Derco Fine Jewelers

They shut down this location but are still at their SOMA digs. Don’t do what I did and call this number for a few days, thinking the phone must be really busy or they went out of business. Call the other number :)

This place has changed.
My wife and I purchased our wedding bands here. They were courteous and friendly, and we didn’t feel pressured. We came into the store several times, and they offered us bottled water and free engagement ring cleaning each time. They had a huge ring selection to chose from, and we found exactly what we were looking for.
Unfortunately, this store has changed it’s operations. We went there today, and they’ve scaled back their selections dramatically. Apparently, they no longer sell wedding bands at this location, and you have to visit another Derco store.
I would’ve given Derco 4 stars had they not changed they’re operations, but I think they’re only deserving of 3 stars now. It’s still a great place to find nice jewelry, and the staff is friendly.

I needed the backings to a pair of earrings that I bought at Derco years ago when they were in the gift center. Months ago, I went to the old Santana Row location — only to find that they were no longer there (yes, on that same trip, we went to the Lego store in Valley Fair).
Since it’s so much of an effort to come to the jeweler, I left my rings (also purchased at Derco) to be cleaned and polished as well. I’ll pick them up when I pick up my earring backing. I appreciated that he mentioned that when the ring is polished, it loses a tiny bit of metal — so that he doesn’t recommend polishing it more than every two years at the most (I did not get the sense that he was reluctant to do so but that he wanted me to protect my jewlery). I’m pretty rough on my rings, and it’s been longer than two years, so I’m happy at the thought of getting my wedding and engagement rings back shiny and pretty again.
One note: Derco’s seems to have lost some of its pizazz. Many of the displays were empty. When they were in the gift center, there would always be many people in the store trying on rings. I don’t know if it’s the economy or if it’s because Derco’s is located in a mall instead of in the gift center (the idea that it’s more expensive because it’s in a mall?), but when I was there this past Monday — a holiday — there was only ONE other customer in the store…
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Edit 2÷19÷09: apparently, they STILL are in the gift center. And, that location is still busy. The staff admitted that the Santana Row location didn’t have good business and that the new mall location inside the Westfield mall isn’t great either. Sigh. I like the location where I didn’t have to call in to get a badge, so I hope they make it.

Went to Derco’s to look at weddings bands with my fiancé. The staff there was very courteous and attentive. They took time and was very patient in explaining each piece to us. They even gave us little bottles of Derco water and cleaned my fiancé’s engagement ring for free!
They are on the pricey side (what do you expect for a retail mall jeweler) but they have exceptionally nice jewels here.
For service and selection, check out Dercos!

Now this Derco’s I liked MUCH better! It is much much smaller. That can be a good thing, or a bad thing. Good for me because too many choices is too overwhelming. :)
The man gave us water and was very friendly and helpful. Prices for what I liked were MUCH better, and it was a great experience! I would like to purchase some earrings there, too!
Oh… and it’s in a nice mall in Union Square, not a creepy basement!

Not my cup of tea. It’s like buying diamonds from a used car salesman. I expected much more.

Great service, great selection, very competitive prices; and a true dedication to make things work for the customer.
This place is not as intimidating as walking into Shrieve & Co, and way above the cut of large retail jewelers.

Guys, if you’re clueless as to what to give your woman for her birthday, your anniversary, or just because you want to express your undying love for her, remember just one thing: Diamonds. There is not one girl I know whose jaw wouldn’t drop the moment she opens up a little box with bling inside. Classic and timeless, diamonds will last forever and are one of the few things that can be traded in and upgraded (for those moments you forget her birthday, anniversary, or just plain effed up big time).
When a friend called requesting my jewelry consulting services, I suggested going to Derco after my first suggestion happened to be closed in observance of a Jewish holiday. Don’t be put off by the fact that it’s located inside a mall. Derco was established nearly 70 years ago, and for the past 20 years, they have been in SF building a good reputation for providing exquisite fine jewelry at reasonable prices and excellent service.
My friend was searching for a pair of diamond studs as his wife’s birthday/​wedding anniversary/​new motherhood present. Jim, the very friendly and informative associate who helped us, showed us several different pairs that ranged from .50 ct tw to 1.5 ct tw. I had come along to help model the earrings as well as made sure the best quality diamonds were selected. My friend ended up picking the best of the lot at 1 ct tw, because he only wanted the best for his wifey (who clearly has trained him well!). Jim also threw in complimentary jewelry cleaners for the both of us.
Derco’s prices are very competitive, and their upgrade policy is very lenient. Jim told us that there was no minimum difference or time period for upgrading, whereas Tiffany’s policy is a difference of at least $ 10K. So, when you’re looking for the perfect gift, check out Derco. They’ll help you find just the right thing to make you the perfect guy.

The sales people here are nice and helpful, not overly pushy. We were able to take our time looking at many diamond choices and were given an explanation on each one’s characteristics. The prices are good and we never felt like there was pressure to make a decision right away.
The one caveat here seems to be that it takes a lot longer than the 4 – 6 week window they give you for the ring to be ready. It’s more like 8 weeks so plan on that. I wasn’t very impressed with their wedding band selelction though.

even though i’m not currently in the market for an engagement ring, i went to this location of derco (the 3^rd one in the bay area, i believe) during bloomingdales’ opening weekend to look at diamonds. this very nice saleslady spent at least an hour with me, showing me diamonds meeting my specifications (i’d say them here but i don’t want to come off as high maintenance, hahaha) and we went over setting and cost, etc. it was such a valuable experience because now i have an even better idea of what type of ring i want to get… y’know for when clive owen finally pops the question (that is, once he’s on the market).

First, I need to mention that the above rating is still temporary since my experience with them is still not over. Hopefully everything will work itself out and I’ll be able to change this review.
Here is what happened so far. I went in on the 22^nd of april in order to get an engagement ring. I had seen gone in a few times before in order to check out their selection. I mostly interacted with Carmen and Paul. They were both extremely helpful then. I had decided to design a custom ring by taking elements of many different rings that I had seen at Derco and I had not yet decided whether I would also buy a diamon from them since I wanted to see whether I could get a better price online (at BlueNile). Paul and I figured everything out and took my order. He told me it would take 4 – 6 weeks. Since that was a bit long, Paul suggested I get a simple solitaire that I could use and return (for my money back) when the real ring was ready. I got a call 3 weeks later to tell me that the wax was ready which I went in and okayed. It seemed like it was taking a little bit longer then they told me but I didn’t bother me at the time.
While on vacation in Hawaii (where I proposed!), my fiancée decided that the ring (the solitaire) was too big for her. Since it was supposed to be the same size as the ring that was being made, I called Derco to see if it was possible to easily change the ring since since it was still being made (I assumed). They told me the best thing to do was for my fiancée to go in and try on the ring. So on june 8^th (now 7 weeks from when i ordered it), she went in and they presented her the still unfinished ring. When she was shown the ring it was clear that something was wrong. Firstly the size of the ring was too small compared to what was ordered which turned out to be good as it now fit her… though still a troubling mistake. But worse, the setting itself seemed much too big as if they didn’t design it for the right diamond. Greg (who I later learned was the assistant manager) was equally surprised and made a few phone calls. He then tells her that there was a problem with the paperwork. The jewelers in L.A. (where they apparently make the rings) apparently never knew the diamond size and just chose some standard size. So he tells us that they have to start all over and we have to wait another 4 – 6 weeks (probably more than that). But he also offered us $ 150 compensation.
A few days later, I received a call from the manager (he left a message) informing me that everything is fine and that we should just bring in the diamond and they can fix it. He then called me everyday for the next three days to tell me the same thing (I was out of town) which I found to be annoyingly pushy. So now I’m pretty confused since I’m getting conflicting information. I told him this when I called him back and his answer is that the other jewelers (i.e. Greg) didn’t know what they were talking about (why is he the assistant manager then?!) but that he knows because he’s been a jeweler for x number of years. I also mentioned that some compensation would be appreciated (they did make a mistake after all) and he tells me that that’s impossible directly contracting Greg yet again. When I mention this to him, he did say that they would have to honor it.
That’s the story so far… so now I really don’t know what to think. My fiancée and I are going to go in this week to figure this out but we’re of a mind to just get a refund on the custom ring and just keep the solitaire (and diamond) because we feel like we’re being jerked around. It doesn’t bother me that much that they may have made a mistake but at least confess to it and apologize and try to make it right. Hopefully everything will work itself out.
I’ll update soon…
So my fiancée and I went back and ended up talked with Greg. So it turns out that a mistake had been made. I’m glad that they admitted it. They showed us the ‘fixed’ ring. They had bent in the prongs on the setting in order to fit my diamond. It looked ok but definitely not what we wanted. Greg suggested that they try again so that it’s perfect. We therefore went through the whole ordering process again. This time making sure that everything was in order. So it seems like Greg will be taking everything in hand from now on and will even be rushing the order for us. It seems like he is going to do his best so that everything works out for us this time which is great! Hopefully everything comes out okay…
…last update!
so they took longer than they said for getting the ring engraved but it’s finally done! I’m happy with it and so is my fiancée. Greg did his best and got it done though looking back I really think they could have handled the whole thing much more professionally though I wouldn’t fault Greg on this one. If I could I would move the rating up to 2.5.

Update: I am posting this sad update so that others can learn from my mistakes. I picked up my finished engagement ring and it was the same as the example that they had shown me. Excellent. However, the wedding band that they had made was NOT at all what I had been picturing. After receiving it, and re-​reading the written description of the work to be done, I can see that there was simply a failure to communicate. Verbal descriptions have lots of room for error. I am not necessarily blaming Derco for this– but I would strongly reccommend that you bring in pictures of what you are after and get a sketch of the final product, especially as they often do not have tangible examples for you to look at to make sure that everyone is clear on the final goal. I thought that Carmen and I were on the same page about the design, but we clearly were not, and now Derco is refusing to help fix it or change it into something closer to what I had in mind. Instead we are forced to eat the loss and have an entirely different ring designed, even though the change I wanted was minor. I am very disappointed at the lack of willingness to work it out and to look for solutions together. Their attitude seems to be that you are on your own if you need help after the initial consultation and purchase. This has left such a negative impression that I will not be returning after the correction to my wedding ring is made. If they had looked at the big picture they would have taken a more helpful stance and fostered a relationship with a new couple that will be wanting a jeweler for the years to come, but because they are so inflexible and so unwilling to help make things right, I will be taking our business to another jeweler who is capable of engaging in a more collaborative relationship.
Final update: Come here only if you want to deal with phenomenally craptacular service (and by craptacular I mean rude, condescending and dishonest). I picked up my second custom designed wedding band from them this weekend. The greasy looking guy behind the counter was tiresome and defensive, and wouldn’t give a straight answer to anything. I asked why the custom wedding band didn’t really fit next to the engagement ring like the wax model they had shown us did and he gave me some song and dance about it being the diamond’s fault… riiiiiiight. I was so exhasuted by their tedious blame game that I just said whatever and took the ring and left. Just one straight answer would have made all the difference, but they couldn’t do it.
However, I am thrilled that my fiancé got me my gorgeous diamond necklace birthday present at Bailey, Banks, and Biddle instead of giving these assholes any more business. They suck and they will never see another dime from us.

UPDATE: On Saturday, with a Derco engagement ring that’s less than a year old, I strode in to Derco to have my e-​ring cleaned. It was taken, cleaned and returned. About half way down the block, I noticed that 3 of my pave band diamonds were MISSING. I sprinted back to Derco, upset that they didn’t, oh– I don’t know– CHECK the ring before giving it back to me. So they send it off for repairs (no charge). When we got the call that it was ready, we trekked back to Derco and, again, the ring was handed to me. I gave it a once over and-​wait for it– ANOTHER PAVE STONE WAS MISSING. Ever hear of checking your work? Now I question both the sloppy service at Derco and craftsmanship of my e-​ring. If you read my previous nightmare with getting the ring in the first place, you’ll see why I’m exceptionally upset. I do not recomend Derco.
PREVIOUS:Admittedly, Derco did screw up. My engagement ring was a little late, and quite wrong. But… they made it right. Not only did they rush the work order on the ring, but they gave us a discount for our trouble (I did go in and speak directly to the manager). The ring is more beautiful than I could have imagined, and I was literally crying in the middle of the Westfield. The craftsmanship was excellent and we did get an incredible price on the diamond and the setting. I’ll be back to Derco for the wedding rings.

I wasn’t even plannng on buying a wedding band today but I ended up purchasing one! haha… our sales person was extremely nice and they basically let me design whatever ring i wanted for my hubby to be so I couldn’t say no! We’ve been looking for a ring he would like for the longest time, and the ring that he wanted was only found in tungsten everywhere but we passed by Derco today and just walked in to see if they would have something like the ring he had in mind… they had the tungsten one, and he said they could make anything we wanted! So «the one» is in it’s making! Our sales person also cleaned my ring for me, and i LOVE when my ring is sparkling! He even gave us bottled waters while we filled out paper work.

I’ve been here twice now to look at engagement rings and the service has been really helpful each time, I wouldn’t say they are super friendly but they are very, very cordial and extremely knowledgable. They have a great selection of settings and lots of diamonds. (eeeeee! diamonds!) I would reccomend adding this place to your list when you are looking around for the big rock!

I love this jewelry store because it’s where my husband bought my beautiful engagement ring. The diamond is amazing and the price was perfect. We went back to buy our wedding rings there. We have referred another friend to the store and he bought his fiancé an engagement ring too. I think we will definitely buy jewelry here in the future!
If you are thinking of buying an engagement ring you should stop by Derco.