Diamonds Direct Raleigh — Local services in Raleigh

What can I say about my experience at Diamonds Direct that the 5 stars don't already show?

My ex-girlfriend (now fiancé!) set up a meeting with Prem to discuss an engagement ring. Upon walking in the doors, we were greeted by staff like we were the only customers in the place.

We met with Prem, and got directly to the point: we had a ring in mind, round about size in mind, and a picture of what we were looking for. He let us (her) look at several rings for size comparison, fitting, style, etc. Then we got down to business. He brought out a few diamonds to let her see the size and what it would look like on her finger (minus the ring) We decided on a size, and started to talk about building the ring and truly making it a custom, one of a kind ring.

From there, it was a few emails with CAD drawings of the ring. We made a few changes, he sent it to the designers, and we got another CAD drawing. A few more changes here and there, to make it perfect, and we finally set on the one. Prem had an exact replica wax ring made so that we could see what it would actually look like on her finger. She loved it, and we were able to keep the wax mold, and she wore it to get the feel of it until it broke. I told Prem to go ahead and have the ring made.

Now it was just Prem and myself talking. I gave him a date, and he said he would work his best magic to have it available in time. Through several email and text updates, he told me the ring was in, and that it was perfect and beautiful. Excellent news, as we were going on vacation in 2 days after the ring arrived.

Here's where Prem really went above and beyond the call of duty. He helped me through fake emails saying the ring wasn't ready and he had to send it back because it wasn't "perfect" and wouldn't let me walk out of the store with it. These emails were back up just in case my then girlfriend asked about it, as out vacation was coming up soon, and she was hoping she would be engaged on the cruise ship. Prem came up with the best email saying that the ring would be delivered on the Saturday that we would be on a plane. It really was fun making up a story line with Prem just to add to the pure shock and excitement for the engagement. His best and last line in the last email was, "my apologies, I hope you have a great vacation" or something along those lines.

She fell for it. Long story short, We are now engaged, and she hasn't once stopped looking at her ring. She constantly has people asking about it, and we smile knowing that no one will have that exact ring ever.

Prem did such an amazing job throughout the whole process, from the initial meet and greet, walking us through the whole process, catering to our changes and final decision, etc. He never once showed that he didn't care, and he was just trying to make a sale. He showed us that for this important moment in our lives, he truly wanted to be a part of it. I sincerely recommend visiting Diamonds Direct in Raleigh, and personally asking to work with Prem for any of your jewelry needs. He's going to get it done and get what you want on a personal level.

Thank you Prem, and Diamonds Direct, for being a huge part in this beginning stage of the rest of...

Updated Review: As mentioned in my prior review, Diamonds Direct offers a fantastic selection and an excellent opportunity to build a custom ring. While my initial experience with one of the sales associates, Mac, left much to be desired, I’m writing this updated review to acknowledge the owner’s efforts to address my concerns.

After posting my original review, the owner reached out to discuss the issues I experienced and took meaningful steps to make things right. I appreciate their willingness to listen, take responsibility, and work toward improving customer experiences.

I do believe everyone deserves the chance to grow from feedback, and this interaction gave me confidence in the company’s commitment to customer satisfaction. While my initial frustrations were significant, and not to be seen ignored nor forgotten, the resolution efforts have improved my overall impression.

Thank you for taking the steps to making things right, and I hope future customers continue to receive the care and attention they deserve and not the original service I received.

Original post: Diamonds Direct is a great place to shop and build a custom ring. However, the downside is their sales associates—specifically, Mac. My experience with her was unprofessional and disappointing. She failed to listen, disregarded clear instructions, and offered unsolicited opinions. Below are the reasons for my poor review:

Lack of Discretion I wanted to shop privately for my fiancée’s engagement ring without her finding out. I explicitly told Mac not to text me to avoid the chance of my fiancée seeing messages on my phone. I instructed her to communicate via email only. Despite this, she ignored my request, and exactly what I feared happened—my fiancée found out.

Disrespectful Behavior After the surprise was ruined, my fiancée visited the store to leave ideas for me to consider. Once again, Mac dismissed her preferences and repeatedly offered unnecessary and unwanted opinions. She also told her a ring didn’t exist when there was the exact one my fiancée described in the display case. Worst of all, she showed my fiancée the ring I had selected, eliminating any element of surprise for the proposal. This was an incredibly frustrating experience.

Inappropriate Comments Mac also made inappropriate remarks about my handwriting to my fiancée. This was particularly insulting since I had asked her earlier if what I wrote was legible, and she assured me it was fine. For someone assisting a customer about to spend $18,000 on a ring, such behavior is unacceptable.

In the end, it wasn’t worth going somewhere else, so I still purchased the ring here. However, I wish this once-in-a-lifetime experience hadn’t been spoiled by...

We designed a ring here. Leslie was wonderful to work with and the ring was just perfect!! They were very patient and worked hard to find the right stones for it. Then one day, about a month after we got the ring, the stone felt loose to me, so we took it in. They looked at it and made sure it was secure. A couple of weeks later, it still didn't seem right so we took it back in. They checked again and brought it back out to me. I went to put it on and I noticed one of the side stones had fallen out. In the store. I am panicking because they told me when they gave me those side stones, it will be close to impossible to match them because they are so unique. They were really light green apple pear cut sapphires. Unicorn stones. Luckily, they found the stone in the store and put everything back together. About two months later, I look down at my hand and one of the side stones was gone. Completely gone. I was very frustrated at this point because I had warned them several times that something wasn't right. So we take it in to be repaired, they said they would look for a stone to match [I had to make sure they knew it was not a peridot because they tried to write that down]. Took them several weeks to get back to me to say there was not a match. Which we already knew. So I asked them to find "light pink, blue, purple, or green." The pickings were slim and it took several trips to the store, but two months after the stone fell out, I have my ring back. We found 2 beautiful cornflower blue sapphires to put in it. They rebuilt the prongs and made them bigger and sturdier. Alad worked extremely hard to find the right stones and came through. He personally called us when he had stones ready for us to see and personally worked with us each time we were there. Bonus that this was done for free and we got to keep the other original stone. This is how a company should work when your customer isn't happy. They fixed everything, were very patient and hard working. I am now happy and plan on coming back to design another piece of jewelry with them in the future using the leftover original stone. Thank you Alad for such...