Are Custom Engagement Rings More Expensive?
Are custom engagement rings more expensive than ready-made? This is a common question and your instinct may tell you that custom should cost more – but in reality, they often cost the same or less.
Let’s go over some key differences between our custom process and mass-produced engagement rings:
Production
Big Box: Manufacturing of ‘big box’ engagement rings is often done on mass. This process allows them to produce rings quickly by creating generic settings for standardized ring designs. While this can bring the price down, steps that ensure premium quality are often skipped.
Us: When creating each custom engagement ring, we only make one ring at a time, ensuring no detail is lost with reproduction. Each ring is given care and attention at every step of the fabrication process. For example, each ring is cast in many pieces so every crevice can be cleaned and polished. We hand-drill every diamond setting and handcraft each prong under a microscope.
Diamond Selection
Big Box: If you’re purchasing an engagement ring at a store, the centre stone is often already set in the ring. This doesn’t give you the option to select your own stone. If you’re shopping online, often you’re trusting only a diamond certificate without seeing the stone in person. There is often an enormous difference from stone-to-stone; even between two diamonds with the same colour and clarity.
Us: We have a unique diamond curation process which we undergo for every client. Once we understand your vision, budget and preferences for shape, size, colour, clarity and cut, we examine about 50 diamonds/gemstones, selecting the top 2-3 for you to inspect in person or virtually through an in-depth diamond viewing. If your diamond viewing is virtual, we use HD video and on-hand scale videos to ensure you get to know your options intimately.
Service
Big Box: Walking into a jewelry store, you’re working with a sales associate who may have some base level knowledge about jewelry.
Us: Designing a custom engagement ring, you’re working with the lead designers/owners who have vast knowledge of gemology, design and hands-on experience with production.
All these factors may lead you to believe that custom engagement rings should be more expensive than ready-made – but in fact they are not.
Luxury retailers with large storefronts and staff have extensive overhead, which is reflected in the markups they put on their rings to in order to survive.
By choosing to keep our overhead low (our team is small and our relationships are strong), we can create a much higher quality engagement ring, which costs the same or less than the big box.
