Costco is now selling Tiffany replica rings but at the Costco price and this is causing Tiffany to file a multimillion-dollar trademark suit against Costco.
A women on WeddingBee.com asked her blogger readers about what where their thoughts on jewelry from Costco, most women said that they would not mind a ring from Costco but they would not be entirely for it. Some of the responses included, that they only saw Costco as a grocery store and never thought about buying a ring from there, another response was that she had thought about buying a ring from Costco but was concerned when people would ask where she got the ring.
On a Good Morning America episode a Tiffany diamond and a Costco diamond where both appraised. The $16,600 Tiffany cut was 58% more expensive than its $10,500 value, and the $6,600 Costco ring was 17% under its evaluated value of $8,000. What allows Tiffany to have their prices $6,100 above the evaluated price is what the international recognized blue box means, Quality.
The dimensions of product quality that Tiffany offers are,
Conformance- When you buy an engagement ring at Tiffany’s you buy something that Tiffany has ultimately guaranteed that it will meet the specifications of your loved one.
Reliability/Durability- Since it is a prestiges company that has spent many years building, you are assured with all the paper work that the ring you buy will have a useful life and a consistency of performance through out it.
Service- Once a ring is purchased, it can be returned for cleaning or resizing at any time.
Response- The jewelers have face to face interactions with their customers about the different kind of cuts and qualities of diamonds so they choose the best diamond for them.
Aesthetics- Every piece of Tiffany’s is a renowned design and over the years there have been a select number of designers to create exclusive pieces just for Tiffany.
Reputation- Tiffany has spent years building a reputation for themselves, with the help of many stars and the classy Audrey Hepburn endorsement raises not only the price of its jewelry but the reputation of the little blue box.
My parents own a jewelry store and I notice how peoples meaning of quality differ all the time. The one difference I constantly get from customers is the preference from 10kt and 14kt. Many people have had problems in the past with 10kt or have heard stories that created a bad reputation for 10kt. Although I explain to the customers how gold has changed and how 10kt is now a better quality the reputation and the durability of the past remains.
Is $6,000 more worth getting a lifetime of sizing and cleaning?
Or
Is the name Tiffany worth $6,000 more?
Also
If you found a similar ring to Tiffany’s at Costco with the same quality diamonds, would you still purchase the above evaluated Tiffany ring?
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-05-06/tiffany-vs-dot-costco-which-diamond-ring-is-better
http://www.tiffany.com/About/TheTiffanyStory/default.aspx#p+1-n+6-cg+-c+-s+-r+-t+-ri+-ni+1-x+-pu+-f+/0