Where to buy in London?

[Sam84]

Hi guys,
I came across this page/forum when I started looking for information for an engagement ring. I've tried to soak up all the excellent information provided here and confidently went to Hatton Gardens last Saturday 'to shop around'.

Well my experience was pretty bad to be honest. I don't wanna name and shame shops here, but the sales pitches I got was mostly for already put-together rings, despite me asking for lose diamonds. First of all, it's very difficult for my untrained eye to spot any differences when the stones are already mounted and second it also doesn't allow for comparison as I don't know how much of the price is the diamond and how much is the ring. In addition I was offered a discount of 15-20% without even asking for it in every shop, which rings a big alarm bell for me: either times are extremely bad or they start with inflated prices - and i clearly don't like a turkish bazar feeling when we're talking about significant amounts of money.

Hence my question: where do I get a good service, educated sales people who listen to what I want (not what they're trying to push) and competitive prices in London?

And if you have could give me some idea what only a plain ring (white gold or platinum) would cost? and what if I add a few stones on the shoulder?

Thanks for your help,
Sam

 

[dk168]

I had a flat within walking distance from Hatton Garden for a number of years, and loved window shopping there.

However, when it was time to spec my 40th birthday present to myself in 2003/4, I knew I would not be spending my money there or anywhere else in the UK, as by that time, I discovered the wonders of buying and importing jewellery from abroad.

I was fixated with the idea of selecting the stone myself in person, so buying from the likes of reputable PS recommended vendors such as White Flash, Good Old Gold and Brian Gavin Diamonds was out of the question due to the distance involved.

I ended up purchasing my EC from Rob van Beurden at Diamond House in Antwerp, after researching on PS for suitable vendors in Europe, particularly Antwerp.

I contacted Rob and gave him my budget, and arranged a date to visit him in his office, where he showed me 3 stones for me to choose.

I felt no pressure to buy from him, however, the prices were very favourable compared to what I could find in Hatton Garden, and I particularly liked one of the stones he showed me for its shape, colour and cut quality, so I bought it, an E, VS1, 1.19ct.

I had it set by them in a plain bezel setting, requesting for my soon-to-be ex-hubby's platinum wedding band to be incorporated into the setting and they duly obliged when I met with his goldsmith a few weeks later to finalise the ring and other jewellery pieces I had commissioned.

After a few communications with his excellent assistant Nadine, agreeing on ring size and final price of the ring and jewellery items etc., I went to collect my ring some weeks' later from his office, and was truly delighted with it (I must post some pics soon).

All in all, a very pleasant buying experience, and I would definitely recommend buying from Rob if one is not comfortable in buying via the likes of White Flash, Good Old Gold, Brian Gavin Diamonds etc...

Not sure if the above has helped, however, that's my personal experience.

Good luck!

DK

 

[Whiteiceman]

Hi Sam


I had great success eventually with 77 Diamonds in London when I was looking for an engagement ring.

http://www.77diamonds.com

Their prices are amongst the best in the world for diamonds, and they'll also beat any price by 50 pounds for diamonds that you see on what I would describe as 'shared sales lists' [basically Rapaport, multi listed with various dealers].

That said, due to my initial inexperience in buying diamonds I screwed up trying to beat the market with EGL Europe certs then realised my mistake [after 2 seperate diamonds on approval!] and how wide of the mark their certs were [That's being very polite and diplomatic!].

Eventually after much research and with help from the HCA calculator on this website and only going with GIA cert stones I eventually got what I wanted [as regards colour and light performance]. I ended up with a GIA cert, triple ex, no fl, 2.22 F VS2, HCA <2 with great face up and absolutely incredible light performance. 13 months on from when I got this stone it still mesmerises me every time I see it! 77 Diamonds also set it for me in their Medici setting.

I too found Hatton garden way , way over hyped and thought it more of a street full of ''H.Samuel'' type shops rather than world class jewellers! Bond street /New Bond street is the place to go in London if you want to see some real quality diamonds face to face.

Price wise, my setting [halo] was around 1800 pounds in platinum, and I paid an awful lot more for my eventual diamond to what I thought I was going to be able to get it for. There really is no such thing as a superb cheap diamond!


Hope that helps and good luck!

Cheers Paul

PS: A huge thank-you to Gary Holloway for the use of his HCA calculator. Many thanks Gary, hugely appreciated!

 

[Gypsy]

I believe Infinity Diamonds has a retailer that carries their line. That's where I'd start.

 

[boerumbiddy]

I am far from an expert, and my main interest lies in colored stones rather than diamonds, but my brief trip to Hatton Gardens this summer made me realize how much bigger, blingier and easier to navigate good old 47th Street in Manhattan is. I am sure you can find good -- and bad -- deals either place, but my impression is that Hatton Gardens is a significant percentage more expensive and with a much smaller selection.

I had a pleasant visit to Berganza, which has some remarkable ancient and vintage colored-stone treasures, but on a direct comparison, their three-stone-with-ruby rings were significantly more expensive than very similar ones at Lang Antiques.

I did buy a handsome signet ring for what I thought was a reasonable price from the Antique Jewellery Company near Bond Street, but the transaction was by mail order and I never saw the store, which I believe is a booth in one of the antiques markets. http://www.antiquejewellerycompany.com/

 

[sparks1007]

Would you be interested in antique/second hand? The market in London for rings of that nature is much better than the new market I think. If so, I can recommend Alfie's Antiques Market near Paddington. It has 4 or 5 amazing antique stalls with lovely and very well priced items. Grays on New Bond Street is good too but prices are far higher.

 

[Sam84]

Thanks for all your replies so far!

Rob van Beurden from Diamond house: does he have anyone selling for him in London? Antwerp is a bit tricky to reach and I don't think it will get unnoticed by my gf

77diamonds: thanks for the tip. has anyone else got experience with them? 1800 GBP for the setting is a bit out of my league - I hope they also do less expensive customised settings?

vintage/antique: thanks for your suggestions, but I believe this isn't my gfs cup of tea.

 

[HoratioNelson]

Hatton Garden is great for window shopping but I rather struggled with shopping there.

The brick and mortar retail stores, like you say, will suggest a 15-20% discount before you have even begun to haggle. This just blows all credibility out the water before you've even started in my opinion.

One place I've had phone dealings with and a visit to look at some coloured melee is Durrants. They seem to be in a different league to the other shops/dealers I've been into, although I've never placed an order or looked at sizeable loose stones with them. I'd say they're worth a look in at least.

I dealt with a number of people who were recommended by friends of friends who operated not from shops but in tiny offices above the shops. This is where you should get much better value (mainly because you're not paying for shop overheads), but at the same time you might not get such great customer service, purely because these aren't shopkeepers but often wholesalers operating at very small margins. Accordingly, it's best to go to them only once you know pretty much exactly what you want (stone shape, carat size within 0.2ct either way, and colour within 1-3 grades).

I did pay 77 diamonds a visit and thought that they were very good - seemingly decent prices on certain stones from their virtual inventory and good customer service. The only thing I'd say is that if you want to get a stone in from their website which isn't in London, you simply have to buy it - they wouldn't get anything in on approval. Stones already in London you can view without buying (although they come up a 15-20% premium often, purely because they are in London). This isn't so much of a problem if you think you'll definitely get a stone from them, but there is a risk you could continuously order in a stone, return it, order in a new one, return that etc.

I ended up getting my stone from a small independent guy in Hatton Garden who primarily dealt with pearls, but was able to source diamonds through wholesalers. Although he didn't know so much about diamonds, I felt that (after shopping around for months/pricescoping), I was in a position to buy from someone who didn't know so much about the stones.

If I were doing things again, I'd be very tempted to use Good Old Gold, get them to make a video and have the stone/ring shipper over to London. Their ability to pick out high performance stones is something you simply won't get anywhere in Hatton Garden.

 

[Acinom]

I can also totally recommend Rob van Beurden in Antwerp! He is very skilled and trustworthy. As a matter of fact, I think he indeed works with someone in London. Unfortunately I forgother name, but if you contact Rob, you will find out. He probably can source the stones and then have them sent to his contactperson in the UK I would guess.

 

[Paul-Antwerp]

I believe Infinity Diamonds has a retailer that carries their line. That's where I'd start.

Thank you, Gypsy,

In order to update the PS-community, our dealer in London used to be Dr. Indira Marchant of DesignsByIndigo, who worked in collaboration with our Antwerp-dealer Rob van Beurden. Recently however, Indira retired, and the London-office continues, being managed from Antwerp for the moment.

Hope this info helps.

Live long,

 

[dk168]

Regarding settings, I recently lost one of the RB diamond side stones of my 3-stone ruby ring, and was considering having the remaining side stone and ruby re-modelled in platinum (the original ring was made 18k WG), for the two stones to be bezel-set and sit side by side on a plain court shank, nothing fancy.

I took my ring to a local jeweller near work that has its own goldsmiths and workshop on site to enquire about how much it would cost to replace the diamond and for re-modelling the remaining stones, and was informed having a new ring made in platinum would cost at least 2k GBP!!!

I opted for the diamond to be replaced instead, at a cost of 300 GBP for a 0.2ct stone G/H colour, and an extra 100 GBP to have the other side stone re-set and for the ring to be cleaned, polished and dipped.

Therefore, I do not believe 1.8k GBP for a modest/plain setting in platinum is unreasonable.

OP, how about involving your future wife and let her choose her diamond and ring setting by making a trip to Antwerp? It is a lovely city for a romantic city break in its own right.

DK

 

[Gypsy]

I believe Infinity Diamonds has a retailer that carries their line. That's where I'd start.

Thank you, Gypsy,

In order to update the PS-community, our dealer in London used to be Dr. Indira Marchant of DesignsByIndigo, who worked in collaboration with our Antwerp-dealer Rob van Beurden. Recently however, Indira retired, and the London-office continues, being managed from Antwerp for the moment.

Hope this info helps.

Live long,

Thanks Paul. In that case I'd take the weekend and make a trip to Antwerp.

 

[Strawberries1]

How did it go OP?
Look to buy engagement ring. We both live in London and shall visit Hatton Garden on Saturday then Birmingham JC next weekend.

 

[OoohShiny]

How did it go OP?
Look to buy engagement ring. We both live in London and shall visit Hatton Garden on Saturday then Birmingham JC next weekend.

As this thread is six years old, you might be best to start a new thread or search for more recent threads on UK vendors. I am sure there is a thread with a list of recommendations started recently.

 

[Austina]

@Strawberries1 Please educate yourself as much as possible before committing to buy anything, and do check out reviews of the places you’re going to visit.

If you do find stones you’re interested in, you can always pop in here with the info, and the guys who know their stuff, will be more than willing to advise.

Having done it myself, don’t be afraid to buy from overseas. Even with paying the VAT on importing it, I still found my ring was better and less expensive than buying here.

As @OoohShiny suggests, start your own thread for advice. M