The Big Survey 2025: Selling

When a piece of jewelry reaches “dog” status, what’s your typical markdown?

How much of your inventory is over 1 year old?

Are your prices negotiable?

If you use the Geller Blue Book as a reference, do you set your repair prices …

What’s the wildest excuse you’ve heard for a product return?

A common theme was relationship problems, with cheating, breakups and divorces frequently cited as reasons for returning jewelry. Some customers blamed external factors like “bad energy” or divine punishment. And then there were those trying to return items long after purchase or for reasons clearly due to their own misuse. Here are some that stood out:

• My husband gave the same piece to his mistress, so I don’t want it.
• The customer is allergic to diamonds. (I wish this was a joke)
• I have worn this ring uninspected for 6 years and I keep losing stones. I want a refund.
• She died. (She didn’t.)
• You said I could return it anytime 4 years later.
• Had a customer tell me that they prayed on it, and fear that God will punish them by making them spend eternity in hell for being selfish.
• Ring containing an antique diamond: ‘I can feel the bad energy from the previous owner.’ My online girlfriend wasn’t real, can I return this engagement ring?
• Hoop earrings exploded in the jewelry box.
• It has bad mojo (gives her bad dreams so the diamond is cursed).
• Necklace didn’t fit her dog.
• It just jumped out of the box and broke in mid-air. It was never worn.
• My diamond, It just looks sad 🙁
• Returned rainbow bracelet: friends thought she was gay.

What have you done in the last few years to make the shopping experience more convenient/frictionless for your customers?

The most common enhancements involved the introduction of technology, but there was also an increased focus on good old personalized service:

• Increased the amount of sample selling systems we have in store. It makes custom a breeze and special orders way easier to sell.
• Added a drive-thru pickup window.
• Work outside of conventional hours, make house calls.
• Made our website a live link to our current inventory.
• Added substantially more greeters and frontline staff.
• Reserved paid parking in our secure underground heated/AC parking garage right next to the elevator to our store. .
• We streamlined our repair intake process, added text and email updates so customers never feel in the dark.
• Secure text-to-pay options.

Colored diamonds account for what percentage of your diamond sales?

What color diamond sells the best?

What’s the most inspired thing you’ve ever done to clinch a sale?

• I partnered with SpaceX and NASA to send a parcel of diamonds to space so my client can say, “My love for you is out of this world!”
• Built a silver pendant for free for the client’s daughter. It closed an $8,500 sale and will be a lasting relationship for their jewelry.
• Helped plan an international trip for the customer where the husband could sneak away to our supplier’s office for a very special diamond sale.
• My top salesman pulled a rubber chicken out of his pants and slammed it onto the diamond case. He had said, “If I pulled a chicken out of my pants, could you make a decision?”
• Not run the credit card of extremely drunk customer and then calling the next day (not morning!) to discuss what happened the night before. Customer very happy I didn’t run his card for the $60K. Happily spent half that.
• Partnered with a local high-end restaurant to have the watch brought out and unveiled by the server.
• Met someone in the middle of the night (the town was having a midnight run) behind a port-a-potty to deliver the engagement ring so she wouldn’t know. Small town life!
• Offered him a bottle of Don Julio 1942. Done deal.

What’s the most regrettable thing you’ve ever done to clinch a sale?

• Offered to do an earring conversion “at no extra cost”. No words can describe the pain.
• Modeled a ring by walking like the creep’s wife.
• Drove four hours to their art gallery with $450,000 in loose gemstones to just have them be indifferent.
• Allowed a customer to put an item they couldn’t afford on layaway.
• Charged too much.
• Talked too much.
• Not getting a deposit for a repair and then the customer took their item back after work was done but not finished.
• Lied to a customer about the color and clarity of a diamond.
• Gone out for coffee with a client’s son.
• Sell to a drunk person knowing they didn’t know what they were doing.
• Arranging a two-week gem trip to Brazil (many years ago) for 20 of my best clients. Imagine 20 ‘A’ type personalities with limited Third World experience. It was like herding a pack of cats! The predominant question was “Have you done a head count?”
• It was Christmas and I was not thinking, but I accident-on-purpose sold a care plan on a sterling silver chain that cost as much as the chain itself ($25). I had informed the customer that if the chain broke it would cost that much to repair it, so if it broke twice (as sterling silver chains are likely to), the care plan paid for itself. I’m still teased over that one.
• Gave in to a badgering customer.
• I don’t really regret it because it’s not my decision, but I think every time I sell a lab grown diamond a little piece of me dies.
• Agreed to be their sperm donor.

What is the calendar breakdown of your engagement ring sales?