Unresolved issue with Ouros

[e2the3rd]

@e2the3rd I would suggest to include a reason why you are selling the earrings, in that the posts are too thick for your second piercing, so as to avoid any potential issues with the buyer after sale.

DK

oh yes, I did that

 

[e2the3rd]

OP thank you for sharing. This is very helpful. While I haven’t purchased from him; I’ve inquired a few times and I’ve gotten a very negative vibe each time. I inquired about cutting a stone similar to one he had listed but warmer(H/I instead of F) and half a ct smaller. The quote he gave me was dramatically higher than the larger and much whiter stone he had listed. I also inquired about having a mixed shape band made. I ended up finding a natural diamond band of the same caliber for less than the quote. When I told him the price was much higher than I expected for lab he got pretty snooty. I will note that our conversation was over email and I’m sure there is a language barrier so perhaps the snooty tone was misconstrued on my end. Seems like his customer service skills are lacking

So strange about the prices.

You didn’t misconstrue the tone. I started getting that with his last couple of messages. He started out so sweet. Then after I said I’d like to return the earrings, he turned. The tone was so different I thought someone else might be responding!

 

[Clunkygirl]

I'm glad there is some sort of option both with and without Ouros. I really don't think those posts look professionally made. I don't think it matters whether you pay $5 or $5000, they should look like a finished product from a jewelry maker. New posts or ground down should create this. I have looked at some of his jewelry because of price together with OMC and OEC cuts. I would now stick with his stock items for sure. Thank you so much for sharing this.

 

[digital_bling]

So strange about the prices.

You didn’t misconstrue the tone. I started getting that with his last couple of messages. He started out so sweet. Then after I said I’d like to return the earrings, he turned. The tone was so different I thought someone else might be responding!

OK, now I'm jumping in!

I had a very, very frustrating experience with Ouros in November. I was working on a project for a family member and I suggested Vijay over Ankit. Boy, do I regret it.

It was a custom project for a line bracelet (tennis bracelet) and we paid upfront.

I cannot convey how frustrating this experience was but I'll try.

Hundreds of messages exchanged and yet my questions went unanswered. I had to constantly remind him/them of the exacting specifications of what I was after. The CADs returned to me didn't include the edits I asked for. I was very, very specific and exacting about what I wanted. I gave up feeling exasperated after the many, MANY messages we exchanged.

Amid all of this he/they were constantly trying to upsell me on the LGD size!

I requested a refund.

Some observations:
1) I went from "Dear" to "Ma'am" to "Sir" in our correspondence; there is definitely more than one person managing the customer order intake and the hand-off between individuals is not good. At all.
2) I recognize the difficulty in scaling a business however the crew at Ouros needs to manage expectations better.
3) The Etsy reviews are great; I assume that's because we don't see reviews from the customers who shelved their projects and got refunds. They never made it to a finished product, so no review.
4) I do not see Vijay excelling in fully bespoke (true custom) orders, especially outside of rings.

 

[e2the3rd]

The best part? That was the minimum! He asked me to give more if I could

Yeah, no.

This is absolutely bonkers!

 

[mgmsrk]

Reading about multiple issues is making me nervous since I placed my first order with ouros this week. I ordered a custom semi mount with custom cut side stones for a stone I already have. I hope everything will work out for me. So far the communication has been very clear and excellent. I got the first cad and asked for 2 changes. I’m hoping I will get a revised cad to approve before he produces the setting.

I don't mean to dismiss the experience of the OP or anyone else who had trouble but don't panic, hopefully it will be fine. I ordered 2 rings, 1 custom and received them last week, they are beautiful and perfect.(they go to the GIA appraiser tomorrow)

I found everything to go pretty smoothly. I sent photos of what I wanted and a few days later the CAD was sent, exactly as I wanted. The rings were made pretty quickly and videos were sent .
The 2 issues were shipping and communication. I did find that they were responding quickly but like another poster said, it's clearly numerous people responding and they don't seem to take 30 seconds to read the thread. I had to ask some things more than once. After the rings were both finished, they did not ship right away, I waited a bit but after almost 2 weeks I asked, they were then shipped and arrived in about a week(this includes Christmas)

 

[Mreader]

I have never had any issues with communications or shipping, except perhaps too much communications that got a bit tedious/overbearing at times.

DK

Yes this lol!!! I emailed once asking a general question about something which he answered, and I said "ok thank you" but he emailed more times in an attempt to get my business. One of the emails just said "hello???" which I "heard" like this:



I did eventually have him make a setting for me for a gemstone I had, and it was ok but cheaply made and one of the melee stones fell out almost immediately. He did send me more stones, and just said to let him know how much the fee would be for the jeweler to set them and he would reimburse up to $20. I kind of chalked it up to "it was a cheap setting so you get what you pay for" kind of thing. I had already spent quite a bit on other settings for stones that were more important to me, so I knew going in I was going to get a cheaper and thus less high quality product. I wouldn't use him for something that was super duper important to me. It also tough when something goes wrong and the vendor is far away. I wish you luck in finding a resolution!

 

[AnastasiaBeaverhausen]

Yes this lol!!! I emailed once asking a general question about something which he answered, and I said "ok thank you" but he emailed more times in an attempt to get my business. One of the emails just said "hello???" which I "heard" like this:



I did eventually have him make a setting for me for a gemstone I had, and it was ok but cheaply made and one of the melee stones fell out almost immediately. He did send me more stones, and just said to let him know how much the fee would be for the jeweler to set them and he would reimburse up to $20. I kind of chalked it up to "it was a cheap setting so you get what you pay for" kind of thing. I had already spent quite a bit on other settings for stones that were more important to me, so I knew going in I was going to get a cheaper and thus less high quality product. I wouldn't use him for something that was super duper important to me. It also tough when something goes wrong and the vendor is far away. I wish you luck in finding a resolution!

Gr, I hate feeling like it's somehow our fault for ending up with crappy items because we tried to save some $. I've had several custom pieces from overseas vendors and while they may not be VC caliber, I've never had a melee stone fall out of em either.

 

[e2the3rd]

It's so weird that there are so many issues. I have a pair of 1CTW M colored OEC studs coming in a few days so I hope I don't have issues. My order was semi-custom as I requested M colored OEC diamonds, 6-claw prongs, and regular posts (original listing was for colorless diamonds in 4 prongs and screw backs. It was quick with me, like he sent me CAD's a few days (which I had him take note with what I wanted edited and then approved it), like 5 or so days he sent me a video of the diamonds indoors, I asked for outdoor video that he sent next day (I approved), then took like a week to make/set diamonds and send video of completed earrings. They were just shipped and overall took 3 weeks from start to finish.
By the way warmer diamonds are cheaper, it was like $250 less than the colorless studs.
I was going to get studs for 2nd piercing too but now I'm worried they'll be too thick as the holes aren't stretched, I guess I could measure my current stud posts and request the same ones.
Hopefully, it will get resolved!

Your 6-prong OECs sound awesome! Looking forward to seeing those. I really think most people have a decent experience and it sounds like your cad corrections etc have gone well - so don’t worry. If you do order for your second piercings, yes, just request the post thickness you prefer upfront.

 

[LightBright]

Thank you. Good eye - I mentioned those lumps in the posts as well and sent him this cropped photo. I wasn't sure if that was contributing to the discomfort or just the thickness overall. The posts on the other pair from Ouros look fine..

I’m sure someone has mentioned this, but it looks like the pliers used to hold the setting/earrings while the stones were being set, damaged the posts (you can see the “crush” of the post and serration marks from the metal grip of the pliers). Someone VERY amateur did these earrings. You should get a refund, these were sent to you with obvious damage caused by the vendor’s bench. Did you show Vijay this?

 

[sparklyshrink]

My experience with Vijay has been positive, but I've only ordered exact things from his site. Sounds like custom work is not the way to go with him.

 

[dk168]

I had a message from Vijay asking when I could place an order for a 3mm Princess cut rainbow Sapphire bracelet bar-set tennis bracelet, even though I have mentioned I am not ready to order, just making enquiries at this stage.

Not entirely certain if he is keen or pushy at times.

Anyway I responded I shall contact him when I am ready to order, at least another 6 months or later.

DK

 

[FutureChocolateMLK]

I have a diamond band from Ouros in my cart right now on Etsy, and I am definitely reconsidering it after reading this post. Yikes! I've looked at his lab grown loose stones too and considered them, but very hesitant at this point!

 

[e2the3rd]

A positive update: Vijay has agreed to give me a refund or repair!

As I kept thinking about having the posts shaved down, I worried if this would come out ok or possibly uneven and janky. The local jeweler I had emailed about it didn’t even answer me regarding that - and instead he said it would be better to just return the earrings, because he thought from my picture that they were of extremely poor quality! I wouldn’t go that far, I suppose those lumps in the post are pretty wrong.. but this did push me to try again to request a refund.

At the same time, I had just noticed on my other pair, the bezel set earrings, that I could hear the stones rattling some, so that got me worked up, thinking great, another problem. I sent off a message to Vijay saying I was disappointed and would like to return both pairs (I’m actually still deciding on the bezel ones though, just because I really enjoy them and they’re probably ok despite a little rattle?)

Vijay responded quickly this time that a refund for both pairs was no problem ! but he would still change out the posts on both pairs of earrings if I wanted to go through with that instead, and he ended with saying that he wanted to give me his 100% best customer service.

So a bit of whiplash throughout all this: first the nothing can be done answer, delays answering and the change in the tone of messages (perhaps there were different people answering), to eventually - sure, no problem, the posts can either be fixed or I can get a refund, and with nice Vijay back, and responding quickly. Phew! Perhaps if I hadn’t been so nice asking if I remake was a possibility and instead was firm with exactly what I expected to be done, I might have gotten this gratifying answer at the start. Who knows. But that’s what I’ll do in the future for sure.

As for the workmanship- I don’t really know what to think. I really like the looks of the earrings overall and the little prongs look good.. maybe what went wrong for my order was when I had inquired about tracking of my shipped package 1.5 weeks later and they took several days to get back to me, it was because my package was lost and they had to remake my order and someone rushed through and did a poor job on the posts (and the bezel setting). Total speculation, but maybe? They never explained what happened, just shipped a second time. In the future, I suppose if there’s something I really like/want and the price is just too good to pass up, I would give Ouros another shot, and just be prepared to be very firm with getting a refund if something goes wrong.

Now to see what my first time shipping from the US to India is like. I’ll report back after this is all completed.

 

[yssie]

100% return both.
A little rattle now = a lost stone in future, guaranteed.

 

[CaseySF]

Could a local bench "polish" away the thicker post metal, down to the size of your other earrings? I know that does not solve your wanting warmer stones, but the hassle of overseas returns for this would make me hesitate to do that.

Probably. You could sand it down with sand paper too.

 

[CaseySF]

I'm ordering a bracelet from him. I will post my experience here on PS. I'm sorry you had to go through so much frustration.

 

[ItsMainelyYou]

A positive update: Vijay has agreed to give me a refund or repair!

As I kept thinking about having the posts shaved down, I worried if this would come out ok or possibly uneven and janky. The local jeweler I had emailed about it didn’t even answer me regarding that - and instead he said it would be better to just return the earrings, because he thought from my picture that they were of extremely poor quality! I wouldn’t go that far, I suppose those lumps in the post are pretty wrong.. but this did push me to try again to request a refund.

At the same time, I had just noticed on my other pair, the bezel set earrings, that I could hear the stones rattling some, so that got me worked up, thinking great, another problem. I sent off a message to Vijay saying I was disappointed and would like to return both pairs (I’m actually still deciding on the bezel ones though, just because I really enjoy them and they’re probably ok despite a little rattle?)

Vijay responded quickly this time that a refund for both pairs was no problem ! but he would still change out the posts on both pairs of earrings if I wanted to go through with that instead, and he ended with saying that he wanted to give me his 100% best customer service.

So a bit of whiplash throughout all this: first the nothing can be done answer, delays answering and the change in the tone of messages (perhaps there were different people answering), to eventually - sure, no problem, the posts can either be fixed or I can get a refund, and with nice Vijay back, and responding quickly. Phew! Perhaps if I hadn’t been so nice asking if I remake was a possibility and instead was firm with exactly what I expected to be done, I might have gotten this gratifying answer at the start. Who knows. But that’s what I’ll do in the future for sure.

As for the workmanship- I don’t really know what to think. I really like the looks of the earrings overall and the little prongs look good.. maybe what went wrong for my order was when I had inquired about tracking of my shipped package 1.5 weeks later and they took several days to get back to me, it was because my package was lost and they had to remake my order and someone rushed through and did a poor job on the posts (and the bezel setting). Total speculation, but maybe? They never explained what happened, just shipped a second time. In the future, I suppose if there’s something I really like/want and the price is just too good to pass up, I would give Ouros another shot, and just be prepared to be very firm with getting a refund if something goes wrong.

Now to see what my first time shipping from the US to India is like. I’ll report back after this is all completed.

Hold on, head's still wobbly! I wonder if there are different people responding. I guess it's good there is some resolution that works in the end.

 

[digital_bling]

I have a diamond band from Ouros in my cart right now on Etsy, and I am definitely reconsidering it after reading this post. Yikes! I've looked at his lab grown loose stones too and considered them, but very hesitant at this point!

Vijay's ready-made stock and his loose diamonds should be fine, IMO. I will still use him for ready-made and loose stones. After my experience trying to do a custom-from-scratch piece (a tennis bracelet) I am going to think twice about reaching to him for truly bespoke work.

I also think Ouros took on more work than they could handle for Holiday 2021.

November is a peak time for jewelry in India and US/western countries, so I see why bandwidth might an issue. Vijay likely hired additional help (temp workers) to address the uptick in demand and they were dropping the baton between handoffs. Still, my full project correspondence is available in the message history on Etsy and the workers could've easily referenced that info!

I'll reach to him for loose diamonds for sure (pricing is attractive).

 

[dk168]

Good to hear some positive news!

DK

 

[FutureChocolateMLK]

Vijay's ready-made stock and his loose diamonds should be fine, IMO. I will still use him for ready-made and loose stones. After my experience trying to do a custom-from-scratch piece (a tennis bracelet) I am going to think twice about reaching to him for truly bespoke work.

I also think Ouros took on more work than they could handle for Holiday 2021.

November is a peak time for jewelry in India and US/western countries, so I see why bandwidth might an issue. Vijay likely hired additional help (temp workers) to address the uptick in demand and they were dropping the baton between handoffs. Still, my full project correspondence is available in the message history on Etsy and the workers could've easily referenced that info!

I'll reach to him for loose diamonds for sure (pricing is attractive).

Makes sense! I just adore that mixed cut band on his Etsy page with the rounds, pears and emerald cuts. And the price is so incredibly tempting!

 

[sparklyshrink]

I'm ordering a bracelet from him. I will post my experience here on PS. I'm sorry you had to go through so much frustration.

I ordered a tennis bracelet as shown on his site (did not have it custom made) and it's really, really nice. I think you're fine if you buy what he lists and don't want a bunch of changes.

 

[La2020]

After reading through the sharings.. I am so glad that I didn't go ahead with the bespoke bracelet project with Vija.

However, I think getting the loose stones are still alright since the prices are attractive (at the moment).

 

[Lisag103]

A positive update: Vijay has agreed to give me a refund or repair!

As I kept thinking about having the posts shaved down, I worried if this would come out ok or possibly uneven and janky. The local jeweler I had emailed about it didn’t even answer me regarding that - and instead he said it would be better to just return the earrings, because he thought from my picture that they were of extremely poor quality! I wouldn’t go that far, I suppose those lumps in the post are pretty wrong.. but this did push me to try again to request a refund.

At the same time, I had just noticed on my other pair, the bezel set earrings, that I could hear the stones rattling some, so that got me worked up, thinking great, another problem. I sent off a message to Vijay saying I was disappointed and would like to return both pairs (I’m actually still deciding on the bezel ones though, just because I really enjoy them and they’re probably ok despite a little rattle?)

Vijay responded quickly this time that a refund for both pairs was no problem ! but he would still change out the posts on both pairs of earrings if I wanted to go through with that instead, and he ended with saying that he wanted to give me his 100% best customer service.

So a bit of whiplash throughout all this: first the nothing can be done answer, delays answering and the change in the tone of messages (perhaps there were different people answering), to eventually - sure, no problem, the posts can either be fixed or I can get a refund, and with nice Vijay back, and responding quickly. Phew! Perhaps if I hadn’t been so nice asking if I remake was a possibility and instead was firm with exactly what I expected to be done, I might have gotten this gratifying answer at the start. Who knows. But that’s what I’ll do in the future for sure.

As for the workmanship- I don’t really know what to think. I really like the looks of the earrings overall and the little prongs look good.. maybe what went wrong for my order was when I had inquired about tracking of my shipped package 1.5 weeks later and they took several days to get back to me, it was because my package was lost and they had to remake my order and someone rushed through and did a poor job on the posts (and the bezel setting). Total speculation, but maybe? They never explained what happened, just shipped a second time. In the future, I suppose if there’s something I really like/want and the price is just too good to pass up, I would give Ouros another shot, and just be prepared to be very firm with getting a refund if something goes wrong.

Now to see what my first time shipping from the US to India is like. I’ll report back after this is all completed.

e2the3rd, has he given you any instructions on sending the earrings back?

I am curious as I had an issue with a vendor from India (Not Ouros and only something small), the offered to remake it however there was a big issue with sending it back. Basically they told me that it could not be sent directly as it would be held in customs for months etc., they wanted me to send to a relative in US who would bring it over to them when they were visiting (not sure how when borders were all closed last year?). For a finish I ended up just leaving it and having it repaired locally rather than the remake I wanted as it wasn't worth it!

Now just to add, I don't think for a second the vendor was trying to scam me in any way, I think they were genuinely trying to come up with a solution to get the ring back to them to remake, I am just not sure why the big drama with sending it back!

Would be interested to see if anyone else had any issues sending items back to vendors in India.

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

e2the3rd, has he given you any instructions on sending the earrings back?

I am curious as I had an issue with a vendor from India (Not Ouros and only something small), the offered to remake it however there was a big issue with sending it back. Basically they told me that it could not be sent directly as it would be held in customs for months etc., they wanted me to send to a relative in US who would bring it over to them when they were visiting (not sure how when borders were all closed last year?). For a finish I ended up just leaving it and having it repaired locally rather than the remake I wanted as it wasn't worth it!

Now just to add, I don't think for a second the vendor was trying to scam me in any way, I think they were genuinely trying to come up with a solution to get the ring back to them to remake, I am just not sure why the big drama with sending it back!

Would be interested to see if anyone else had any issues sending items back to vendors in India.

I’ve never tried to send anything back to India, but I am originally from there, and I can tell you customs is an unmitigated frigging impossible I wish you never have the misfortune of having to deal with those [censored] nightmare in India.

Things will get stuck for ludicrous amounts of time, and the fees and charges and add-on duties can really, really add up with no guarantees that you’ll get your stuff in time or sometimes, if you’re unlucky, at all. I’m reminded of the time I ran out of shampoo and had to buy mine through an overseas seller, it was 4x what it would cost abroad in duties and taxes and took almost a month to get to me (despite a weeklong delivery timeline), by which time I was back in the country I lived in.

If you’re buying something from India, no problem, totally fine. Sending it back though, is a nightmare. I would never take the risk, especially with jewelry. Sending stuff to a US relative etc is pretty much how business is done here, I know that’s how my jeweler does it.

 

[CaseySF]

I’ve never tried to send anything back to India, but I am originally from there, and I can tell you customs is an unmitigated frigging impossible I wish you never have the misfortune of having to deal with those [censored] nightmare in India.

Things will get stuck for ludicrous amounts of time, and the fees and charges and add-on duties can really, really add up with no guarantees that you’ll get your stuff in time or sometimes, if you’re unlucky, at all. I’m reminded of the time I ran out of shampoo and had to buy mine through an overseas seller, it was 4x what it would cost abroad in duties and taxes and took almost a month to get to me (despite a weeklong delivery timeline), by which time I was back in the country I lived in.

If you’re buying something from India, no problem, totally fine. Sending it back though, is a nightmare. I would never take the risk, especially with jewelry. Sending stuff to a US relative etc is pretty much how business is done here, I know that’s how my jeweler does

Thanks for the unique perspective.

 

[AnastasiaBeaverhausen]

A few PSers mentioned their experiences with buying from India in a previous thread of mine. Hope this helps!

Post in thread 'Buying from CeylonSapphireGems: An expensive mistake' https://www.pricescope.com/communit...gems-an-expensive-mistake.268353/post-5016717

Post in thread 'Buying from CeylonSapphireGems: An expensive mistake' https://www.pricescope.com/communit...gems-an-expensive-mistake.268353/post-5024625

Post in thread 'Buying from CeylonSapphireGems: An expensive mistake' https://www.pricescope.com/communit...gems-an-expensive-mistake.268353/post-5024733

 

[dk168]

I buy from abroad all the time, not just jewellery, and have always treated the transactions as one way, as returning anything is just too laborious to worth my time and effort.

The last time I returned anything, it was for a couple of cheeseboards as presents, I was out of pocket as the seller who allegedly sent me the wrong products - they sent me some cheapo pocket mirrors that were not to my taste and liking, and what I did order were no longer available, tried to get me to accept the goods that I did not order at a reduced price and I said no.

Eventually after some e-mail ping ponging they agreed for the wrong goods to be returned for a refund once they had received them.

I returned the goods on the understanding that they would pay for the postage in writing, using the cheapest option with signature.

I did not get my postage back despite repeated e-mails that went unanswered.

So I wrote them a strongly worded e-mail, and drew a line in the sand.

I could not leave a negative feedback as the company where I bought the goods were no longer trading.

I was out of pocket for only a small amount of money, however, it was the frustration of being conned and deliberately lied to that annoyed me.

The vendor was based in China.

DK

 

[digital_bling]

I’ve never tried to send anything back to India, but I am originally from there, and I can tell you customs is an unmitigated frigging impossible I wish you never have the misfortune of having to deal with those [censored] nightmare in India.

Things will get stuck for ludicrous amounts of time, and the fees and charges and add-on duties can really, really add up with no guarantees that you’ll get your stuff in time or sometimes, if you’re unlucky, at all. I’m reminded of the time I ran out of shampoo and had to buy mine through an overseas seller, it was 4x what it would cost abroad in duties and taxes and took almost a month to get to me (despite a weeklong delivery timeline), by which time I was back in the country I lived in.

If you’re buying something from India, no problem, totally fine. Sending it back though, is a nightmare. I would never take the risk, especially with jewelry. Sending stuff to a US relative etc is pretty much how business is done here, I know that’s how my jeweler does it.

Co-signed. It is a bureaucratic nightmare. It doesn't have to be that way but it is.

My mother lost her mobile phone on a layover flight bound for India. I think the layover was CDG or DBX. She was already in Bombay by the time the flight crew found it. The airport found it and expedited it to where she was visiting in India.

INDIAN CUSTOMS MADE HER PAY IMPORT DUTIES AND TAX ON HER OWN PHONE!

 

[sparkleandfire]

Reading about multiple issues is making me nervous since I placed my first order with ouros this week. I ordered a custom semi mount with custom cut side stones for a stone I already have. I hope everything will work out for me. So far the communication has been very clear and excellent. I got the first cad and asked for 2 changes. I’m hoping I will get a revised cad to approve before he produces the setting.

I just did as well, what are your side stones? I am having him make a semimount with side brilliant cut side trapezoids and he cut them as step.... I am worried after reading this post