How much of a markup do diamond shops make?

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - How much of a markup do diamond shops make? (Page 1 of 2)

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:32:17 PM EDT

So I'm watching Fox and a commercial comes on for Halzberg saying they'll give you a $250 Xbox if you spend 1k. For them to break even they would have to have 750 in the diamond/whatever, but of course they will make a profit so they must have less than that in it (more like $500 or less).

So do they really mark things up 100%?

Are Blue Nile and the like the same?

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:33:36 PM EDT

[#1]

Quoted:
So I'm watching Fox and a commercial comes on for Halzberg saying they'll give you a $250 Xbox if you spend 1k. For them to break even they would have to have 750 in the diamond/whatever, but of course they will make a profit so they must have less than that in it (more like $500 or less).

So do they really mark things up 100%?

Are blue nile and the like the same?

View Quote

Diamonds are probably marked up way more than 100%.

Thank God my wife see's through the diamond and gold bullshit. I wear more jewelry than her.

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:36:00 PM EDT

[#2]

At the time we were getting married, my uncle worked as a manager at Jared. He decided to give us the wedding band we had picked out at his cost as a wedding gift.

We gave him about $350 for a ring marked $1100.

ETA: we got it Nov. last year.

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:37:04 PM EDT

[#3]

Over 100%.

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:39:05 PM EDT

[#4]

~400%

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:40:22 PM EDT

[#5]

1000%

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:42:15 PM EDT

[#6]

Check out this place. My (now ex) wife bought a lot of jewelry from here over the years, and it has held up very well. she never wanted to waste money on diamonds, considering the bullshit that the diamond market is.
https://www.diamondnexus.com/

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:43:40 PM EDT

[#7]

300-400%

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:45:08 PM EDT

[#8]

Jewelry and furniture are both 300-400% markup.

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:46:04 PM EDT

[#9]

I had an associate who was a jeweler before he joined the firm I was with. He called it double and triple keystone.

So if you buy a $1000 diamond you are going to sell it at Around 4-5k

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:48:06 PM EDT

[#10]

Keystone is not a large markup.

Many products are marked up much more.

Furniture is usually 3-4 times cost.

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:48:51 PM EDT

[#11]

Diamonds are a rip-off, only buy if you have money to burn.

Posted: 12/10/2016 12:49:38 PM EDT

[#12]

To a jeweler the majority of the cost is in the metal in the ring band, not the diamond. Unless it is of an unusual size, shape, exceptional quality, or cut.

Most colored diamonds are considered flawed and are worth less than actual clear diamonds. They market them in a great way to get them to sell. See "Chocolate diamonds!" and bullshit of the like.

The set I got my wife set me back $8500 for our wedding. It appraised from the insurance at $12k so there is that. When I asked my friend who works for a jeweler what at cost pricing for it was he said right around $3500, and most of that was the platinum in the bands.

Posted: 12/10/2016 1:13:43 PM EDT

[#13]

I bought my wife's ring at COSTCO.

It was a GREAT deal compared to the mall jewelry stores.

AND BONUS -- If I ever eject, I can return the ring to COSTCO

Posted: 12/10/2016 1:14:38 PM EDT

[#14]

As much as you let them.

Posted: 12/10/2016 1:51:25 PM EDT

[#15]

Too much,, it'd just transparent carbon

Posted: 12/10/2016 1:56:08 PM EDT

[#16]

When I was married to my first wife many years ago, her Dad owned several Jewelry stores and his average mark up on jewelry was 600%

There is a lot of markup in the jewelry business, which is why you see 50%-75% off sales all the time after Christmas.

Last year for Christmas, I wanted to buy a new diamond for my current wife's wedding ring beings it would be our 30 year anniversary, I gave her a picture of her ring with a new 1 carat diamond in it and actually picked the diamond up after Christmas, before Christmas they wanted $8500 for the stone and it was appraised at $12K after Christmas, I paid $2500 for it.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:08:36 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:
Check out this place. My (now ex) wife bought a lot of jewelry from here over the years, and it has held up very well. she never wanted to waste money on diamonds, considering the bullshit that the diamond market is.
https://www.diamondnexus.com/

View Quote

Those are just glorified CZs. Any of you guys that think real diamonds are marked up 100% are delusional. Some finished jewelry IS marked up 100-300% but, loose diamonds are generally marked up ~30-40%. That's at brick and mortar stores. Blue Nile and other online dealers are running at less than 10% mark up. They work on volume. That's why the can beat regular jewelry store prices.

To the OP, Helzberg is banking on you spending more the $1,000. They try up-sell you hard.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:15:16 PM EDT

[#18]

Quote History

Quoted:
~400%

View Quote

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:17:18 PM EDT

[#19]

The industry benchmark is around 870%

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:19:56 PM EDT

[#20]

diamonds are for suckers

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:24:54 PM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:
So I'm watching Fox and a commercial comes on for Halzberg saying they'll give you a $250 Xbox if you spend 1k. For them to break even they would have to have 750 in the diamond/whatever, but of course they will make a profit so they must have less than that in it (more like $500 or less).

So do they really mark things up 100%?

Are Blue Nile and the like the same?

View Quote

Diamonds aren't rare. De beers now broken monopoly and clever marketing drove demand. If every distributor released their stock, diamonds would be worthless.

Rubies, sapphires and emeralds are far more rare.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:27:32 PM EDT

[#22]

What ever happened to the man made diamonds, did they never take off or did the Antwerp Cartel buy up all the machinery and kill the inventors???

I was really looking forward to my diamond coffee table.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:31:46 PM EDT

[#23]

I can only find used diamond 4x4s with 100,000 miles for $20k. A new base model diamond 4x4 costs $50k. What should I do?

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:33:57 PM EDT

[#24]

I bought my wifes solitaire engagement ring wholesale from a friend for $5700 and im sure he made money on it too. While out "shopping" we went into Jareds... The same size and quality ring in there was $25,000

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:34:03 PM EDT

[#25]

Quote History

Quoted:
Keystone is not a large markup.

Many products are marked up much more.

Furniture is usually 3-4 times cost.

View Quote

Yep, typical retail markup is 3-5 times cost with exceptions above and below that.
what kind of exceptions? Certain brand name items often charge more, while high volume items, such as groceries are often below.

Think of it this way, either you sell a lot for a little, or a little for a lot.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:35:48 PM EDT

[#26]

At least 300%

More depending on the store. When I was looking for engagement rings, I found one I really liked at one store and after looking around found it at 50% of the price at another store, and finally found it for about 30% of the first one at a local store (with better stones in it!). Strange thing is they were all the same ring from the same supplier.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:36:19 PM EDT

[#27]

My mother was a buyer for a department store for many years, if they bought a shirt for $10 they sold it for $20. Out of that hundred percent markup came the mortgage, the taxes, the salaries, utilities, and everything else that goes into running a brick-and-mortar business. Why would diamonds be any less?

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:43:36 PM EDT

[#28]

Omega Astronaut Watch quite awhile back...retail between $2000 and $3000. Friend who worked for Zales got the district VP price for us.....under $1000.

Diamonds over 100%

Local guy was showing us a $100K diamond, 3 carats. High ratings on clarity and color. Still, 3 carats....not very big...

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:46:48 PM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:
So I'm watching Fox and a commercial comes on for Halzberg saying they'll give you a $250 Xbox if you spend 1k. For them to break even they would have to have 750 in the diamond/whatever, but of course they will make a profit so they must have less than that in it (more like $500 or less).

So do they really mark things up 100%?

Are Blue Nile and the like the same?

View Quote

a local "big shop" right now is doing a "we'll match your gift card" (you pay 1k and get 2k of gift card), i have also seen the xbox commercial and rewinded it to show my wife.

neither of us wear jewerly.

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:56:16 PM EDT

[#30]

Quote History

Quoted:
I bought my wife's ring at COSTCO.

It was a GREAT deal compared to the mall jewelry stores.

AND BONUS -- If I ever eject, I can return the ring to COSTCO

View Quote

What did you do with the other 5 from the Costco diamond bulk pack?

Posted: 12/10/2016 2:56:52 PM EDT

[#31]

I lost my wedding ring, went to Jared to look at another tungsten carbide ring. They had one that I liked for $350. I left and went out to eat with my wife, during dinner I thought I would look on Amazon for the hell of it. Same exact ring on Amazon was $9.99 shipped.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:04:56 PM EDT

[#32]

Buddy of mine had a story:

He was talking to a jewlery store owner and asked him what his mark-up was. The owner replied that they loved thier customers so much they gave them zero (0) markup. My friend replied, "zero percent markup?" The owner replied, "No, zero markup, whatever we pay we juat add a zero to the end of the price."

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:05:20 PM EDT

[#33]

Buddy of mine had an engagement ring made in South Africa.

Brought it back and got it valued for insurance - about 4x what he just paid for it.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:18:47 PM EDT

[#34]

Quote History

Quoted:
I bought my wife's ring at COSTCO.

It was a GREAT deal compared to the mall jewelry stores.

AND BONUS -- If I ever eject, I can return the ring to COSTCO

View Quote

Smart man. You bought from one of the largest diamond dealers in the country.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:19:47 PM EDT

[#35]

Quote History

Quoted:
300-400%

View Quote

Yep at 400%
Buy low in Antwerp and filter up to Retail.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:22:26 PM EDT

[#36]

Quote History

Quoted:
300-400%

View Quote

This. It's called triple keystone.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:28:20 PM EDT

[#37]

Quote History

Quoted:
Buddy of mine had a story:

He was talking to a jewlery store owner and asked him what his mark-up was. The owner replied that they loved thier customers so much they gave them zero (0) markup. My friend replied, "zero percent markup?" The owner replied, "No, zero markup, whatever we pay we juat add a zero to the end of the price."

View Quote

At least he was honest

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:29:45 PM EDT

[#38]

Quote History

Quoted:
Jewelry and furniture are both 300-400% markup.

View Quote

I worked in a furniture warehouse of a chain called Scandinavian Design back in the 80's (they went bankrupt and shut their doors in the early 90's). They sold high quality Scandinavian furniture.

Their most popular sofa sold for $1100. I'd unload tractor-trailers full of them and handled the invoices. They paid $17 for each sofa.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:31:57 PM EDT

[#39]

I watched a four hour documentary on the diamond industry about 15 years ago. From start to finish, by the time you pay retail there's a 3000% markup from the actual cost to get the diamond out of the ground to the store.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:32:44 PM EDT

[#40]

I love the marketing on the new chocolate diamonds, lol. Guess what the most common color of diamond pulled from the earth is? Brown.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:33:59 PM EDT

[#41]

Quote History

Quoted:

This. It's called triple keystone.

View Quote

This...

About 30-40 years ago when I was in college, a guy I worked with got arrested for small time pot distribution. His dad was a jewelry salesman at a hoitsy-toitsy jewelry shop in Utica Square in Tulsa.

His dad bailed him out and then took him back home to Tulsa so he could dry out (his real problem was alcohol...the pot was just how he financed his booze addiction) His dad asked him why he sold MJ if he wasn't a pot head and he told his dad it was because of the markup...

His dad cleaned him up, bought him a couple of suits, and got him a job in retail jewelry. The next time I saw him he was talking about selling dope at 25% markup (buy a quarter pound, sell 3 ounces and pocket the profit on the 4th oz) THEN he found out about jewelry with 300%-400% profit.

He fell off the wagon a little while later and drank himself to death, IIRC...but it was on good booze and not cheap swill.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:37:07 PM EDT

[#42]

I have held a $1 million diamond in my hand and several millions in smaller diamonds at diamond shops in Chi and NY.

I asked the guy what if i swallow it? he pointed to the locked door and said, "eh, we'll wait. Do you like pastrami?"

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:37:14 PM EDT

[#43]

Quote History

Quoted:
I love the marketing on the new chocolate diamonds, lol. Guess what the most common color of diamond pulled from the earth is? Brown.

View Quote

"That's not shit..that's 'chocolate'....

We would have used those for drill bits before they came up with 'chocolate diamonds'.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:40:14 PM EDT

[#44]

My family was in the business for decades. The markup at a retail shop is on the order of 1000%. There's allot of price fixing at work due to DeBeer's functional monopoly.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:47:47 PM EDT

[#45]

The markup is enough that the "big" retailers around here can put a commercial on every radio channel every 5 minutes and still make a profit.

I won't buy from them just on principle alone.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:50:42 PM EDT

[#46]

This is a good read

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:59:28 PM EDT

[#47]

Quote History

Quoted:
My family was in the business for decades. The markup at a retail shop is on the order of 1000%. There's allot of price fixing at work due to DeBeer's functional monopoly.

View Quote

Diamonds are not marked up 1000% or even 100% at dealers compared to wholesale unless they are totally scamming and selling low grade diamonds as high grade to misinformed buyers.

Posted: 12/10/2016 3:59:47 PM EDT

[#48]

Quote History

Quoted:

Those are just glorified CZs. Any of you guys that think real diamonds are marked up 100% are delusional. Some finished jewelry IS marked up 100-300% but, loose diamonds are generally marked up ~30-40%. That's at brick and mortar stores. Blue Nile and other online dealers are running at less than 10% mark up. They work on volume. That's why the can beat regular jewelry store prices.

To the OP, Helzberg is banking on you spending more the $1,000. They try up-sell you hard.

View Quote

How much do you tack on for GIA "certification"?