Better or worse?

Since the new owners came in is Gems TV better or worse?

For me some things are better some are worse, but on the whole I think it was more fun to watch before and the jewellery was more interesting, although at times outragoous.

What's everyone elses thoughts?

I don't post on here very much, but, having watched quite a bit of Gems since Steve reclaimed the company I don't know how well they will do in the long-term.

I've only bought a couple of pieces, mainly solitaire gemstone rings as I'm dismayed at how dreadful the diamonds look on screen - to be honest, I'd rather buy a CZ that has sparkle and lustre than ruin a decent stone with dull and depressed-looking accent diamonds!

I did buy some of the gemstone chip bracelets but only to break up and use for my own jewellery - I would never have worn them for their intended purpose as the elastic was thin and they basically fell apart as soon as I stretched them! I've since found somewhere online that sells them cheaper and with more variety and free shipping.

On the whole, I'm disappointed so far - apart from the overly-ostentatious Lorique pieces there seems to be a proliferation of washed-out tanzanite, gaudy cocktail-style rings, low gold weights and miniscule diamonds; in my opinion, Gems is in a difficult situation if it continues to sacrifice the integrity of its products. Old Gems was becoming somewhat stale, but I feel the quality was better and the diamonds did what diamonds should do!

Jinny

Hi All,

We do appreciate your comments and are taking all of them on board.

Since we took over Gems TV we have very quickly had to try and respond to the situation.

For a long time we as a company were broadcasting solely on the web with a small but loyal audience and therefore we had to make jewellery that hit price points. Gems TV on the other hand had stock with great diamonds for example, but which was highly overpriced and was losing them a lot of money.

What we are trying to do now is find a model that works for the customer and which means we can make and sell jewellery at a price whereby we can stay in business!

We don't by any stretch of the imagination think that we are perfect and we are constantly working on new collections, new styles and experimenting to find out what you as customers really want.

What i can assure you is that we will keep doing this until we get it right. Our diamond accent stones are now of a higher quality but then ultimately so will the price.

We have many new exciting collections coming through over the coming months and i do hope that some of these will be to your taste and quality .

Many Thanks for posts like these though as it helps to show us where we should improve.

Kind Regards

Sarah Bennett

Changed for the better IMO. Only genuine gemstones like it used to be. The presenters can now have the freedom to entertain as well as inform and sell products. I mostly stopped watching Gems quite a while ago but from the day the Bennetts bought it back I've watched.

I would buy more if there was the option of a cheaper and therefore slower postage, something similar to TJC on the Under £?? days. Reduced to £2.95 and makes me purchase. I'm happy to wait for my items so other delivery options would be great.

Thanks Sarah for being so open with us, it does help to know that our opinions are read and taken into account. So for what it's worth, here are mine.
As to better or worse, certainly better than Gems at the end because I just couldn't watch it anymore. The awful music, tacky ranges, a certain slimy presenter and the general screechiness and desperation of nearly all the presenters changed it beyond all recognition from the early days. There were, of course, still some positives and some of the pieces were lovely, the falling auctions and online shop clearances were so fun to trawl through, the ordering system worked like a dream and the order history was the best I've ever seen. I think it was the introduction of new management (did I read somewhere they'd come from another shopping channel, maybe Ideal World?) that dragged it down to new depths. Must add though that I'm very sorry to still hear a heartbeat sound from time to time - awful!
However, compared to the Gems of old when Steve/Don were in charge, I certainly think it's worse. In those days with the huge workshop in Thailand, the channel was so exciting with really innovative pieces.
My main gripes now are the very light gold weights (even RocksandCo seem to have higher gold weights these days) and the horrible accent diamonds that they use, these have stopped me from buying so many pieces. Why oh why put a miniscule diamond on a 'solitaire' stud for example? As for the diamond pieces that the presenters constantly tell us are fabulous, no they're not, they are awful and I would never buy one. I'd much rather save up and buy some decent ones from TJC or (hopefully) Gems in the future when the quality is much improved. It's all become a bit Argosy, but with more interesting stones.
This just sounds like a long barrage of criticism, but it's not meant to be as I do buy regularly and there are so many positives about Gems, not least Customer Service, but this post is long enough and I don't want to turn it into a tomb!

Sarah, Just a quick thought, Would it be worth adding an "online questionnaire" to one of the websites? "Would you prefer?" options, such as "diamond quality", "gold weights" etc. That could give you some info as to what customers prefer.

I have just ventured into Gems as an avid Rocks TV buyer - my sister defected from Gems two years ago like many rocks TV customers and I dont have sky so enjoyed the web bidding etc. Presenting wise I like the professional calm informative style of Barry, Rod's humour and Rae and Sarah Coutts open and honest style - I find Sarah Coutts particularly droll with her sense of humour.Ally is always guaranteed to cheer you up ! When Gems presenters present on Rocks they are far less 'frenetic' but they have improved. One can always turn the sound down however watching the home page and both fchannels generally ensures you miss the item as the catch up is very slow. Would love to see both on one channel even as a small window if that makes sense. I too do not like the very light gold weights or the light gold weights and big stones, would rather save for a heavier weight piece - saying that have had some excellent Gold from Gems clearance. Tookalon is always interesting but as with the Larimar I find it tries a bit too hard sometimes and is too fussy, big and heavy. Size 7 and 9 rings is hit and miss because really im a size 8 and I know many customers are too. I agree regarding diamond chips on everything for the sake of saying diamond maybe not sure as I am not a diamond buyer. Refunds are a major issue in terms of the length of time and I hope this improves. The non delete button is irritating and curtails buying especially when many products are not on cr site or do not have an image.However I see both sides to that one given some of the problems.

I am still watching far too much lol

Identity crisis?

Great comments in all posts and thanks for responding Sarah.

In my opinion gemstv needs to provide customers with unique ranges, perhaps some specialising in colours of 9ct gold. And i mean proudly state that as a selling point: white, yellow and rose gold. H ow about a few pieces of green gold?

These ranges can have a theme, for example " Egyptian inspired jewellery in colours of 9ct gold" "celtic inspired jewellery in..." ; Norse inspired ..." Indian inspired..." etc etc. With all your travels you must be bursting with influences and ideas. For example I'd love to see replicas of Pharaonic styles; themed hours where the presenters could really get stuck in with a bit of history, maybe images of the actual piece from the British Museum/Cairo museum of Egyptology.

Good gold weights, maybe the odd bit of high polishing/ diamond cutting for sparkle (if appropriate) and NO diamonds. Experiment with different textures of gold too. Surely that would keep the price down? To be honest I think TJC has cornered the diamond market. I know Rocks and Gems are the same company but the channels have different names. At the moment both seen to sell very similar stuff; Gemstv needs personality and identity. Just my opinion.

Agree - please get shot of the little accent diamond on stud earrings - looks cheap.
Great idea about the questionnaire.

... good gold weight with a QUALITY gemstone - again where appropriate - the focus being the gold, NOT the gemstone. This is why I suggest cornering the 9ct market.

Sorry, forgot to add that.

Having just responded to an online automatic ' how was your *********** shopping experience with another jewellery company with poor to excellent in gradients on all important areas which I get everytime I order from them - and I always reply honestly - surely that would give rocks and gems a wider accurate picture from their whole customer base rather more than just relying on chat and the forum

Rocchic said:

Having just responded to an online automatic ' how was your *********** shopping experience with another jewellery company with poor to excellent in gradients on all important areas which I get everytime I order from them - and I always reply honestly - surely that would give rocks and gems a wider accurate picture from their whole customer base rather more than just relying on chat and the forum

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Very good point, do you think this forum is a fair representative of the gems tv audience as a whole? The Bennets seem to think so as they are constantly on here defending themselves and promising to steer the ship in the direction we all demand. Personaly I am not so sure. I think we represent a type of viewer which is in the minority. More is the pity.

I can think of lots of examples of this forum uniting against something but the channel pursisting with it and enjoying sucess. Certain products, presenters and noises spring to mind. Lol

Happygolucky said:

Very good point, do you think this forum is a fair representative of the gems tv audience as a whole? The Bennets seem to think so as they are constantly on here defending themselves and promising to steer the ship in the direction we all demand. Personaly I am not so sure. I think we represent a type of viewer which is in the minority. More is the pity.

I can think of lots of examples of this forum uniting against something but the channel pursisting with it and enjoying sucess. Certain products, presenters and noises spring to mind. Lol

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Perhaps the difference between the members of this forum and a lot of others, some of whom use the chat room, is that the members here have some knowledge of gemstone jewellery whereas it's patently obvious by some of the chat, that others do not. For example, I have seen postings raving about diamond rings and Tanzanite which I wouldn't be seen dead in! Pale, windowed Tanzanite and dull, grey diamonds, normally priced accordingly I may add, but certainly not something you would rave about unless you knew nothing about gems. Don't get me wrong, at the beginning of Rocks TV I bought loads but no single item cost over £20. I bought beads, pearls and a couple of silver rings all of which I wear but for more expensive items, I buy from TJC and can't see that changing. It's good that there is an outlet for people on a small budget though but they should be aware that the quality is relevant to the price they're paying. I can't see any gem collectors or anyone with some knowledge buying from Rocks TV/Gems TV but I do believe there is a market out there for them.

I still buy from Rocks and now Gems again - having bought a lot of items from them many years ago, however it is the beads, bangles and pearls and not the more expensive things.
On that basis I am happy to keep buying when I feel like more colourful bits and pieces. I do like that I am getting gemstones rather than glass and plastic.
I am waiting to see if we get new quality pieces on Gems again. I'm not holding my breath but I'm keeping a look out!

I suppose its whatever you are most interested in or the reasons you buy for. Have definately been spoilt by rocks prices as what they sell of silver gemstone jewellery is much cheaper than on the high street and most of the time much more unusual. My spending has risen per item as prices have risen but have never paid over £50 for any single item - and that has been heavyweight silvernecklace with fairly hefty stones. Mostly I have been extremely pleased with quality, silver weight and stones. Tending to diversify into collecting different stones. I am assuming that £29 or £39 for a 14k gold ring with a pink tourmaline is good value (ex gems stock). Buying lots of inexpensive items though does mount up but then one has the choice. I too love the beads, bangles and gems but must confess to rather overdoing the inexpensive gemstone rings of late - got to be a bit of a collectors addiction lol - saying that a couple of my full ring rolls would probably sell in a flash at work - horses for courses I suppose.

Never really been a diamond person but wouldn't refuse if someone bought me a decent one lol

I do find this forum useful and educational - but like others wonder how much of a tru representation of the whole customer base it is - which must be huge given Steve now owns both companies.

A blast from the past......

Cheyenne said:

Great comments in all posts and thanks for responding Sarah.

In my opinion gemstv needs to provide customers with unique ranges, perhaps some specialising in colours of 9ct gold. And i mean proudly state that as a selling point: white, yellow and rose gold. H ow about a few pieces of green gold?

These ranges can have a theme, for example " Egyptian inspired jewellery in colours of 9ct gold" "celtic inspired jewellery in..." ; Norse inspired ..." Indian inspired..." etc etc. With all your travels you must be bursting with influences and ideas. For example I'd love to see replicas of Pharaonic styles; themed hours where the presenters could really get stuck in with a bit of history, maybe images of the actual piece from the British Museum/Cairo museum of Egyptology.

Good gold weights, maybe the odd bit of high polishing/ diamond cutting for sparkle (if appropriate) and NO diamonds. Experiment with different textures of gold too. Surely that would keep the price down? To be honest I think TJC has cornered the diamond market. I know Rocks and Gems are the same company but the channels have different names. At the moment both seen to sell very similar stuff; Gemstv needs personality and identity. Just my opinion.

Agree - please get shot of the little accent diamond on stud earrings - looks cheap.
Great idea about the questionnaire.

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This reminded me of a Sapphire of the Rainbow pair of earrings that appeared in the very first flush of this type of gemstone on GTV. We'd been told about them and then suddenly they all appeared on the website, rather than on live auctions. By the time I'd found out about it, thanks to a post on here, many of the items had been snapped up....they were so different and colourful. There was a range of prices but these earrings were quite pricey and though another lovely fm very kindly kept a pair for me, I talked myself out of it........sadly. But I always kept a picture of them......:blush:

Could almost get my ears pierced for those - lush lol