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Was counting on upgrading CBI- now what?

K

Kya

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jul 20, 2020
Messages
298
I made a purchase from HPD with plans to upgrade just under a year ago.
Now that the unfortunate has occurred, am I stuck?

I am hoping I can still upgrade without taking a loss but am unsure that is possible :(

Any advice or thoughts ?
 
Also reach out to Victor Canera, as he has a H&A lineup with the full array of advanced images, as well.

Jon at Distinctive Gem and David at Diamonds by Lauren might very well be able to help you find beautifully proportioned and vetted diamond.
 
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They were instances where WF purchased stones that were not theirs for a trade-in and they were instances when they rejected them. Just fyi, even if they agreed to a trade, it will not be cheap as you will not be getting the amount you paid for it towards the trade-in. I know, I have been there with my HPD/CBI stone and done it. It worked out but there were some loses. No vendor will give you a full value of the stone as they need to resell it and profit from it, naturally.
 
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I looked through your threads - looks like you worked with Melissa in the past. She’s at WF now, so I would definitely start there.

I’m really sorry. A heartbreaking and wallet-clenching reminder that the policies we tout so vociferously are entirely dependent on the vendor issuing them both being around and being willing to honour them. It is truly old customers who lost the most here.
 
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In case you don’t get full value / close to full value; it might also make sense to explore how much you can get by selling it instead (on loupe troop for example) and then using the money towards purchasing a different super ideal. Im sorry, the situation sucks.
 
This might be dumb, I’m just throwing it out there. I know there are other places who sell CBI’s. And while they might not honor any kind of old trade up, maybe it would be worth reaching out just to see?

This place is a B&M store that also partners with CBI… maybe they could help? Again I’m just throwing it out there because I too have this dilemma and have been snooping around to see what my options are.


www.jewelrysourceusa.com

Crafted by Infinity

www.jewelrysourceusa.com
 
I’m sorry for advance of an uneducated question.
There is other distributors of CBI, currently, correct?

A distributor in Oregon, Prestige Diamonds and Jewelry,
quoted from their website “Crafted by Infinity provides manufacturer's guarantee of lifetime trade-up options.”

I personally would feel a bit strange in contacting Melissa with the thinking/stating she was the previous contact. I would be vary wary of putting her in a uncomfortable position- on purpose or not.

best wishes OP.

edit @Sprinkles&Stones I had the same line of thought as you!
it may not be the same trade up as HPD once had - but may be more than CBI ‘competitors’ can do.
 
First see what the CBI vendors say. Then try WF. They do sometimes take stones as a trade-in, but you likely won’t get the full amount you paid. It appears to me that diamond prices are higher now, so that could make your trade-in more valuable. I feel like WF prices have been overall better and they have a better selection of diamonds. So that would be my personal first choice. I also think they’ll be around for future upgrades.
 
diamondseeker2006 said:
First see what the CBI vendors say. Then try WF. They do sometimes take stones as a trade-in, but you likely won’t get the full amount you paid. It appears to me that diamond prices are higher now, so that could make your trade-in more valuable. I feel like WF prices have been overall better and they have a better selection of diamonds. So that would be my personal first choice. I also think they’ll be around for future upgrades.
Click to expand...

I agree. I went that route (two weeks before diamond price increase) and it worked out. Were there loses? Yes, but not as much as anywhere else. I contacted some CBI vendors as well but they were not as flexible as WF.
 
Rfisher said:
I’m sorry for advance of an uneducated question.
There is other distributors of CBI, currently, correct?

A distributor in Oregon, Prestige Diamonds and Jewelry,
quoted from their website “Crafted by Infinity provides manufacturer's guarantee of lifetime trade-up options.”

I personally would feel a bit strange in contacting Melissa with the thinking/stating she was the previous contact. I would be vary wary of putting her in a uncomfortable position- on purpose or not.

best wishes OP.

edit @Sprinkles&Stones I had the same line of thought as you!
it may not be the same trade up as HPD once had - but may be more than CBI ‘competitors’ can do.
Click to expand...

Its up to WF management to make the decision about taking the stone for trade-up. Melissa can only pass the inquiry on to them
and possibly return the info back to you. Not sure why that would be uncomfortable for Melissa. Its a business decision. Maybe
I'm missing something?
 
tyty333 said:
Its up to WF management to make the decision about taking the stone for trade-up. Melissa can only pass the inquiry on to them
and possibly return the info back to you. Not sure why that would be uncomfortable for Melissa. Its a business decision. Maybe
I'm missing something?
Click to expand...
No you aren’t missing something.
yes it’s a business decision and not up to her specifically.

I guess a lot can be said about the tone that’s in a verbal statement or inserted into text.

I feel making the connection of her previous employment, possibly to my benefit, would make ME feel squidgy. And not wanting her to feel bad if the answer is less than stellar.
but - hey- it’s who you know, sometimes, that gets you preferential treatment, compared to some other random unknown customer - right?
 
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I would definitely reach out to Whiteflash (or any of the other Super Ideal vendors). You will very likely not get the same trade value though, but at least you would have a lot of diamonds to chose from if you went the Whiteflash route, I did this recently.

Good luck!
 
FWIW WF (forgot his handle) posted a whole thread about Melissa's new employment with WF including references to her past history with HPD, so this is public knowledge --- and IMO if someone has past successful history with a sales representative, it makes good sense to return to that individual for new purchases.

eta: FWIW if they haven't already, it may behoove WF to formulate a formal corporate position on customers coming to WF asking CBI upgrade questions, so that even as individual cases may be treated differently due to market/timing, there is a cohesive and published company policy on how/who handles these types of inquiries.
 
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I would reach out to everyone. No need to do things in serial. Send out several requests for assistance and evaluate what your options are.

I also don’t think contacting WF/Melissa in particular should be uncomfortable. Or rather - if it’s uncomfortable that’s not the ex-customer’s problem. Regardless, I’m confident this won’t be the first such query WF has received specifically because they very publicly brought a prominent former HPD/Wolf CBI employee on!
 
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marymm said:
eta: FWIW if they haven't already, it may behoove WF to formulate a formal corporate position on customers coming to WF asking CBI upgrade questions, so that even as individual cases may be treated differently due to market/timing, there is a cohesive and published company policy on how/who handles these types of inquiries.
Click to expand...
100% and I’m sure they considered this before hiring Melissa so I’m thinking this may already be in the works!
 
Rfisher said:
No you aren’t missing something.
yes it’s a business decision and not up to her specifically.

I guess a lot can be said about the tone that’s in a verbal statement or inserted into text.

I feel making the connection of her previous employment, possibly to my benefit, would make ME feel squidgy. And not wanting her to feel bad if the answer is less than stellar.
but - hey- it’s who you know, sometimes, that gets you preferential treatment, compared to some other random unknown customer - right?
Click to expand...

I think I see what you're saying. I think the mistake would be on the customer's part thinking that Melissa can do anything more for
them than any of the other WF SAs. If you worked with Melissa in the past and liked her then I wouldn't worry about contacting her. I
certainly hope Melissa doesn't feel responsible for what happened. Obviously, not her fault and she has no reason to take on that
guilt. I'm hoping all who wish to trade-up can find an option through the various vendors/dealers that works for them.
 
tyty333 said:
I think the mistake would be on the customer's part thinking that Melissa can do anything more for
them than any of the other WF SAs.
Click to expand...
+1. But I do assume there is a corporate policy in the works to handle this situation. :read:
 
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Mlh said:
So what is the story with Wolf? Does anyone know? The last I checked the cbi inventory was still up at Wolf cbi.
Click to expand...

I am only seeing a 1 page site from them. Not sure when you last looked?

www.wolfdiamonds.com

Home - Houston's Custom Engagement Rings

Wolf diamonds custom crafted engagement rings At a Price that works for you Shop around, then come see us Finding the perfect ring isn’t about ... Read more
www.wolfdiamonds.com
 
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Mlh said:
So what is the story with Wolf? Does anyone know? The last I checked the cbi inventory was still up at Wolf cbi.
Click to expand...

I am wonder too as their IG pages are still up and their website is still listed with inventory
 
yssie said:
+1. But I do assume there is a corporate policy in the works to handle this situation. :read:
Click to expand...

@yssie et al,
We do publish our policy with regard to considering non-Whiteflash diamonds for trade.

Do you accept diamonds for trade up that were purchased elsewhere?

Do you accept diamonds for trade up that were purchased elsewhere?
www.whiteflash.com

While the Whiteflash 100% Lifetime Trade-Up policy on our own in-house diamonds is a guarantee and a liability that we take on as part of our value proposition, no guarantees are made or implied regarding other diamonds and brands. We do not buy diamonds from the public.

While precision cut diamonds like CBI have a good chance of meeting our quality criteria, we also evaluate trade opportunities on the basis of market dynamics, our inventory position and needs, and the in-house diamond being traded for. Accordingly, it is very much a case by case basis.

We are always happy to provide information to anyone interested and we do feel bad for customers who are no longer able to execute trades for their CBI diamond. We would welcome them into the Whiteflash ecosystem if conditions for a win/win agreement can be met.

Bear in mind that if you are not actively looking to do a trade and have not focused on a Whiteflash diamond to trade up to, we may not be able to provide a meaningful estimate. In any case, a preliminary quote is contingent on our own physical evaluations and no firm quote can be provided prior to that inspection.
 
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@Anne93, I am sorry for your situation.​

I also own a CBI diamond. I thought I had time to go bigger, or whiter in the future. I wish we had the heads up from HPD, e.g. 1 month window to upgrade before it folds its business. I understand that is not how the business works. Wishful thinking. I guess there were signs, but I didn't quite "get" it.​

I am also wondering about what are our options. I will be watching this thread.​

As for me, I do love my CBI, I don't plan to trade it in for anything else other than another CBI. So for me, I guess, if I want to go bigger, I will buy 2 more super ideal diamonds from one of the remaining super ideal vendors and change it to a 3 stone ring.​

I am also wondering if the remaining stock of CBI diamonds are still available for purchase. @Wink would have any info on that. Thank you.​

 
uyalison said:

@Anne93, I am sorry for your situation.​

I also own a CBI diamond. I thought I had time to go bigger, or whiter in the future. I wish we had the heads up from HPD, e.g. 1 month window to upgrade before it folds its business. I understand that is not how the business works. Wishful thinking. I guess there were signs, but I didn't quite "get" it.​

I am also wondering about what are our options. I will be watching this thread.​

As for me, I do love my CBI, I don't plan to trade it in for anything else other than another CBI. So for me, I guess, if I want to go bigger, I will buy 2 more super ideal diamonds from one of the remaining super ideal vendors and change it to a 3 stone ring.​

I am also wondering if the remaining stock of CBI diamonds are still available for purchase. @Wink would have any info on that. Thank you.​

Click to expand...

May I ask why only CBI and nothing else? Just curious, especially because I used to think the same way.
 
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uyalison said:

@Anne93, I am sorry for your situation.​

I also own a CBI diamond. I thought I had time to go bigger, or whiter in the future. I wish we had the heads up from HPD, e.g. 1 month window to upgrade before it folds its business. I understand that is not how the business works. Wishful thinking. I guess there were signs, but I didn't quite "get" it.​

I am also wondering about what are our options. I will be watching this thread.​

As for me, I do love my CBI, I don't plan to trade it in for anything else other than another CBI. So for me, I guess, if I want to go bigger, I will buy 2 more super ideal diamonds from one of the remaining super ideal vendors and change it to a 3 stone ring.​

I am also wondering if the remaining stock of CBI diamonds are still available for purchase. @Wink would have any info on that. Thank you.​

Click to expand...

Same. In retrospect I should have seen the now obvious to me signs ....
 

@daisygrl, I remember your CBI to WF story. Are you happy with your decision? No regrets? I don't remember seeing a picture of your finished ring.​

For me, it is just that I am really satisfied/happy with my CBI. My love for it/CBI out weights my need to go bigger and more colorless in an unknow diamond. (I reserve the right to change my mind. )​

I am curious about other super ideal MRB, I will probably get some in the future, but I want to keep at least 1 CBI in my collection, because my eyes like what they sees.​

 
uyalison said:

@daisygrl, I remember your CBI to WF story. Are you happy with your decision? No regrets? I don't remember seeing a picture of your finished ring.​

For me, it is just that I am really satisfied/happy with my CBI. My love for it/CBI out weights my need to go bigger and more colorless in an unknow diamond. (I reserve the right to change my mind. )​

I am curious about other super ideal MRB, I will probably get some in the future, but I want to keep at least 1 CBI in my collection, because my eyes like what they sees.​

Click to expand...

I have no regrets, primarily because I realized that if I did not do something now, I would never be able to upgrade (not that I needed to at this time, I just hate feeling of being stuck.) Plus, when I saw that WF had the stone in a size and color I have always wanted, it was a no brainer. I made sure, though, that it was just as pretty as CBI and it was. Or I would not have upgraded. I have not posted my finished ring yet. No time.

I need to look up story about your diamond. It sounds interesting.
 
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