So...does anyone know

[Deia]

what is going on with LOGR?

They only have 34 items for sale and this talk of "closeout" all over the listings.

Anyone in the know?

 

[T L]

what is going on with LOGR?

They only have 34 items for sale and this talk of "closeout" all over the listings.

Anyone in the know?

I suspect, and I could be wrong, that it's a gimmick to sell rings at higher ending prices. It's a psychological thing I think he's trying. People see the word "closeout," and they go nuts. I have never seen his auction prices higher, so it's apparently working for him, but I wonder how long it's going to last. People can't be fooled forever. He's also giving only 7 days for a refund, what's up with that?

 

[Agnesg]

They seem so different to me now. I think it's no longer the same old logr..

 

[LD]

I wondered if he was selling at too great a loss and is trying to recoup some money? His margins must have been incredibly small.

 

[minousbijoux]

I have two theories see what you think:

1) could he be transferring his goods over to another ebay store he has and starting to sell there instead? The reason I ask is that I have seen the exact same settings selling from another ebay vendor who has marked similarities in language and process as LOGR's; or

2) could be weaning us away from items so that he can bring them back in a while with significant price increases? In a recent correspondence I had with him (and another PSer had a similar experience), he said that he was getting ready for a major price increase to keep abreast of gold prices. Perhaps this is a way to sell more (hurry up and buy to get the "good deal" now), but it did sound logical to me and is what I would do if I wanted to maintain good relationships with my clients - that is, warn them in advance...

 

[T L]

The reason I go to LOGR is because he is cost effective. Now that his prices are no longer competative, I have had similar quotes from etsy dealers for handmade pieces with diamonds, I don't think I'll buy as much from LOGR.

 

[Sniven]

Ships to: Worldwide -see exclusions
Exclusions: Canada

Whadupwitdat?

 

[Edward Bristol]

I don't know about this specific case, but it is something we have seen many times over the years.

New companies come up with super competitive offers that make us old-timers look expensive, but we know they can’t last long at that price level; even if they live in a suburb of Bangkok, take the bus and eat only rice.

And then, some months/years later... it just doesn't add up.

Another topic are the hobby and part-time cutters and traders who do it cheaply for fun. That lasts some time too but also needs more energy. And it doesn't carry through a recession.

BTW: This is happening in all industries due to the lower entry levels online.

 

[JewelFreak]

Interesting input, Ed. Especially on eBay some vendors price nice looking stones SO low, it's puzzling how they can do it. Top-rated sellers so one assumes the gem is what they say it is. I've never bought one of these because I just didn't believe it could be real, but what you're describing must be the case. I almost started a thread to ask how they manage it but now I know. Thanks.

--- Laurie

 

[T L]

I don't know about this specific case, but it is something we have seen many times over the years.

New companies come up with super competitive offers that make us old-timers look expensive, but we know they can’t last long at that price level; even if they live in a suburb of Bangkok, take the bus and eat only rice.

And then, some months/years later... it just doesn't add up.

Another topic are the hobby and part-time cutters and traders who do it cheaply for fun. That lasts some time too but also needs more energy. And it doesn't carry through a recession.

BTW: This is happening in all industries due to the lower entry levels online.

Actually some old timers are overpriced and expensive, even for mediocre material. I think people like Gene and Barry have competitive pricing, as well as many etsy dealers. For a long time, LOGR was very cheap, but I think he's coming up to more mid-lined pricing, like etsy and some other gemstone dealers. Some old timers sell at high retail (I'm not saying you personally Ed, but I won't mention names either).

Since LOGR is getting up there, at least this forces me to expand my horizons and look elsewhere for settings. I'm having one done by an Etsy dealer now.

 

[Candice]

Ships to: Worldwide -see exclusions
Exclusions: Canada

Whadupwitdat?

whhaatt? since when does he not ship to Canada anymore!?
that seems like a strange exclusion seeing as Canada's economy is doing better than the States and most of Europe....

 

[LaurenThePartier]

I haven't bought an LOGR since he started this new gimmick, and I likely won't be going back. My local jeweler does some amazing work, and he's now almost competitive with the LOGR of last year. Not worth it to me with all of the nickel & dime-ing he's doing.

I have a couple of custom rings in the works for some loose diamonds I have, and I'm paying much less than what I've seen some LOGR settings go for recently.

 

[katealt]

His other ebay name is lan.bo4. Some of the photos had the LOGR watermark on them. He's offering the same 30 day return period under this name. I wondered if he was just transfering the main sales through to this name and then selling off one- off pieces that were samples/custom returns, etc. on the old LOGR but sometimes it just didn't add up. It is a strange new strategy on his part- who knows?!

Who is the Etsy seller that custom makes rings at competitive prices?

 

[LD]

I'm pretty sure that Lan.bo4 and LOGR are two different sellers. LOGR does have other Ebay stores (and so does Lan.bo) but I'm almost positive they're not related.

 

[katealt]

Sorry, I meant wenhuihui2009. I bought rings at the same time from both of them and they were included in the same shipment even, so for sure it is him... or the same company. But I just checked and there are no listings on that one- so who knows? He did have quite a lot on the webhuihui one- maybe there is a third?

 

[Sniven]

Ships to: Worldwide -see exclusions
Exclusions: Canada

Whadupwitdat?

whhaatt? since when does he not ship to Canada anymore!?
that seems like a strange exclusion seeing as Canada's economy is doing better than the States and most of Europe....

Tell me about it!

I was going to send him a message and ask why, but I really don't care that much and wouldn't purchase anything if I could.

 

[Arkteia]

I agree with TL - today I browsed different ETSY vendors and found many interesting artisans. Since my style is so eclectic, the list of vendors recommended by ETSY is very broad, and many of them work in more traditional style. I sent e-mails to some of them - hopefully the ones I like do custom work. Not all of them are in this country, but hopefully shipments will be fine. The diamonds they use are of good quality, there are many bypass rings, and in general, I think we may get much better deals there, especially in the beginning.

 

[LD]

I agree with TL - today I browsed different ETSY vendors and found many interesting artisans. Since my style is so eclectic, the list of vendors recommended by ETSY is very broad, and many of them work in more traditional style. I sent e-mails to some of them - hopefully the ones I like do custom work. Not all of them are in this country, but hopefully shipments will be fine. The diamonds they use are of good quality, there are many bypass rings, and in general, I think we may get much better deals there, especially in the beginning.

Not necessarily. Be careful. There are good and bad on Etsy and I've worked with both! Unfortunately! Also be very aware that you will probably know more about coloured stones than some of the artisans on there. As them about treatments and you'll get a variety of answers - i.e. some who know nothing, some who try to "fudge" and others who clearly know what they're talking about!

Prices also vary hugely. For example I find Julia very very very expensive and have not worked with her because of that. Others such as Daniel and Sally (who's work is phenomenal) are great value and exceptional workmanship.

Just my opinion based on good and bad experience!

 

[chrono]

Just like eBay, not all Etsy vendors are created equally. Some Etsy vendors do not understand treatments of coloured gemstones and I've struck some of those out (one didn't seem to understand the difference between heat only and BE diffused sapphires which I'm particular when looking for sapphire sidestones for a ring). The market, left to its own devices, will almost always correct itself. Consumers vote with their wallets and when they flock to competitors like Lanbo and Etsy, LOGR will have to re-evaluate their business model if they wish to maintain making a decent profit.

 

[katealt]

Can you please refer us to their etsy store names (Daniel & Sally)? Thanks, I'd like to check them out.

 

[chrono]

I do not know about Daniel M but Sally’s store is Heart of Water Jewels.

 

[Lovinggems]

http://www.etsy.com/shop/danielmjewelry

I'm having a simple prong set pendant made by him as well, will see how that goes!

 

[Michael_E]

This is interesting. I was under the impression that the reason that people were interested in the Asian sellers on E-bay was due to their large and inexpensive diamond content. Yet all of the Etsy sellers mentioned so far use very few diamonds in their offerings. It seems like this discussion is about two completely different things. Is the diamond content the key to the E-bay sellers attractiveness or is it mostly a price related attractiveness and the diamonds are a secondary thing? Just curious.

 

[Michael_E]

one didn't seem to understand the difference between heat only and BE diffused sapphires which I'm particular when looking for sapphire sidestones for a ring. The market, left to its own devices, will almost always correct itself.

This is really interesting. Most sapphire sidestones fall into a price point area in which testing for BE enhancement is not possible, (meaning that testing costs are such a large percentage of the cost of the stone that it is impractical to consider). How can the market correct itself in that sort of situation? Voting with your dollars only works if you are willing to pay more for the assurance of a natural and untreated origin and yet the "market" seems to be going the other way with lower cost being the main attractant and everything else being of far lower importance.

I remember when high quality amethyst started being synthesized and the testing to determine origin being, (and still is), expensive and time consuming. The market has corrected itself with few stones being tested, the price being low and no one asking or caring about a stones origin. I often wonder how long it will be before white synthetic diamond melee becomes prevalent and how that will affect the "market".

 

[RockHugger]

Michael I think it's more about what you get for your dollar. I know as a consumer, I want the most for each dollar I spend. Logr gave incredible value for the money spent. So do alot of etsy sellers.

I think it's more about the deal then the diamonds.

 

[Michael_E]

I know as a consumer, I want the most for each dollar I spend.

The most what? There is more to "value" than low price and this is very evident in the values being maintained by quality goods which were produced in the past. How much of the stuff that people buy now has a chance of ending up on someones hand in 40 years? Some of the hand made Etsy jewelry will, but most of the rest will end up being melted down and remade much sooner. I just find it a little sad that an attitude towards quality that drove jewelry making throughout the past is ending because many people are more concerned about the "value" of low cost versus the value of quality.

 

[T L]

Some high cost jewelery, not all, but some, is low quality workmanship too. Case in point, the mass produced authentic Tiffany Legacy rings. Have you seen how shoddy they look in person?

The fact of the matter is that I don't like to overspend for a mounting, and many jewelers do charge more for the true quality of the piece. I think some charge fair pricing for their quality too. At least with LOGR, you knew what you were getting was a good value for the money, and I think my pieces have held up well over constant wear. I think Dana of MCG inspected an LOGR and found it to be of decent quality.

 

[LD]

Value to me doesn't just represent diamonds.

By way of an example, LOGR is great if you want mass produced diamond accent rings with a relatively low gold weight but at a great price. The pieces I have made by Etsy Artisans have been designed by me so are one-offs and I appreciate that they're hand-made - so irrespective of diamonds (some have had them, some haven't). If you look at my avatar that's a pendant made by Sally who is on Etsy. I provided all the diamonds, the design, the idea and then she and her craftsmen brought it to life and made one or two tiny tweeks to enhance the design. So value for me represents getting what I want at a price point that fits - irrespective of diamonds!

What I will not do is pay over-blown prices for something that I know I could recreate for far less - so in a sense, I'm looking after my money also!

 

[T L]

Value to me doesn't What I will not do is pay over-blown prices for something that I know I could recreate for far less - so in a sense, I'm looking after my money also!

Well said!

 

[Deia]

Oh my...I completely forgot I made this thread Forgive me for leaving it behind, but it looks to me like you guys and gals didn't need me anyway!

I appreciate everyone's input, and like many of you have no longer/will not buy LOGR pieces again... frankly I stopped buying them when I had my first custom ring made (but recently got the PS bug of *needing* to set some stones) and was so delighted with the difference in quality (the custom ring has no diamonds - it's not all about the bling bling!) from the LOGR rings that I have decided I will get one ring made instead of getting two LOGRs for the same price, and I will stick to quality stock settings.

One of the first LOGR rings I got is two tone and after looking at it lately I swear it is rose gold plated...which is a shame.