Smart Jewelers Inc. — Local services in Highland Park

I am saddened that I have to write this, but I am still reeling from the way I was treated at Smart Jewelers today. Let me preface this by saying that I really liked this store. Beautiful jewelry, good service, and cute Guinea pigs that my daughter liked to visit. About a month ago I brought in a few initial pendants that I wanted attached to a chain and they did a nice job. Unfortunately, one of the pendants came detached from the chain and today I brought it back to Smart Jewelers to be repaired. The staff informed me that their jeweler had a family emergency and was out of town for 2 weeks. I admit I was frustrated - my brand new necklace was broken and I was annoyed that I would have to wait 2 weeks to have it fixed. That said, I am the least confrontational person in the world and I was prepared to wait the 2 weeks… that is until the owner Joel came out of nowhere and started berating me. Look, all of us Highland Parkers have been through a lot in the past few weeks, and Joel lashed out on me for no apparent reason. I was stunned - to tears - and as I was walking out of his store in shock he asked for my name so he could write a “citation” about me on Facebook. Let me add that I was there with my 2 week old newborn son and 5 year old daughter, and Joel felt completely comfortable berating me in front of my children. I left the store in tears and asked my husband to call the establishment to sort things out. Joel and staff proceeded to villainize me, even making up stories that I demanded the necklace be repaired same day (not true) and said that I asked to exchange the necklace for something else (also completely untrue). The reason for writing this review is not to hurt a small local business. My husband is a small business owner and I would never want to hurt a business like that. Instead, my reason for writing this review is to remind everyone to be a little kinder. We’re all stressed. Let’s think twice before lashing out on a customer. I am 2 weeks postpartum and am completely shocked at the way this business owner spoke to me, and that his female employee stood up for him and his actions. I suppose I should have been more understanding that their jeweler was out of town for 2 weeks. But the way this business owner lashed out on me was completely unacceptable. Let’s be nicer...

I'm genuinely not a person to give a company a one star rating since i'm a small business owner myself, but with all humility and truthfulness I never in my life experienced this level of unprofessional-ism from a salesman in my life.

I simply browsed on the Smart Jewelers website to design an engagement ring and sent an email inquiring about the warranty, return, and service policies (information that was not readily available on their website). I was responded to rather swiftly by a gentlemen name Joel to contact him via phone to discuss my question.

The next day I was called and Joel responded to me asking what questions did I have about the engagement ring set. I simply asked about the policies listed above and he responded in a condescending way "what do you need to know about the policies" " what warranty", "what are you asking for", "we don't have a return policy all sales are final".

Joel A. Kagan does not know the first thing about customer service. He was very brash and condescending and did not create an environment where the customer would want to spend a significant amount of money to represent one of the biggest decisions you will make in life. Additionally, this company has no warranty, return, or any policies regarding customer service. I say beware because this place feels like a bunch of con artist who dictate their way into a sale.

The only positive light about this company is the sweet receptionist who answered my...

My parents are repeat customers here (Two rings and a Rolex) from a while back. They stopped in to look at engagement rings on my behalf as I was unable to make it. After acknowledging their return as repeats in their records, Not even 15-20 min into the visit, Joel berated my parents and asked them to leave and not come back. Why? Because they were speaking in Urdu (their native tongue) to each other about different options for diamonds. The blatant prejudice displayed by Joel is disgusting. Mind you my parents English is completely fine , my father is a doctor and mother works full time. There is no language barrier for them ,and they have every right to speak to each other how they want. What a way to a treat a hopeful customer . Based on other reviews , it seems like others have had issues with Joel and his ignorance. Avoid this place if you want good...