Let me preface this with this- I feel kind of bad for this Zales, I love Zales jewelry & honestly, the only good thing about this store is a sales associate named Debbie Campbell. In July I went there with my husband & our close friends and we both updated our wedding rings. I had just been through an ordeal with a near fatal car accident & I wanted something to buy myself & treat myself. Debbie was patient & kind, even though we watched previous customer come in & pretty much rattle her - but she never lost her cool with us & spent a good time trying to figure out what we wanted. I ended up getting something from the Disney Enchanted line - it was the Snow White ring & my friend got a wedding ring from the Vera Wang collection. We were super happy with our purchases.
I've purchase rings from Zales in Altamonte Springs but I never was given the experience that Debbie gave us - she made my friend & I seriously happy & willing to spend money because she listened. That's right folks, I'm that consumer inclined. You treat me with kindness & respect - listen to what I'm looking for - if you steer me, I will buy. Debbie took the time out & made both my friend & I swear if we ever needed to get our rings checked or purchase new jewelry- we would go directly to the Florida Mall Zales.
Fast forward to 3 months November. I was in the shower & notice I was missing a diamond from my ring. No biggie - I have the warranty (again something Debbie sold me on). I called & spoke to someone on the phone named Francesca.
I have no idea what circumstances make you hire someone with such a rude tone on the phone, but she was a mess. I excused it & just went anyway hoping to see Debbie. She was busy helping someone else unfortunately I met Francesca in person.
Francesca is just as flippant & rude in person. I wasn't sure how the repair process works - so I asked her how long this would take, she laughed & told me "We'll call you & I asked her how would you do that if you don't have my contact info? She then begrudgingly took my contact info. Ok. I asked her about the ring, if this was normal that a diamond would fall out 3 months after purchase - Francesca then proceeds to tell me how her car broke down & that's why she has insurance on it to get it fixed. Cars don't have a lifetime guarantee & that's why you (she pointed at me) purchased the warranty. She also added that warranties don't always mean anything because even now her car is still not fixed.
Sooooo...I purchased this ring in July with insurance , a diamond falls out, & how does a broken car relate to this scenario?
Excuse me? Is that how you represent Zales?
She had no idea how to put a fix into the computer for my ring. It took her several minutes to figure out how to code this. The whole time she looked & acted both vocally & body language wise that I was wasting her time. She ended up having to get her manager to help her while groaning & slamming on the computer. I stood there patiently watching her frustration.
This ring, or broken car, as Francesca put it ever so eloquently, meant a lot to me. That's why people buy jewelry from a mall because they mean a milestone or a mark in their life. I did not want to leave my ring with her because she made it even worse because she didn't show me she placed the ring in a bag, almost didn't give me a receipt & when she did finally - she realized how agitated I was for watching all of this for 30 min. I asked her if Zales was going to call me & she said they might or might not(what jewelry store does not call you when repairs are done?), but I should just show up on the 28th.
She mumbled a half hearted apology again & I grabbed my receipt & walked out.
If someone named Francesca offers you help just pass. Go to Debbie Campbell - Moving forward I'll go there to buy jewelry from her. I'll get it fixed at another Zales. read more