What is you opinion of Pricing Guides?

If you are dealing in commercial cut goods, a guide may help you a little more. But in the real world, experience, and price comparing is the only true way to price your stones.

I have looked at them through out the years that I have been in business and cutting stone. I really do not care for pricing guides.

I find that the stone market is too fluid for any of them published on a yearly basis to be accurate. As far as the pricing services (and guides too), I find that in general we are comparing apples to oranges.

By this I mean that our ideas of color and quality vary, and frankly a lot of them... well I am not sure how to say this, but are either unduly influenced by commercialism, or just are not that well informed about quality and color.

I am not trying to start a war, but I just do not agree with pricing guides on quite a few issues.

Treatments, disclosure of treatments, grading some stones different than others (Emeralds come to mind, flaws are flaws guys). I will not get on my soap box, but the only way there will be change on any of these issues, is if somebody points them out and says "Hey, guys this is not quite right..."

So no, I do not recommend pricing guides(or GIA's grading system).

I think looking and comparing gem stones is the best way to go... You should also look at your local jewelers by the way, you are liable to get a shock or two or three at the low quality you will usually see. It is always a good idea to know what quality (or lack of) and pricing is happening in your area.

Stones come in all, types of colors and shades, small differences can make a lot of money difference. The only way you will really know and learn is by actually looking.

For example, where does a pink Sapphire become a Ruby? There is a lot of money in the difference. Also this line of definition changes (in the trade at least) depending on the availability and the tastes of the seller and buyer. A guide can never tell you that. But if you are buying Rubies you had better know.

I usually cut stones that have no commercial comparison in cut, color, and design. There is no listing for the types of stones I cut in any of these commercial guides. I like to cut new and unusual things and they always sell well because there is no other competition. You need to know the going rates on the quality of the material, or more importantly if what you have is rare and unusual. If you do not look at the market and what is available. You will not know how to price your stones, and guides by their nature have to be a very general thing and are strictly commercial stones and cutting.

Guides are somebody's best guess, that is the bottom line. You do not know if the people doing the guessing are faceters themselves, how much experience do they have? How political are they? Are they being influenced by a powerful lobby?

For example in a trade union are they, trying to make everybody happy? Like making oiled stones as valuable as a natural non-oiled stones? How would you know? How hard are they looking and comparing prices? Where are they looking, in your area? What are their standards?

By this I mean... When the GIA calls a stone well cut, they are speaking from a commercial stone cut stand point (they are correct from their point of view, but not a faceters). What they call a good cut and what we/faceters call a well cut stone are completely different.

That is not in the guides. Some people want to only add a small percentage for the difference of the quality of cutting. Well I do not agree (are you surprised?), go compare your cutting to the average commercial cutting. Is there just a small difference? I do not think so.

There is no contest, people can and do see the difference and they will pay the difference. As the buying public gets more educated this trend of quality will increase. De Beer's is selling "ideal cut" diamonds (they are quite well cut by the way, at least the ones I have seen), this should give people a hint. There is a reason why a Porche costs more than a Voltswagon.

Bottom, bottom line, if you want to use a guide or pricing service, feel free. You will be much better off actually going out and looking and learning about what is out there. You will learn a lot more looking at gem stones being marketed than almost anything else you can do.

Ask questions, most dealers and cutters are friendly and will try to answer your questions. I do... It is good business and I just like talking rocks. Do not forget it is fun too.

Return to Just Ask Jeff Index