Forever & Always

“If you are thinking of buying jewelry – start here. I was looking to give my wife a special ring to celebrate a milestone birthday, she had let me know what she liked for style, which helped, but I was not looking forward to the retail store experience. I was so lucky to have crossed paths with Justin.

I know very little about diamonds and other precious stones. I always assume I am paying too much for my purchase; who do you believe – the corporate mall stores or the flamboyant guys on TV who want to throw money at you for your gold. This is the first differentiation when dealing with Justin, you make an appointment and meet with him. Its like meeting with your financial advisor; it’s all about you. He listens to you, asks a few questions and instead of showing you display cases of rings and talking about special offers and lay-away plans he takes the time to educate you on diamonds and jewelry. No hard sell, just guidance that helps you make an informed decision. He tells you what makes a certain diamond the so expensive and why some people can offer a diamond that appears to be the same size for a bargain price.

Now that you have the knowledge the collaborative design approach starts, the second differentiation. You have a budget and a design. Justin is focused on meeting both objectives, in my case the first meeting confirmed the general style of the ring and the budget. At our second meeting he showed me diamonds that could be the center stone but each had a size, cut or clarity that came with different price. It was decision time but it was collaborative; Justin, ever mindful of the budget, made recommendations and I soon find myself confidently making the ‘right’ choice. Having selected the stones and the style I put down a deposit and waited for the conceptual design, it did not disappoint. The result was a totally custom ring based on a style I knew my wife would like and that I had designed (okay with some help, thanks Justin).