Schwarzschild

So I have only been here to get various watches resized so my review can only be but so extensive here unfortunately.
Each and every time I come here the staff is extremely friendly and courteous. When I saw their star rating on here I was actually surprised it was so low.
4 out of the 5 times I’ve had a watch resized I have paid $ 10, just once… So I don’t know if its them being nice or they stopped charging for this service. Either way I am happy and recommend them to anyone.

My fiancé’ and I came into the Carytown location about 30 minutes before closing. I was expecting to not find a ring because of price and the desire to have something unique. I was greeted my Milla who instantly pulled out a few pieces and a catalogue to figure out what we both were looking for in a ring. After a few looks and some precise questioning, she showed my the ring of my dreams and within our budget. Because I didn’t want to decide right then we decided to sleep on it but as we left the store we turned right back around. They kept the store open a few minutes past closing (which is a big deal for jewelry stores). We bought the ring and left it sizing. Milla did a great job of making it secret when it will be done. And as we were leaving, another employee stopped us on the way out. We were given champagne and a congratulations on our engagement! While we did not spend a lot of money, they treated us like a royal couple. Thanks Schwarschild.

Horrible experience with this company I have purchased from for years. Will not shop there again. Husband purchased diamond bracelet for me two years ago from Swartzchilds. When the clasp failed recently and needed repair, we were told by salesperson, «Talbert» that it «cannot possibly be repaired» by them. What? I’m supposed to keep a broken diamond bracelet on the shelf? His rather aloof attitude did not help. We took it across the street to the local carytown jeweler who did a great job of repairing it. I wear it daily.
Another nail in the coffin of «old Richmond «institutions. Of course, I know it was bought by a large company. And it shows. Staying local for future purchases. Too bad Swartzchilds, as I am at the age when disposable income on fine jewelry is more likely than in the past.
Please don’t review this business if you received a freebie for writing this review, or if you’re connected in any way to the owner or employees.

Do not go here. I bought a ring for $ 11,000 for my fiancé here. They told me a could get I lifetime of free repairs as long as I brought it back. A week after our proposal, the ring fell out of its setting. I brought it back and they refused to fix it. Even after I showed my receipt they asked me to leave.
I brought it to another store and after I told them where I bought the diamond, they inspected it. (I guess this happens a lot) Turns out it was a cubic zirconia the whole time. They won’t return my calls or let me back in their stores. I’ve had to hire an attorney.

I had an outstanding experience here. I bought a set of watches for my fiancé and I that my parents gifted us. I worked with Anne Marie who took us very seriously when we just went in to look. She treated us as potential customers and gave us plenty of attention. Because of this, we had high expectations when we went to the other jeweler in town to look at the same watches. Our experience there was lacking and they treated us like we were not serious. because of this, we went back to Schwartzchild. It’s interesting though because that other store is now closed. Anyways, our experience here was A+ and I like that they give a 5 year warranty vs the stardard 2 year warranty for the watches. Great service! Would recommend highly.

I’m really disappointed.
I figured since I live a block away, I’d throw some business their way.
I took a family heirloom pocket watch to be fixed about a year and a half ago. Instead of saying, «Sir, that’s not the type of thing we do, thank you for thinking of us,» they held on to it for three days and then quoted me about $ 800 when I went back. Even melted down, the pocket watch probably isn’t worth half that.
I’m convinced it was never really a quote, rather I was more of an inconvenience and they wanted me out of their store.
Compass West Jewelry on the other hand… about a ½ mile down the road looked at my watch while I waited. He had books on antique watches from various regions, and quickly identified what my watch needed. He quoted me under $ 150. This further confirms my belief that Schwarzschild never wanted the business. There is no good reason for a price difference of over 500%.
My advice to Schwarzschild is be up front. If you’re not honest, then you lose all integrity. If you don’t want to fix one of my pocket watches, fine… but don’t dick me around. You lost potential future sales. From me… my family… and my friends. Anyone who asks if I know a good jewelry store… I know where not to send them.

I have had an heirloom watch refurbished at this location and have made some small purchases. Those experiences were fine. Recently we were looking to upgrade my diamond earrings to a larger size. The manager took over from the sales clerk we were working with and didn’t seem to be listening to our needs at all. When I told her the color I wanted, she called in 3 – 4 grades higher (more expensive) in color. She wrote down a higher carat weight than I wanted in a dismissive, «When you see the bigger stones, that’s what you’ll want. .. «kind of way. Several attempts were made to convince me to buy a different metal than the one I wanted since that was what was in stock. We were told that we would be given the full retail value of our trade-​in, but then that was quickly knocked down before we even got to the real negotiation stage. I asked if they could keep an eye on inventory and let me know when what I wanted came along. .. and was told no, that wouldn’t work. I also suggested finding a match to a diamond I already had to stay within budget, but that wasn’t acceptable to the manager either. She suggested several times that my husband could come in and buy what she called in without my seeing it first if my schedule didn’t work out. She just seemed to have one idea in mind — that we would triple our budget and buy a larger pair of higher color diamonds in the wrong metal — or else we could go elsewhere. So we did. We bought the same carat weight, branded hearts and arrows, GIA graded «excellent» stones in the color and clarity we wanted for ¹⁄₃ of the price she was quoting us for what we didn’t want anyway. If she had listened to what we wanted, I would have been willing to pay more to buy locally and see the merchandise ahead of time, but it was obvious that I wasn’t going to get what I wanted at this location. The value in buying locally *is* the customer service and customer experience. Maybe the Short Pump location would have been more helpful, as another reviewer suggested.

I have bought a few nice watches and numerous watch straps from Schwarzschild over the years. My previous experiences have been at the Short Pump location. They are always very helpful and nice. They never charge me for changing from watch strap to watch strap. Why? because they know I will be browsing around and perhaps buy something, which sometimes I do. It’s the same reason they offer free oil changes when you buy a car, to get you into the showroom. Not the case here. They immediately demanded $ 10 to change my watch strap and then made no effort to sell me on any of their merchandise. The lady was just too determined to get those few dollars from me. I hope the $ 10 was worth it. I won’t be back.
And FYI, Schwarzschild is no longer locally owned. It is family owned, but of the larger conglomerate variety from out of state.

I had a ring sized here. It was pricey ($ 180 for 2.5 sizes), but what I thought was reasonable for a jewelry store. They gave me an estimated time of a week (they stated they were busy). The ring was ready within the week and looks and feels great.
The store is what you’d expect from a nicer jewelry store – a pinch uncomfortable with expensive jewelry. Nice staff, though not overly friendly.

This local Richmond jeweler is one of the few independently owned, and family-​run luxury jewelery chains left in the United States. They have served Richmond continuously for over 110 years and customer service is fantastic and the staff is educated and knowledgeable about the lines they sell and in giving advice on purchases.
Big brand names such as Hearts on Fire, John Hardy, David Yurman, Wellendorff, Slane & Slane and Chimento represent the well-​known jewelery vendors. For watches important Swiss watch manufactures like Baume & Mercier, IWC, Omega and Jaeger-​LeCoultre or represented. Schwarzschild is most famous for being the top Rolex vendor in Central Virginia. They also sell fine gift ware such as silver services, flatware, wedding sets, and fine china.
Typical services such as repair and cleaning, bridal registry, etc are all part of the exemplary service offered here.
My experience has always been first rate and I recommend them as a first stop when searching for jewelery, gifts, or advice on diamond grades, watch brands etc.