I've begun my search for an engagement ring and have done a lot of research online over the past month or so. Today I went to one of several local jewelers that I plan on checking out. This was my first visit to a brick and mortar establishment and I found the jeweler to be incredibly helpful. While he didn't have exactly the diamond I was looking for in stock, he encouraged me to check out the inventory online, which he said showed the stock of their primary supplier. The prices seemed higher than I had previously seen from various online retailers, which I fully expected. However, when I went to compare the actual price differences I found that the markup was (what I would consider) quite large. For example, one diamond that I was looking at was listed in the BM's online search for $11,724.04. I was able to find the identical diamond (same GIA report number) on Price Scope listed for $9,670. That equates to a 17.5% markup. I really had planned (hoped) to by from a local jeweler, but that's a big chunk of change to shell out for the benefits of dealing locally. Is this typical?
Thanks for the help!
Thanks for the help!