Roundup: I Will Never Shop At Bailey Banks & Biddle
| by Jim Wang |  Print Article
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My fiancee and I were walking around the mall a few nights ago, poking our heads into jewelry stores, and asking about wedding rings. We stopped at several jewelry stores (your standard mall jewelry stores like Jareds and Helzberg), asked a few questions, and everyone was very courteous. They took the time to take out the pieces for us to examine and try on, never gave the vibe that they were ready to close up shop or didn’t want to deal with us, and were being very professional. They were like this until we stepped foot into a Bailey Banks & Biddle. The place was absolutely empty except for three salespersons milling about. We walked up to a salesperson and started to ask about wedding bands and the guy all but brushed us off. We were curtly told that nothing in their store would match what we wanted and the salesperson was totally unwilling to show us anything.
It wasn’t like the place was packed with people and the salespersons were busy. It was empty and now I know why. I suppose a pair of young kids didn’t seem like a good commission to this guy or maybe he was having a bad day, either way it’s the last time I’ll be setting foot in a Bailey Banks & Biddle. Too bad, I probably have many years of jewelry buying left in me. 
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Jan 13, 2008 | Read more in Personal Finance
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I think it’s always interesting when you receive that kind of treatment because you are judged by the way you look on how much money you will/can spend.
I get this ALL the time. I look very young for my age, and happen to spend a lot of money entertaining for business. It’s amazing how quickly their attitude changes when they realize they were wrong in their judgments. I get a kick out of it.
Bluenile.com was started after the CEO experienced a similar jewelry store situation at Tiffany & Co. Stay away from mall jewelers- the mark up is the highest you will see in the jewelry industry. I highly recommend Blue Nile and Costco for jewelry. Costco doesn’t mark up their jewelry over 17%- you won’t find anything that low anywhere else. Blue Nile’s mark up is a bit higher than Costco’s, but they have a bigger selection and their mark up is signficantly less than mall jewelers.
I’d recommend checking a small, independent jeweler. All the chains simply have run-of-the-mill rings, nothing special, nothing individual. (Disclaimer: I’m married to a Jewelry designer, so I’m biased
Plus, many of the smaller stores will actually help you design your own wedding rings. Or, if you’re so inclined, there are even places that help you *make* your own rings.
I’ve experienced the same treatment at BB&B. Too bad for them, little do they know it’s those of us that dress in simple clothes and drive non-flashy cars that have more in our pockets than the average American.
I have had similar experience in a furniture store. I went in prepared to purchase a sofa and not a single sales person spoke to me! And the place was empty. At least they didn’t blow me off all together, but I think that it’s interesting because when I have gone in the same shop with my mother, they are all over us.
Guess I don’t look grown up enough or look like I have any money!
Noted. We are currently shopping too. We’ll just avoid that place completely. So far Jareds has been the most helpful to us. Even the independent shops were less helpful.
I know not everyone is comfortable doing this – but I bought my wife’s engagement ring at Amazon and after recving it had it appraised by an independent jeweler in town. It appraised for almost double what I paid for it at Amazon. I know there are other discount jewelers as well, so something to think about… If interested, I wrote about the purchase on my site…
I bought my wife’s ring at Jareds and would recommend them – pretty good price and good service.
BB&B use to be a good store in the 80s competing head on with Tiffany’s, but since then they’ve tanked. Most companies have learned that anyone could be a wealthy individual or an aspirational shopper, but some companies like BB&B have never and will never learn. Too bad for them.
I bought a beautiful engagement ring at BB&B, they were by far the most helpful. All the other places wanted me to fill out credit applications and was trying to get me to spend double or even triple the amount I had budgeted. The folks at BB&B answered all of my questions and showed me what I wanted to see, I think it’s just the salesperson that makes the experience good or bad, not the store as a whole.
I’ve been there before. I grew up shopping at Nordstroms but one time I went in with my fiancee instead of my mother and we got brushed off (only 21). However, the manager came down, recognized me, apologized and took care of us well.
On the other hand, I wouldn’t base a decision on buying a ring on customer serice. When you are dropping thousands on something, you want to make sure you get what you pay for. Definitely stay away from regular mall jewelery stores unless you know your diamonds very well. I recommend Shane Co. However, BB and B is known for their high-end jewelery and quality (especially if your looking for designers such as Tacori). My fiance went to BB and B (it’s the only store that sells Tacori in our area) and ended up buying a ring , 2 kt total, 1.5 center, that was appraised at 20 grand but he paid a little over 10. They couldn’t move the ring and it had been sitting for 3 years. It was an amazing deal; you can hardly find a loose diamond whole sale for that amount with the same c’s.
On another note, you can get wholesale jewelery that is amazing for what you pay. (My parents switched from Shane) However, most of the time you have to be a member and be invited in. And again, you have to know your information.