Whiteflash, very slow response time

[titans]

On this site, I have seen a lot of praises of whiteflash. So far they have been very helpful and have found me a very nice diamond.

Last tuesday I gave them my credit card number and they said they will order the diamond I was looking out and further inspect it. I was told that the dimaond should be at their location the next day. Three days later on friday I still hadnt heard anything, and I called and they said it will be here monday. Now its over a week since they where supposed to have ordered it and I still havent heard back from them.

Has anyone else had an issue like this before. It is starting to make me a little nervous buying a diamond and setting from a company that has such a slow response time. I was told it will take 14 days for the ring to be completed and sent out after payment, now I am starting to think if I do go with them, that it might take forever for me to actually get my ring.

 

[blastdoor]

it could be due to the valentine''s day rush... i am currently working with another ps vendor on a pendant + chain and its the same.. so it might not just be whiteflash...

i also worked with whiteflash before and the ring i wanted was on back-order at the jeweler and i was told it would only be ready in 3 weeks... but ended up it was ready within the week and i got it 4 days after that... in total less than 2 weeks from the time i ordered it...

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 2/11/2009 9:05:23 AM
Author: blastdoor
it could be due to the valentine''s day rush... i am currently working with another ps vendor on a pendant + chain and its the same.. so it might not just be whiteflash...

i also worked with whiteflash before and the ring i wanted was on back-order at the jeweler and i was told it would only be ready in 3 weeks... but ended up it was ready within the week and i got it 4 days after that... in total less than 2 weeks from the time i ordered it...

Ditto Blast.

I would telephone them and explain your concern that this is taking longer than you were originally advised and that you are concerned as to your timeframe. They are a good company and will do everything they can to help you.

 

[titans]

Thanks for the advice,
maybe I will do that, the funny thing is, is that I am not really in a rush. I just want to have my decision made and not have to worry about looking at diamonds and rings anymore.

 

[neatfreak]

titans, it sounds like WF is ordering in a virtual stone for you correct? So the delay isn't really on their end if that is what is happening...it's with the virtual diamond vendor. WF will make sure you get your ring as soon as they can, but sometimes things are out of their control when working with other vendors.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 2/11/2009 9:15:59 AM
Author: titans
Thanks for the advice,
maybe I will do that, the funny thing is, is that I am not really in a rush. I just want to have my decision made and not have to worry about looking at diamonds and rings anymore.

Just give them a call, they will want to hear of your concerns and be willing to accomodate you! If an outside party is involved they might be able to chase things up a bit.

 

[Allison D.]

Date: 2/11/2009 9:17:10 AM
Author: neatfreak
titans, it sounds like WF is ordering in a virtual stone for you correct? So the delay isn''t really on their end if that is what is happening...it''s with the virtual diamond vendor. WF will make sure you get your ring as soon as they can, but sometimes things are out of their control when working with other vendors.

Titans, Neatfreak is precisely right. When we call a vendor to order a stone that appears in virtual inventory, we are really at their mercy to get the stone shipped.

For example, if the stone had been out on memo to another retailer, the vendor has to call it back in and wait for it to arrive from the other retailer before they can turn it around to us.

I''m glad to hear you aren''t in a hurry, but please be assured that we are as anxious to get your order out to you as you are.

 

[titans]

Thanks Allison,
since you work for customer relations, let me ask you a question.

I was told I have 10 days to return the setting if for some reason I dont like it. I actually wanted to give it to my girlfriend and see what she thought, if she wanted any changes made. The only problem is, is that I might not propose within the first ten days of having the ring. So what would be the best approach for me to take?

 

[puffs_mom]

I am considering purchasing a diamond through WhiteFlash, are they reliable and can be trusted??

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 2/11/2009 10:11:40 AM
Author: puffs_mom
I am considering purchasing a diamond through WhiteFlash, are they reliable and can be trusted??

Yes, do a search for them.

 

[ron_c]

Date: 2/11/2009 10:11:40 AM
Author: puffs_mom
I am considering purchasing a diamond through WhiteFlash, are they reliable and can be trusted??

I am currently in the process of purchasing a 1ct princess ring from them and have nothing but good things to say about them! I would recommend them to anyone!

Ron

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 2/11/2009 10:11:40 AM
Author: puffs_mom
I am considering purchasing a diamond through WhiteFlash, are they reliable and can be trusted??

Yes absolutely, they have an excellent rep here which they work very hard to keep.

 

[shelleydog]

I am presently working with Jamie at Whiteflash on a ring and the response as been incredible. Her professionalism and warmth have been great and her response time has been better than expected. I highly recommend them.

 

[Allison D.]

Titans, I''m sorry for the delay in replying to your question.

You asked about potential to return the setting. Standard settings can be returned within the 10-day window; custom settings are non-refundable.

In either case, I think the best way to set your mind at ease and keep you whole economically is to have us set the diamond into a temporary setting for you to propose with. Once you''ve done that, you can both work out what you''d like for a setting.

If you pick a stock setting, you''ll have 10 days to decide if it''s the one for you.

I''d strongly discourage getting into any customization if there''s a chance she may want something else. In most cases, changing a custom setting means starting from scratch, and it''s not the best choice economically.

I hope this helps, but let me know if you need anything more.

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 2/12/2009 10:37:09 AM
Author: Allison D.

If you pick a stock setting, you''ll have 10 days to decide if it''s the one for you.

Allison, I was going to say this seems rather regressive, with your rings as against your diamonds...but then I went to see your website, and see that remains unchanged.

Within the last couple of months, it was announced here you''ve be going to a 30 day return policy.

What''s the deal?

 

[Todd Gray]

It sounds like they''re bringing a diamond in for you to evaluate it... This is a process that can be quite stressful for a vendor and delays are often out of our / their control. Just this week we tried to source a cushion cut for a client, the cutter indicated that the diamond was out on memo with a jewelry store when we first inquired about it. The next day the diamond was on the way back to the cutter and was noted to be made available to us. Then the store didn''t ship the diamond back as promised. Then they did. But the diamond didn''t arrive, so we called to inquire as to the status and were told that the diamond "was never available" and that they thought we had been asking about another diamond despite the fact that we''d been discussing the diamond by inventory number, shape, carat weight, etc. Then the diamond wasn''t available, and they further stated that they don''t want it sold online. No kidding. All the while our unfortunate client is calling to inquire as to whether we''ve received the diamond and what we think of it. I haven''t looked, but maybe the moon is full.

By the way, these are the emotions that Wink experienced while he was on the phone with the cutter yesterday trying to get an answer:

and that was all in like 15 minutes!

Hopefully this actual scenario from this week provides a little insight into how smooth the days of a diamond vendor can be. This is why it''s so nice to work with diamonds that are already in-stock and evaluated, the vendor already knows whether they like the diamond or not (and would have returned it the cutter if they didn''t) and can ship the diamond immediately. Anytime a diamond is being sourced for evaluation, any time table stated is likely to be pure optimism based upon expectations of what is supposed to occur on the cutter side of the equation.

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 2/12/2009 12:56:30 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 2/12/2009 10:37:09 AM
Author: Allison D.

If you pick a stock setting, you''ll have 10 days to decide if it''s the one for you.

Allison, I was going to say this seems rather regressive, with your rings as against your diamonds...but then I went to see your website, and see that remains unchanged.

Within the last couple of months, it was announced here you''ve be going to a 30 day return policy.

What''s the deal?

bump

 

[Allison D.]

Ira, thanks for the bump. I''m not ignoring you; after I posted yesterday, I spent the balance of my day travelling and didn''t get back here at all.

I''m about to get a taxi, so I can''t elaborate now, but I''ll come back to this for you either later today or during the weekend.

 

[joe smoe]

I too have worked with Jaime at Whiteflash and was extremely pleased with her response time. I will definately do business with them in the future.