I think I've been had...

[morphius]

I don't think that matters.

I've noticed a tendency, often from the people on this board from America, to think that it doesn't matter if someone sells X as Y, so long as the price is realistic for X.

I think that it's entirely wrong, to sell X as Y, whether the price is right for X, right for Y, or somewhere in the middle.

Oh I agree with you completely...it doesn't matter how much someone pays if they paid for X but got Y...and though I'm not American, my impression of much of this whole situation has much to do with the price paid.

Let's be honest here...how do sellers selling false products get away with it and manage to rack up hundreds and thousands of sales? Whether it's eBay, Amazon, Etsy or anywhere else online, more often than not, the seller is charging a price that the buyer feels (most of the time), that it isn't worth making a stink over...like AAA 9mm Akoya earrings for $25 USD (for example). The bottom line is that even if the person is upset that they didn't get Akoya's, they'll figure it's not so bad since at least they didn't over pay for freshwater (again for example)...and this is a big part of the problem.

If it wasn't for the fact that people are willing to risk it on questionable purchases (and I'm not saying that is the case for the OP), then these scammers would be shut down due to lack of sales.

Personally, I'm beyond tired of seeing the massive amount of sellers that clearly are falsely labeling the pearls...and it doesn't matter where they are located...China, Australia, USA, UK, Canada etc...if buyers didn't say to themselves "ohhhh wow $1,000 Akoya's for $0.99; I am so buying that...", then most of the problem wouldn't exist. It's the buyer that allows these people to continue to scam.

[Amanda]

If it wasn't for the fact that people are willing to risk it on questionable purchases (and I'm not saying that is the case for the OP), then these scammers would be shut down due to lack of sales.

Personally, I'm beyond tired of seeing the massive amount of sellers that clearly are falsely labeling the pearls...and it doesn't matter where they are located...China, Australia, USA, UK, Canada etc...if buyers didn't say to themselves "ohhhh wow $1,000 Akoya's for $0.99; I am so buying that...", then most of the problem wouldn't exist. It's the buyer that allows these people to continue to scam.

I agree with that. But sometimes, it's not possible to tell.

Or, if it's a place that's supposed to be Kosher, that's even worse in a way - if people think they can trust the seller's word because it's a well-known brand.

[morphius]

I agree with that. But sometimes, it's not possible to tell.

Or, if it's a place that's supposed to be Kosher, that's even worse in a way - if people think they can trust the seller's word because it's a well-known brand.

Yes I totally agree - it's an absolute shame, the level of dishonesty that exists.

That said though, and this is not an excuse, nor does it make it any better but...let's say I pay $100 for AAA 7-8mm Akoya pearl necklace...which turns out to actually be a AA 7-8mm Freshwater pearl necklace. Well in truth I was scammed...but at least I wasn't totally and completely ripped off because I still got something that was worth more than what I paid. At the very least, if the item cannot be returned, I can take some small comfort in knowing I didn't buy a total piece of crap (hopefully).

But I totally agree - dishonesty about an item is dishonesty no matter how one paints it or reasons it...and company's like eBay, Etsy, Amazon etc, should have clear cut and enforceable policies on dealing with misleading and falsely labeled items...and the staff with the knowledge to know how to identify such items...since they are giving the seller the ability to scam people.

[Amanda]

I think we're in violent agreement.

[Caitlin]

Most pearl buyers know from nothing and buy cheap and don't even care what kind of pearls they get, they are going to be great because they know from nothing. Many eBay sellers exploit that and get away with it for thousands of sales. Then one knowledgeable person sees the scam and alerts, but the tidal of wave of buyers is not affected, because they know from nothing.

Pearls are complex and deep and worthy of research, but most do not know that or care, yet everyone has an idea of a pearl necklace and a time to wear it. What perfect situation to exploit and how easily done. Too bad more people do not check out Pearl-Guide.com, before buying pearls!

[morphius]

I think we're in violent agreement.

Well hopefully the agreement is not violent - lol - I don't usually chime in on board threads like this because it really boils my blood.

And you're right Caitlin, sellers exploit the fact that most do not take even five minutes to do a Google search and arm themselves with even the slightest bit of knowledge.

The first set of pearls I bought (as a gift for my wife - when I knew nothing about pearls)...I made the mistake of rushing out to buy from a jewelry store and not only got scammed, but also ripped off. I paid $500 for a necklace and two bracelet set of 8-9mm potato freshwater pearls with silver S-hook clasps. They were good - showed me even worse looking pearls to make that set look good. Later, I learned that though the pearls were real, the quality was so poor, that at best, the appraisal value was less than what I had paid.

I have since replaced that set for my wife, with much better FWPs as well as Akoya and Tahitians...but I still have that set, to show my customers the kind of crap scammers are selling.

[pearlescence]

There are plenty of crooks all around the world..and plenty of very honest and hardworking people in China. most Chinese pearl people are honest and hard working. I don't think it is fair to brand everyone in China as crooks because they are not. They will cut a tough deal and it is up to you to make sure it is a realistic deal, sure, but that is how business is all around the world
What we have here is a few people on ebay proving once again Barnum's adage 'one born every minute'
Governments will not intervene...thankfully. At a time of global recession we certainly don't want trade wars kicking off or trade protectionism. Too much red tape already and how exactly would they stop people buying and selling on ebay? Just like the difference between 'genuine' and 'authentic' in handbags there is a difference between 'Tahitian black' pearls and Tahitian black pearls

[morphius]

There are plenty of crooks all around the world..and plenty of very honest and hardworking people in China. most Chinese pearl people are honest and hard working. I don't think it is fair to brand everyone in China as crooks because they are not. They will cut a tough deal and it is up to you to make sure it is a realistic deal, sure, but that is how business is all around the world
What we have here is a few people on ebay proving once again Barnum's adage 'one born every minute'
Governments will not intervene...thankfully. At a time of global recession we certainly don't want trade wars kicking off or trade protectionism. Too much red tape already and how exactly would they stop people buying and selling on ebay? Just like the difference between 'genuine' and 'authentic' in handbags there is a difference between 'Tahitian black' pearls and Tahitian black pearls

I totally agree - and if any of my replies in this thread gave anyone that impression, I am deeply sorry. I have many friends who are Chinese and I do not think "all" are crooks (and I'm not saying that your post Wendy, implied that towards me in any way either).

[Mary Montpezat]

Paypal are fantastic about refunding regarding misrepresented goods. Raise an issue formally very quickly - and don't worry if you've already left good feedback, that won't be taken into account. Ebay know that trust is vital for online transactions. If you don't get any joy from the seller, escalate it to a complaint, and as soon as you get the go-ahead, post the pearls back WITH A TRACKING NUMBER and signed-for. You'll get your money AND the initial postage back. You have I think 45 days to raise a complaint - after that, though, ebay/paypal won't do a thing. Send ebay the link to this thread, too, through the complaints messaging. GOOD LUCK! And let us know when you have your money back!

[Adeline Leigh]

As a fourth generation member of the Chinese diaspora, I would like to assert that even among us Chinese it is commonly acknowledged that there are the scoundrels and the then there's the rest of us! Lol. I am certain this divide extends across all ethnicity groups, nationalities and communities and the personal opinions aired on PG are not taken too much to heart

Personally I like my Chinese supplier a lot. Apart from us having the same Chinese surname, in the five years I've bought from her she has always been reliable, her photographs true-to-life and is downright honest. So there's the sheep and then, there are the wolves, and it takes a confrontation with a wolf (imperative one escapes alive) before the sheep sits up and starts being alert.

Isn't that how most of us stumbled upon PG? We were searching for answers after our good and not so good experiences with buying pearls. And now we can count us as educated or at least, in possession of an education in pearls that is very much still a work-in-progress.

[Amanda]

As a fourth generation member of the Chinese diaspora, I would like to assert that even among us Chinese it is commonly acknowledged that there are the scoundrels and the then there's the rest of us!

In every race / gender / creed / ****** orientation (etc etc) you get very nice people indeed and complete idiots.

[maiakity]

Well, I emailed the seller and here is the response that I got:
,
Thank you for your cooperation.My pearls are akoya pearls.I consulted a local expert on pearls just now,he told me the akoya,it is a type of technology to cultivate pearls.These pearls are cultured pearls with this technology,they are akoya pearls.Sorry,I'm unable to reimburse the return shipping costs,because I shipped your order free shipping,and we have Return policy,the Return shipping:Buyer pays return shipping.Thank you for your understanding.Maybe you can please return them by economical shipping service,it will cost about $2-3.Please contact with me if you have any question.Thank you very much.
Ming


I KNOW that it's going to cost more than $2-3 to ship this back to china no matter WHAT kind of shipping I choose! I did open a case with eBay this AM and we'll see what kind of response I get, I did include a link to this thread so I hope that it get's visited. I feel terrible that this woman is ripping off her customers, downright LYING about her product when directly questioned, and I feel even worse that I was such an uneducated buyer and fell for it!

For those wondering what I paid, I paid around $78 USD for a necklace, bracelet, and earrings. I'm guessing that this isn't a bad price for freshwater pearls (and in fact if they were higher quality I might be tempted to keep them anyway, even though I wanted akoya pearls, but they are not), but that isn't what I was intending to buy. Thank you all for your input and I'll update with more info as the drama unfolds

[lisa c]

That's a novel approach - we're using technology used to culture Akoya, so they're Akoya.
I'm curious, what size are the pearls?

[maiakity]

The were supposed to be 8MM, most of them are closer to 7. I specifically asked her in an email though if they were akoya SALTWATER pearls, and she answered in the affirmative, so I'm amazed she's trying this "akoya technology" tactic now as if that conversation never happened.

[lisa c]

Oh, I believe you, totally!

It was dishonest, no doubt, and I find the mental gymnastics to justify what they sent amazing.