I am unhappy about the way that I was treated by the staff of Hannoush Jewelers on Wolf Road…read moreyesterday. A woman named Jordan left me a voicemail in the morning. She said that my "gold band you ordered" had come in." What gold band? I didn't order any. I called her back. She looked up the order. Apparently, my husband reordered the same wedding band that I originally bought him, but in a bigger size and he was trying to do it on the q.t. The wedding band has been a sore point both literally and figuratively, because it always fit too tight.
To backtrack, just before we got married, my soon-to-be husband picked out his ring at Hannoush. I told him to try it on, order it and I would pay for it. There was a sizing problem. One floor sample ring was tight. The next size up was slightly loose. His original sales person kept telling him to get a snug fit so he wouldn't lose the ring. Meanwhile, I kept telling him to make sure the ring was comfortable because fingers tend to swell up in the summer. He picked the tight ring. When he brought it back to be stretched, but it was barely stretched at all. So, the ring never fit. His salesperson said they couldn't stretch the ring a second time because it would crack due to metal fatigue. I don't agree. I use to make jewelry. I would have taken my jewelry torch and ring mandrel out of storage and stretched it again myself, but my husband didn't want me to.
So, fast forward to yesterday. No one likes unpleasant surprises and that message from Hannoush certainly was. Jordan called me, so I figured I was suppose to show up and pay for it. The replacement ring was over $1K. I hadn't budgeted for it. I mentioned the phone call to my husband. He frowned and didn't say anything. When I showed up yesterday to pay for it, I was told by a saleswoman named Michelle that my husband already picked it up. I told her that I wasn't happy with the way this was handled. If my husband wanted me to get him a new ring, he could have asked, but he didn't. He paid for the replacement himself. I know the original ring holds a lot of sentimental value. He keeps it in a metal case. He just wanted a wedding band that finally fit, even if it set him back. I'm editing this portion to clarify, because this Yelp review has apparently attracted some attention. I'm responding to feedback from a fellow reviewer, who wanted to know if my husband was deceptively trying to force me to pay for the ring. The answer is no. He was not.
Michelle acknowledged that my "profile was used to place the new order." So the salesperson--who was neither Jordan nor Michelle--looked up my original purchase. She made sure to order it one size up and then with a click, she placed the new order in my name. How is that possible ? How can someone just impersonate me? I wasn't even there to agree to it and saleswoman didn't call to ask my permission. On paper, she left me on the hook for $1K+, which is why Jordan called me to say, "the gold band YOU ordered has come in." Why didn't the saleswoman take the time to write down my husband's name and his contact information? Was it sheer laziness on her part? At least, she could have asked a few more questions. He is in their database and I'm sure he introduced himself when he met with the salesperson. He always does.
Hannoush carries wedding bands manufactured by other companies and doesn't seem to keep them in stock, so many of them have to be ordered. However, by calling me, Hannoush put me squarely in the middle of the new transaction, which wasn't suppose to happen. It left me feeling confused and upset. I explained this to Michelle when I was at the store. Her response was nasty and haughty. "You should take it up with your husband," Michelle said. She denied that their salespersons did anything wrong. I did nothing wrong! An apology would have been nice. My husband is too upset to talk about it. This new order was handled thoughtlessly. No class. I don't mind that my husband was trying to make the purchase discreetly, but it didn't work out that way.
The way I was treated yesterday was a far cry from our visit to the same store earlier this month. My husband bought me a gemstone ring for my birthday. We showed up on a weekend and the saleswoman was excellent. She took the time to ask so many questions. She made sure I picked out just the right ring for myself. She said she was surprised by my knowledge of gems and precious metals. So I'm not saying that the entire staff at Hannoush is awful. If you find a product you like there, make sure you get good service from someone who really cares about their craft. If a salesperson is rude or disinterested, find a better one or take your business elsewhere. I was pretty appalled by reception I received from Michelle yesterday and that "surprise" phone call.
