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Overall Score:3.17 | | ||||
Price:2.5 | | Selection:3 | | Customer Service: 4 | |
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| Other Recommended Retailers |
Look at the sacrifices we make for our readers. We had to leave our comfortable, cold, windy, snowy, hailing home to visit Florida in April and deal with 80 degree, sunny days. It was brutal, but anything for you guys.
Bottom Line Recommendation
Dunkin’s Diamonds was not bad. I have had plenty of aweful experiences secret shopping and Dunkin’s was the opposite of that. The store and people were very nice and there was a decent selection of diamonds.
Unfortunately, the selection of diamonds was just a bit problematic and the prices seemed too high to me. I understand wanting to buy from a local jeweler. And if you go that route, you can definitely buy a nice diamond from Dunkin’s Diamonds. I just felt that they were not offering enough for your money.
You are better off getting a diamond engagement ring from a reputable online retailer like James Allen or Blue Nile.
The History
Dunkin’s Diamonds history is all about the man. The Diamond Man as he is known. Stuart Dunkin started a jewelry company 60 years ago in Ohio which he successfully sold. Apparently he wasn’t finished with the industry, opening another chain. It has now extended to ten locations in Ohio (around Columbus) and Florida (scattered around the Fort Myers region).
The Experience
Annie and I made the difficult decision to secret shop Dunkin’s at one of their Florida locations. We packed our summer gear and headed over to the Fort Myers area. Dunkin’s Diamonds had a few locations in the area. We chose the location in the Gulf Coast Town Center.
Just heading into the store was a pleasant experience. It was a very nice location for a jewelry store and felt appropriate for a luxurious purchase. The store itself had the ambiance of a classic jewelry store. Well appointed, simple with the focus being on the display cases.
We made our way to the diamond and engagement ring section and started to browse. A salesperson promptly offered their assistance and was quite friendly and welcoming.
Interestingly enough, the showcases focused more on non-round diamonds. This may be because they had a large Hearts on Fire section which I was trying to ignore (we’ve already secret shopped those several times and were unimpressed, so I didn’t see the need to focus on those here).
Why you should trust us
To help you with the diamond buying process we lean on our expertise and experience. The author of this article, our CEO, Mike Fried has over 20 years of experience in the diamond industry. Mike started from the bottom, sorting and evaluating hundreds of thousands of diamonds to learn every facet (pun intended) of diamond quality and value. Mike followed that up by spending years buying and selling diamonds on the wholesale market as well as selling tens of millions of dollars worth of diamonds to diamond retailers.
The Product
The first diamond we looked at was a round solitaire. This came with something I’ve never seen before. It was a ring appraisal from AGS laboratories. We like AGS as a lab, but we’d recommend going with a full diamond report so you can see the technical specs of the diamond.
The appraisal card said the diamond was approximately (they don’t have exact specs for any of these qualities) 0.97ct, F-G, I1 quality. I would say that the grades were fairly accurate. It was a very white looking diamond. The diamond appeared clear but was incredibly cloudy (in my opinion) which sapped the brilliance from the diamond. The diamond was mounted in a 14kt white gold solitaire and the price was $4,499.
The second diamond we looked at was a loose princess cut. It was a GIA certified 0.74ct H color, VVS2 clarity diamond that was superbly cut. The diamond was stunning and the cost was $4,299.
Deal Alert: Get 25% off engagement ring settings at Blue Nile! (valid until May 6th)
Both diamonds we saw were nice. The first diamond was too cloudy for my taste and I wouldn’t recommend the diamond to a reader of ours, but its a nice diamond for someone looking for a really good value. The second diamond was absolutely stunning, albeit with a stunning price tag as well. So lets see how they stack up with the competition.
The Value
We will compare the first Dunkin’s selection (the 0.97ct FG I1 in a 14kt solitaire) to this 1.00ct F color, I1 clarity diamond from James Allen. I would not recommend this diamond to my readers, but I wouldn’t recommend the diamond from Dunkin’s either. The price for the diamond is $3,070. If you pair it with this solitaire setting, the total price is $3,250. That would give you a virtually identical (if not better) diamond ring for roughly 30% less than what you would pay at Dunkin’s.
Since the second diamond from Dunkin’s (0.74ct H VVS2 princess cut) was so nice, we’ll compare it to a diamond from Blue Nile’s Astor collection. Here is a 0.71ct H VVS2 princess cut. It is absolutely stunning as well, for a cost of $2,579. That is a whopping 40% savings off of the diamond from Dunkin’s.
So while the location was nice, the service great, and the selection not bad, overall it’s hard to justify the value. The best jewelry stores online offer tremendous selections and provide fantastic value.
What we love about them:
- No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. James Allen will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
- Lifetime Warranty
- Free International Shipping
- Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
- Provide insurance appraisals
- One free resizing within 60 days of purchase
- Free ring inscriptions
- Best-in-class high quality imagery of all diamonds in stock
- 24/7 Customer Service
- Best-in-class packaging
What we love about them:
- No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. Blue Nile will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
- Lifetime Warranty
- Free Shipping
- Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
- Provide insurance appraisal
- One free resizing within the first year of purchase
- High quality images of about half of their diamonds
- 24/7 Customer Service
- 100% credit towards future upgrades (must be at least double in value)
- Best in class fulfillment
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