot to do' with them, you will probably know that as well.

Bottom line, my mom got her ring at Shane...it's a beautiful 5 stone ring. But it has no specs, no information, it sparkles but that's about it. She doesn't even know how many carats it is. The ring didn't come with any of this information, and it didn't come cheap.

I went into Shane while shopping and already noted what I experienced. There are better stones and better deals elsewhere, and the random people who happen upon the site once every 5 months to say how great Shane is won't change that fact.

Lastly...I honestly don't know if there is one person on here who is a 'better researched' consumer than myself. Okay maybe a few other nuts.

You will find that this is a diamond education forum with many over-educated consumers...it's not your average mall shopper.

 

[pyramid]

When purchasing at mall chain stores we are paying for their huge rent, lighting, higher purchase schemes and getting diamonds which are much lower quality. Is this not false advertising, we are not paying for the goods we are receiving.

Does anyone else think that we should be able to return poor quality diamonds when we find out/realise what we have really paid for and have been taken for a ride for our money?

 

[Superidealist]

Date: 12/6/2004 3

3:46 AM
Author: Mara

But it has no specs, no information, it sparkles but that's about it.

Sounds to me like they got the important one right.

 

[coffeeman]

Date: 11/6/2003 5:21:58 PM
Author:leavesofgrass

I hate leaving negative comments however that is what I am about to do towards ''Your friend in the diamond industry'', Shane Co. I have very few if any posts on this forum however I have logged many hours researching how to find a great diamond at a fair price. Being an educated consumer makes all the difference and I thank all that post ?''s and advise.

I strolled into the Shane company armed with enough knowledge to be dangerous and went about trying to get educated from the very friendly non-commissioned sales person at Shane co. I come to find that I knew much more about the qualities that make up a good diamond than the multiple sales people that helped me. My questions were dismissed when I asked how important cut was to the over all beauty of the diamond. They explained,'' every diamond at Shane co. is well cut and isn''t this a beautiful diamond, see how it sparkles'' They tried to peg me on the size of the diamond and found every piece of garbage (I1,I2) that fell within my price range. After much research thanks to everyone here and some well known online jeweler''s I realized I want''d a RB 1c, G-H, SI1 close to ideal but not as important to stretch my budget which happened to be $5000-$6000 dollars for the diamond. Shane couldn''t even come close and offered non-certified diamonds to try and come anywhere close to my whishes. I was not very impressed and walked away very frustrated. I could go on but I can feel my BP rising. Please be careful if thinking about purchasing from the Shane co. Some like their service and their gaurantees. I just did not trust them. Walk in armed with knowledge and hold your ground.

-Walt

I realize this is a very late response to your post from last year, but in searching for diamonds, then searching for any bad press on the Shane Co., I came across your post. Here are my two cents:

Yes, anytime you educate yourself prior to making any purchase, you are MUCH better off. Keep in mind, we live in a capitalist society, so anyone selling something wants to sell it to you! The Shane Co. is no different, same with some diamond wholesaler online. The point is, if you are educated and know what you want, then no matter what some salesperson tries to sell you, you should be able to get what YOU want. Perhaps you get frustrated easy, and did not take control of the situation, and let them make suggestion after suggestion that you were not interested in. When dealing with salespeople, you have to make it perfectly clear what it is that you want. Otherwise they will simply try to sell you everything under the sun, based off of the information you have told them. I have been in sales for many, many years, and one thing I learned is to sell a client what they want, not what I think they need. Now, if you were not getting satisfaction from the people you were dealing with, you should have either been more assertive in telling them what you were looking for, or spoken to a manager. The overall theme of your post is more explaining your bad experience with a few salespeople, and not about the price of the stones compared to other sources, or the quality of the product. The Shane Co. has an online inventory of all their loose diamonds from all their locations that you an browse and compare various diamonds based on there four "C''s". I recently purchased a diamond from the Shane Co, and had them special order in a diamond from another store, because I had told them up front what my minimum limits were for the four "C''s". And I told them not to even bother showing me anything else, because I was not interested. I also told them that the diamond I purchased had to already have all the major certifications. You acknowledged in your post that you were aware of their excellent warranty and service for the life of the ring. In my opinion, paying a little exrta for a diamond that is certifiably equal to a diamond online wholesaler is a good idea, from the standpoint that you have a company standing behind their product, and you have recourse against them in case you are not satisfied. I imagine trying to get warranty work or cleaning or refunds from an online source could be troublesome.

The bottom line is I appreciate your post, because it did make me go into the Shane Co with a bit more "armor" on when it came to dealing with the salespeople, but like you said, being educated before hand set me up to know what I wanted, and what to ask for, and not be taken down the trail of looking at a diamond that I didn''t want. Keep in mind also, that those "garbage" SI2 diamonds that you talked referred to do fit a certain market. There is an old saying that says if you sell to the masses, you''ll dine with the classes. Therefore, by having the lower quality diamonds on hand in addition to the higher quality ones makes them able to appeal to customers that might not have the money to pay for a high quality diamond, but want a diamond nonetheless. With a 1 carat SI2 I, you can get a lot more "diamond" for the money. I would never give my fiancee a diamond like that, but some people would.

Next time you are in the position to buy something where you have done your homework first before going to a store, make sure you do yourself and the salesperson a favor, and tell them up front what you want; what you will accept at a minimim, and what your limits are. This will save both parties a lot of time, and save you from feeling frustrated, and feel like you have to make a nasty post on a web site.

Thanks!

R. [$$)]

 

[GD]

I did proofread, and I meant every word I said. Sorry if you have a problem with that. As for the other person who had a problem with what I had to say, I''m at the Shane Co. every day and I know the jewlry business. Also, if you need to know your mothers diamond info. , then just call Shane Co. and get it. They have all that information at their store. Besides, your mother got an apprasial with her merch. so she did have it at one point.
Good luck with your on line diamond-
GD

 

[MrsFrk]

Um, okay. FYI, it is "their j-e-w-e-l-r-y", not "there jewlry". I guess you don''t have to be able to spell it to sell it.

 

[GD]

Thank you!!! What are you an English teacher? If you got my point, then that''s all I care about. Besides, what do you care for?
Also, who said I sell anything? You must be reading things.
GD

 

[fortheloveofdiamonds]

Good luck with your on line diamond-
GD

You do know that Shane Co. sells their diamonds online as well. So online or not....diamonds ALL come from the same place. It is the jeweler that decides what kind of quality to stock. And as far as I can tell, it is much cheaper for stores to purchase not-so-well-cut diamonds and sell them at a premium price than to buy well-cut diamonds and sell them at the same premium price.

 

[reena]

Date: 12/6/2004 8

7:40 PM
Author: GD
As for the other person who had a problem with what I had to say, I''m at the Shane Co. every day and I know the jewlry business.

from this, it''s not hard to see how mrsfrk got the impression that you sell diamonds. why are you at shane co. every day?

 

[GD]

Well, I work there, but not as a salesperson. I work the office, so I see all the merch that comes in and goes out. I would be willing to answer any questions that someone might have, and if I can''t then I can get the answers from someone who can-
GD

 

[MrsFrk]

Date: 12/6/2004 8:19:18 PM
Author: GD
Thank you!!! What are you an English teacher? If you got my point, then that''s all I care about. Besides, what do you care for?
Also, who said I sell anything? You must be reading things.
GD

I am reading things. I am reading your partisan, badly spelled posts. The point I get is that you seem to work for the Shane Company, and you are actually now convincing me that the Shane Co. is something to be avoided, though I had no opinion initially one way or the other, because if you do in fact work there and cannot spell the word "jewelry" correctly I certainly wouldn''t buy something from you.

 

[pyramid]

GD

Do the 1 carat stones you sell in the same color, clarity and cut grades as those show on pricescope with GIA certificates come in at a lower price, same price or higher price than pricescope lists them?

If they are priced higher why is this so, what is better about your diamonds than a well cut diamond sold by pricescope vendors?

What is the price of a 0.5 carat diamond mounted in your general sales stock - I mean not a certificated stone?

 

[reena]

wow, you DO?? i can't believe it!

 

[GD]

So to miss a letter makes me a bad person to sell diamonds? WOW!! I was just so eager to reply to some of the comments I''ve read, that I missed the letter E!! Sounds like you need to clam down and sign off you computer for a bit. Let me guess, You sit at you computer mayber 4, 5 hours a night? I, I don''t know what else to say to you-
GD

 

[GD]

Your funny!!-GD

 

[MrsFrk]

Actually, I spend little time at the computer. I probably spend as much time at the computer as you do handling diamonds.

If you had written a measured "hey guys, I work at the Shane Co. and I want you to know..." sort of response, instead of an on fire smiley face rant, perhaps we would listen to your point of view.

I''m glad you find me funny. I try to do my part during the holiday season.

 

[GD]

More often then not, they cost less. But I don''t quote me yet. I will get a detailed answer and get back to you. The last thing I want to do is make your diamond shopping harder. As far as our mounted settings, we don''t have many, and to be honest with you buying a Shane Co. setting that already mounted might not be a great idea. I love te company, but nothings perfect. I have learned that buying your stone loose will leave you with a better all around ring, and you''ll feel better about your diamond. Like I said, I will get some details for your question and get back to you. Was there something you would like me to ask a jeweler or a manager? They are happy to answer any questions
GD

 

[GD]

Okay!! Well, I work at the Shane Co. and I feel too many people make opinions on something the know little of. As far as how many diamonds I handle, you would be surprised. Thank you for the opinion though. I don''t want anybody to think that I''m trying to make them angry or hate Shane Co. even more. You just seem to fire personal remarks too fast. Everybody does it at one point or another. So, where did you end up buying at?-GD

 

[MrsFrk]

As I said, I have no opinion regarding the Shane Co. We have a few in my area (N. CA), and since I love jewelry stores, I will probably end up in one someday.

I respect the fact that you work for them and want to defend them, but this is a consumer forum, and you need to understand that. We figured out that you work for them rather quickly, and it would have been better if you had been up front about it. There have been other retailers who have shown up to defend themselves, and as far as I am concerned that is a great thing, but you need to be rational about it. The only way we have to communicate with one another is through our posts, and quite frankly I do judge posts based on their content, grammatical accuracy, and spelling. I would wager that others do as well, even if they don''t say so.

 

[pyramid]

Thanks GD.

I have heard here a time ago that the pricescope vendors work on tight margins of say 5% on a stone but it is well known both in the USA and in the UK where I live that department store jewellers can put profit margins of up to 300% upon a diamond. Could you ask your Managers if this is correct? If this is so that your stones are usually less expensive than the vendors selling here they must either be poorer quality/cut and your customers are all paying for your store front, property taxes, lighting, finance arrangements for buying stones. Or on the other hand if the quality is as good as those sold by vendors here who is paying for your large stores, employees, advertising etc. Vendors on these forums only accept cash or credit card sales and do not do finance for customers.

 

[Mara]

Look GD...you are going to be biased because you work for Shane. Obviously you think they are great, their paychecks keep a roof over your head!

This is an online diamond education forum. You work in an office at a diamond company. There are tons of people here who could probably teach you a thing or 10 about diamonds. Of course if you build a ring piecemeal, it's better..that's Diamond 101 for Pscopers.

Read some of the posts around here, better yet hie on over to the Show me the Ring forum and take a look at the stunning, amazingly beautiful rings and diamonds that people on here find. The top 5% of the diamonds sold anywhere....many of them come here and grace these pages in the form of pictures. Come to think of it, I have yet to really ever see a diamond posted in there that's from the Shane Company! Imagine that.

Bottom line...I'm a consumer who visited the Shane Company with an open mind way back when. You scoff at my experience and say that I don't know what I am talking about. Sorry, but I was the one THERE at the time....and I left there thinking...wow this place sells tons of SETTINGS but I would never buy a diamond there. In fact, I recommend Shane often for settings but never for diamonds.

Also, you need to understand that this is not your average consumer shoppers here on Pricescope. Once you GET THAT, you will understand that whatever paperwork and appraisals the Shane Company gives you (which if you knew enough about diamonds, you would know that an appraisal from a company who sells you the stone is usually overinflated and a consumer should get their own *independent* one to ensure that what they got is what they think they got) are not going to be enough for this group of people here.

Pscopers are NOT your average buyers. These are research hungry diamond nuts who are obsessed with all things sparkly. So, you popping in and telling us that we're wrong and to worship at the altar of the Shane Company is NOT going to fly....and you will change no one's mind in the end.

But stick around and actually read a few other threads and you may learn something that you can take back to your managers or salespeople at the Shane Co and tell them to get their act together. Just a GIA cert doesn't cut it anymore!

 

[GD]

Well, your right about the 300% thing, though I don''t believe it is that high. It is hard for stores to compete with vendors, but that''s why we (and a few others) price match. Plus, we can promise to always be there if needed. If something were to happen , we would bend over backwords to make you happy. I konw that sounds like a line, but it is true. We even did it today for a customer, and in the end our company will end up losing money because we wanted to keep this person as our customer.
GD

 

[GD]

Wow! You hae a lot to say! NO company is perfect. I know that, but you just seem to have this hate toward Shane Co. Maybe you should just let me have my opinion. And don''t worry, a couple nasty comments from you, isn''t going to stop me from saying what I have to say. As far as the apraisel goes, weren''t you the one who said that your mother got a ring, and didn''t even know how many carats it was? If not, then forgive me for what I''m about to say, but , no never mind. I''ll keep that one to myself-
GD