Lapidaryforum.net
Lapidary and Jewelry News => Shows, Auction Announcements, Estates => Topic started by: Helene Fielder on July 26, 2015, 03:19:29 PM
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Every year I visit my sister during the Franklin Gem Show. Very sweet because I get to do two things I love, sister and stones. Fun money is saved throughout the year for this show. My mindset is to purchase the right stone if spotted. Every booth is closely looked over for something new. Literally it is a treasure hunt of the best sort.
This post is about some sellers at this show. It must be the heat, but many are rude and dismissive. At one booth I asked the price of a slab, he quoted a ridiculous amount. My sister overheard him tell the man he was talking to, that I didn't know what I'm even looking at.
Sellers should act as excited about their product as the buyer. Don't dismiss us even if we are not as knowledgeable as they think we should be. Don't assume we won't purchase anything, and so what if we don't. We could the following year or the year after, even become life-long customers. By the way I knew what I was looking at and have a very good idea on stone pricing. I'm posting this topic because this bad customer service is not isolated, but prevalent.
The picture below is of a retired school teacher of 30 years. He was wonderful to talk to and loved his lapidary rough. He answered all questions with gusto and I had to come back a purchase from him.
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I'm sorry you have that kind of experience but at least there was one good guy in the group!
I found the gem shows around here to be the same type of experience- there is only one mineral that I learned I was wrong about (Laguna Lace)- the rest was looking at every vendor to find the ones with the most reasonable prices.
This coming year I want to go to the Q way early in the show- then the worth of the quality may be closer to the asking price.
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There is a Franklin mineral show in New Jersey also , a big zinc mining district there.
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Zinc is used often as a flux in glazes.
Sort of feel bad ragging this show, there were as many good experiences with vendors as bad. Heck, a few years when I first started purchasing rough one guy was selling dyed white Quartz as chrysoprase from Australia for $35 a pound. I told him it was not, but looked like chrysoprase from Tansania, which has a milky look to it. (It's the best way I can describe it). Of coarse he insists its from Austrailia. I buy it cause it looks good wherever it came from. After purchasing a few pounds I get this yucky feeling that I have made a huge mistake. Should have listened to that inner voice. When sawed in half it was solid white in the center. Wasn't as smart as I thought.
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This coming year I want to go to the Q way early in the show- then the worth of the quality may be closer to the asking price.
Count me in so long as I am not finally working again.
I've had a mixed bag of reactions shopping at shows. I had one lady back east at a show see me looking at beads and picking out strands and she came over and started pointing out pretty colors that complemented what I had and then told me to get as much as I wanted as she was giving me 50% off the listed price. Yeah I bought lots.
I also have been looking at cut stones before that were listed at prices that I'd expect if it were larimar or natural turquoise, but they were Montana Agate - and not even great quality Montana agate. I remember the man running the booth asked me if I would like to purchase this one stone I had looked over and put back down. I replied, "No thank you, I'm on a budget right now and I've almost spent it." He proceeded to tell me how it was high grade Montana and it was worth twice what he was asking for it. Still being polite I simply said, "Thank you, but not today." I walked away and I heard him utter something to the effect of "Cheap B*$#H." Needless to say I was not thrilled. This was back when I was working two jobs and my spare cash was typically exceedingly limited. I saw no way a Montana Agate cab would ever be worth $100 in a roughly 40mmx30mm size.
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Dang! That fellow and I could almost be twins except the hair on top of my head is a sparser but the beard is about the same unless my wife catches me sleeping and trims it short every once in awhile.