Madison — Local services in London

We visited Hatton Gardens for the all important Engagement Ring shopping. Before the visit, we had occasionally looked in jeweler’s windows but had never been in or started the process properly.

We walked up and down Hatton Gardens with a good idea of what we wanted in terms of style but nothing more. Even though we were ready to buy, the thought of picking one of the many stores and going through the process was daunting. After a moments interest looking through a shop window somebody is out to meet you, this made us retract with the thought of opening up as to what is a very special moment.

After some lunch, we eventually made it up to Madison Diamond Rings, just over half way up Hatton Gardens and opposite the infamous spot where the Hatton Garden Heist occurred. Alan, the owner, was at the door as we window shopped. He was genuine, local and gave us the comfort to go into the store and start the process.

We explained the style we were after and admitted to knowing nothing further about diamonds. He took the time to explain the 4 C’s of diamonds and what in his opinion was the most important aspects to look for. He took our budget in mind and showed us a range of rings matching our style, explaining the prices between each depending on the 4 C’s.

After viewing a number of rings, we had decided which characteristics we wanted our stone to have. Alan had a number of stones in stock for us to view but mentioned he could source anything to our specification. All Alan’s diamonds are GIA certified, another part of the process that was explained to us, including showing us the unique tiny reference number that’s laser etched on to the diamond’s girdle.

Alan had a stone that was perfect for us. We chose the setting and band and arranged a convenient time for us to pick up the ring later that week. If shopping early in the morning, there’s potential to pick up the ring the same day as their workshop is close by. On collection, the ring was perfect and I paid the remaining balance. I received a receipt and the genuine GIA report that goes along with the diamond.

After a few weeks, we wanted the ring to be made half a size smaller. We visited Madisons, without an appointment, and dealt with another member of staff who was equally pleasant as Alan and the ring was adjusted within 4 hours for us.

We are writing this review one month after the purchase and we are both incredibly happy with the ring but also the level of service we received at Madison Diamond Rings. They went above and beyond to make us feel comfortable, explain the key points about diamonds and the provide a great level of customer service. We look forward to purchasing our wedding bands and more from them...

We do things a bit about face and didn't read reviews before we went to HG. If we did it would have saved us a lot of time and emotion, and would have gone straight to Madison.

There is a bewildering array of jewellers in Hatton Garden and to the untrained eye like mine, they jewellery on offer looks very nice, very glittery but very similar. How to know what was good, what wasn't and what was good value was a task in itself.

So we looked at a lot of shops and frankly, most were uninspiring, pushy and didn't give us any confidence that we would not only get the diamond ring we liked, but importantly get the diamond ring that was what it said on the label.

I went armed knowing that GIA Certificated was the start point - any other certification was a no - no. That ruled out a lot of stores.

We then found Madison, liked what we saw in the window, GIA Certified diamonds, and were invited in. We didn't really know specifically what we wanted, what our actual budget was, and a host of other questions. Alan showed us a number of diamond rings - not for price, but for style, so we could hone it down to the ring style we wanted. He explained all about the 4C's, cut, clarity, colour etc and the influence they have on the price. At no point did we feel under any pressure to buy, there was no inducement to buy a specific ring, just a nice relaxed hour. We were invited to take our new found knowledge and look elsewhere in Hatton Garden to make sure we got the ring we wanted if we wished.

We declined, agreed a budget based on what we now knew, and purchased a single diamond, which Madison would then mount to a platinum band. Alan and his team were as flawless as the best diamonds, the clarity of information was as excellent as the cut of the diamond we bought.

After paying the deposit, Alan took my wife's diamond wedding ring and said they would clean it to match the ring when we pick up in the agreed week.

When we came back in, the service from Alan, and this time Chris as well, was as immaculate as before. When they showed her the new ring the look on her face was perfection, and it was worth every penny just to see her face light up. Now the diamond was mounted, it looked even better.

I can't recommend Alan and his team highly enough. I'm so very very pleased we stumbled upon Madison. A deciding factor was that they have been HG for almost 30 years, so if you are not good at what you do, you'd soon be found out. Everything was perfect - can't say more than that. Date of...

I have mixed feelings about Madisons.

I bought my wedding bands here and remain happy with the rings.

However, I then asked for bespoke gold and diamond cufflinks to be made. I was again served by Michael, who was always extremely pleasant. With months to spare before the wedding, I was not initially concerned that the CAD drawings (for which I had paid a deposit) took a long time to be sent to me. However, when they did arrive, the drawings were nothing like the cufflinks I had described and sketched in the shop. Michael acknowledged this and further CAD drawings were requested. When these arrived, they were more in line with what we had discussed, but still differed in various significant respects. By this time, and due to the length of time taken to obtain CADs, we were only 3 weeks before the wedding. I asked for some changes to be made to the CADs to reflect our discussions, but was told that there would not now be time to carry out further changes before the wedding. Michael was hugely apologetic and agreed that my deposit for the CADs would be refunded. I was disappointed but accepted this and returned to the shop so that the money could be transferred back onto my card.

On arrival, Michael was absent but I was confronted by the manager who - in stark contrast - was rude and argumentative. He suggested I was to blame for the difficulties and complained that Madisons had paid money to a subcontractor for the CADs. Eventually, after some time, I managed to obtain the refund I had been promised on the phone.

Despite Michael's friendliness and excellent customer service, this experience has left me with a sour taste. I was left in the lurch 3 weeks before my wedding, did not get the cufflinks I had wanted, and the manager was dreadful and unpleasant.

I'm afraid I cannot recommend Madisons.

Thankfully I immediately visited another jeweller a short walk from Madisons who was able to help me, worked tirelessly and quickly and produced the cufflinks in time...