How long does it take, really?

DrGrip · Apr 27, 2009

I found a James Avery silver ring and the pattern looks to have been retired. I sent them a nice e-mail with a picture of the ring asking when it was first made and when it was retired.

The reply I got back was that they want to charge me for the "research labor"!

I doubt I'll pay them for the "research" and I definitely WON'T buy their product now, i'll just find it in the sand and toss it in the treasure box. C'mon, how long could it really take?

Here's the e-mail reply I received.

Thank you for contacting us for information and identification of your jewelry. Due to the high volume of requests from customers to identify discontinued designs, and the labor to research this information in our archives, it has become necessary to charge a research fee for this service. Our fee to research discontinued James Avery jewelry is $12.00 per item, plus any applicable tax, and includes the following:

Name of Item
Meaning or symbolism when applicable
Designer
Year Released
Last Current Price with Date

If you are interested in submitting your request for research and authentication, please email us photo copies of the item(s) with a front and back view that includes our trademark logo. Upon receipt of the photos we will advise you if we are able to identify, and get your approval to proceed with your request.

Sincerely,

Maria Jefferson

Customer Service

Great customer service IMO!!!

Grip

baylorhall · Apr 27, 2009

That is ridiculous! If it isn't on their website, you might do a search on eBay and see if you can find it there. Let you wife enjoy it.

Dirty WhiteBoy · Apr 27, 2009

Now that is some good ole fashioned customer service.................. :tard:

There are very few companies that give good competant customer service anymore! :'(

I must say, when I called into Whites the other day that I got an actual voice ( human being ) on the phone who personally helped me solve a problem without being transferred and put on hold. Nor did I have to speak to 3 different people! I will stick with Whites like glue as long as they keep this great long lost customer service up! :thumbsup:

savant365 · Apr 27, 2009

LOL, where is our pic

Someone here will probably tell you in no time...

bazinga · Apr 27, 2009

I would imagine that 99% of the company's employees know nothing about previous designs. They would have to go and research them. Why should a company, in a very poor economy, hire several extra employees for the sheer sake of helping you ID a pattern that they no longer make?

The whole world is at your fingertips... Research it yourself.

Montana Jim · Apr 27, 2009

Twelve bucks seems pretty reasonable to me.

DrGrip · Apr 27, 2009

bscofield6 said:
I would imagine that 99% of the company's employees know nothing about previous designs. They would have to go and research them. Why should a company, in a very poor economy, hire several extra employees for the sheer sake of helping you ID a pattern that they no longer make?

The whole world is at your fingertips... Research it yourself.

Alas, I'm not one of the lazy factoid that sits back and asks others to do my pittance for me... I did in fact look, and even went to the JA web site and went out to Epay too!

JA had nothing to offer, and Ebay ideas were all over the board.

JA is NOT so large as to need to charge for this IMO...

Grip

DrGrip · Apr 27, 2009

Montana Jim said:
Twelve bucks seems pretty reasonable to me.

For a $300.00+ piece of jewelry, sure, for a $30.00 sterling ring, not so much.

I have e-mailed Zale's in the past and asked about their name line of jewelry and gotten a very nice response with MORE info than I asked for and it cost nada (wife wears that one too). James Avery has NOT made enough unique sterling jewelry to warrant this reply.

Again, all of this is my opinion, others may vary... The wife loves the ring on her pinky...

Grip

Montana Jim · Apr 27, 2009

DrGrip said:
Montana Jim said:

Twelve bucks seems pretty reasonable to me.

Click to expand...

For a $300.00+ piece of jewelry, sure, for a $30.00 sterling ring, not so much.

I have e-mailed Zale's in the past and asked about their name line of jewelry and gotten a very nice response with MORE info than I asked for and it cost nada (wife wears that one too). James Avery has NOT made enough unique sterling jewelry to warrant this reply.

Again, all of this is my opinion, others may vary... The wife loves the ring on her pinky...

Grip

Fair enough.

godisnum1 · Apr 27, 2009

Not to defend the company... but James Avery is a relatively small company, considerably so compared to marketing giants such as Zales.
Not sure why someone would need to charge for something like that, but I guess they feel the money is worth their time.
Time is money (in most cases) after all... especially in this economy.

Bran <><

bellapoison · Apr 27, 2009

I seem to remember this "dogwood" pattern from my high school days (mid '90s). James Avery is a Christian company, and the dogwood is a symbol of the crucifixion. (http://www.wyrdology.com/festivals/easter/dogwood.html)

Keep an eye on this identical 14K one: http://cgi.ebay.com/RETIRED-JAMES-A...yZ110447QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

A sterling silver one sold on eBay for $32 with 6 bids. The dogwood pendants have closed at a little more (probably because they have a broader appeal since they aren't a specific size) at $50-$60. There is a JA silver dogwood ring (looks heavier than yours) at an asking price of $139, but that seems high to me, in light of completed auctions. That said, ya never know.

Current JA silver rings of similar size sell for $40-$80.

Hope that helps.

woody_g · Apr 28, 2009

Garrett metal detectors is one texas company that goes the extra mile.i have never dealt with a company that has such great service with any company.

Daddio53 · Apr 28, 2009

It's not really that ridiculous nor is it wrong. I retired from the Post Office. I don't think people can imagine how long it takes to look things up like when did so and so move or where did they move to. Do you know what it takes to find something like that out? Do you realize that you are taking labor from one place and expecting them to put it at your disposal? If an employee makes $20 an hour then you realize that the 15 minutes you expect them to take costs them $5 of lost labor. What if a thousand people a month expect the same thing? What company has $5,000 to throw away in this economy? When you look at things in this light I hope you can understand why they don't drop everything because you ask them to.

BIG61AL · Apr 28, 2009

In this economy you would think they would help you out within reason and send you a brochure to entice a sale. Can any company afford to let slip away a potential sale? you should write and remind them that you did not care for their customer service and will remember where NOT to shop for jewelry.