Bromberg & Company, Inc. — Local services in Mountain Brook

This institution is wildly overpriced and not worth your time of day. They insist they have high standards for the diamonds they select, but they do not. Lastly, I believe they profiled my Latino boyfriend during our shopping experience.

To give some context, I sold high end jewelry for several years and helped with buying pieces for my store, custom designs for my clients, and sold many different watches and jewelry pieces from my store. I have a strong knowledge of diamonds and jewelry. I shopped at Bromberg in two capacities - both looking for an engagement ring as well as a simple bracelet repair. I'll start with the repair.

I brought my simple 14k gold bracelet to be shortened. The jeweler probably spent about 5 minutes to measure, cut and solder my bracelet together. I was charged $40. I also asked to be returned my spare gold. When I went to pickup my bracelet, they did not have the spare gold and told me the jeweler wasn't in so I could wait for a call. When I didn't receive a call, I called them. They said the jeweler knew about it and would find it for me. It took 4 days total and they then left me a message that "they think" they found it, but aren't sure, and asked me to bring my bracelet in for them to verify. I came in and the piece they had did not match, so they took my bracelet upstairs to go look, and did eventually find it. Overall this was a negative experience and the repair was much more expensive than either of the two jewelers I worked for personally.

Secondly, my engagement ring shopping experience. An associate (not Lemka) explained that they have a high standard for the stones they carry and the custom process if I were to go that route for the setting. The 2.01 carat D SI2 I looked at in store was priced well over $20,000, I can't remember the exact price but somewhere between 20-23k. When I went home, I pulled the GIA certification info on the stone and found there to be a massive cavity inclusion on the bottom of the stone that they failed to disclose to me. That cavity would get dirty over time and make the stone look worse. I'm disappointed they would even carry such a stone, let alone peddle it for such an incredibly high price. That stone was wildly overpriced as such and I wouldn't have purchased it, even at a deep discount due to the cavity.

During this visit, my boyfriend was with me looking at settings and diamonds, and briefly walked over to the watch counter to see what they had. When he started walking over there, one of the male employees shouted across the store for the security person to go over and stand by the watches. I felt awkward and insulted that they felt the need to call security over to babysit the area when we were already considering giving them our business on such a major purchase. I don't feel they would have had the same reaction if he was white and in a suit. Disappointing for it being 2020 and to still have such an experience.

After that event, I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt and went back to meet with the jeweler about a custom solitaire setting. He quoted me between 3-4K for a simple solitaire setting that I had handmade elsewhere for around $1550 from a well known local Chicago jeweler with a lifetime guarantee. Between the profiling incident and everything being wildly overpriced, I chose to take my business elsewhere. I love my 2.5 carat oval and custom setting I chose, and would not send anyone I know to Bromberg for any reason. If for some reason you insist on going there, be prepared to shell out extra cash simply for the mountain brook location, and be sure to...

What a joke. Had a friend tell me they had recently been in the Mountain Brook location and there was a vintage Rolex Submariner for sale. I went there the next morning right after they opened. I watched the man unlock the door. I was excited to inspect the watch in person. The young woman who reluctantly helped me, after I was ignored to the point of asking out loud if anyone would assit me (I was the only person in the store other than multiple employees), she removed it from the glass case and told me it was a "1959 Submariner 5513". Rolex didn't start making the 5513 until 1962. Had it been a 1959 Submariner it would have been the very first Submariner with crown guards and they are very distinctive. The watch would have been a 5512 not a 5513. A 1959 Rolex Submariner is worth 5 or 6 times more than the asking price I was quoted by her. I pointed this out to her and she argued that she was right because "that's what it says on the sticker" attached to the watch. At this point I said I wasn't interested and left. Her actions are tantamount to fraud and at the very least ignorance and a lack of caring. It's illegal to misrepresent a watch or piece of jewelry. I'll never shop at any Brombergs location.

In response to Bromberg's comment... I should have stated my experience occurred about a year ago in the Summer of 2021...possibly we are referring to the same watch. Who knows. I know a lot about Submariners. I bought my first brand new in 1978. I'm wearing it as I write this. I own 4 vintage Submariners among the many watches I collect and I read about and research them all the time. It's a passion of mine. No one offered to remove the bracelet to check the serial number stamped on the case to verify the year of production, including the young man in a suit sitting at a desk behind the main counter who heard our entire conversation. His only response was "it has a service dial". That was obvious. That is as involved as he got. Also, vintage Submariner serial numbers are quite accurate as to the year the case was produced. Google it. The "5 year" theory holds no water in this case. This was terrible customer service highlighted by flippant and dismissive attitudes. I'm not speaking with anyone at Brombergs regarding my experience. It's not my job to hire or train your salespeople. I had saved this review in my phone and recently saw it as I was clearing out my phone. I didn't intend to post it but decided potential customers need to know what they should expect. In retrospect, this review needed to be updated before i posted it. For that I apologize. That being said, I stand by...

My wife and I recently visited Bromberg’s, and I must say, my experience was nothing short of exceptional. Over the years we have bought several pieces from Bromberg's, but this experience was much better than we experienced before. I want to highlight the outstanding customer service by Paige, who truly went above and beyond to ensure my visit was memorable.

She greeted us with a warm smile and genuine enthusiasm. Usually we feel out of place in jewelry stores, but Paige immediately made us feel welcome and comfortable. What struck me most was her genuine interest in helping us find the perfect piece of jewelry rather than simply making a sale. She took the time to understand what we were considering and our preferences, offering insights and recommendations tailored to our taste. What I appreciated most was her willingness to listen and provide honest feedback without any pressure, and was very patient as my wife tried on what seemed to be half of the jewelry in the store. It was evident that her priority was making a good impression.

In today's day in age, true customer service seems like a rarity. However, Paige exemplified my definition of exceptional customer service.

We will...