How would you deal with a dishonest SA?

[Kayceedee88]

So, I had bought a few VCA pieces throughout the years and never stuck with one SA as I buy from whichever SA can get me the piece I’m looking for first.
I recently purchased a single pave Alhambra pendant and got in touch with an SA who served me in the boutique. When I was ready for the purchase, I asked for a brand new one which she said that the one I tried on was the only one they had. I asked her to order me a brand new one, after all, the necklace wasn’t going to be a cheap purchase. I was ok to wait since I wasn’t in a hurry to get it. She said ok and would call me when it arrived. I took a few pics of the necklace that day.
When my new necklace arrived at the boutique, my hubby went to pick it up for me since I was out of town. When he picked it up, the SA brought it out to him, still wrapped in plastic. I asked my hubby if it was wrapped and he said yes but he thought they could have simply put the “old” piece into a plastic bag and selling it as a brand new, never tried on piece.
Yesterday, I scrolled through pics on my phone not knowing that I was capturing the serial number of the necklace I tried on that. Of course I immediately compared it to the necklace my husband picked up. And sure enough, the SA was dishonest and sold me that same piece that they already had in the boutique…
I’m mad about her lying to us and for thinking that we are dumb! I initially regretted not taking a picture of that serial number that day but what a coincidence that my phone camera did capture the number…
Now, what would you do? Shall I address her dishonesty with that SA directly? Or complain to head office? I’m not trying to get anything out of this but just want her to know that I am not dumb and don’t appreciate her lying to me! On the other hand, I was trying to establish a relationship with this SA as I plan on getting other VCA pieces in the near future. Sometimes it’s better to have a relationship with an SA to get offered rare pieces but I’m not happy with how she probably thought we would never find out… ‍♀️

 

[Love Of My Life]

I would discuss it with your SA first. Perhaps she has a plausible explanation.
She may have "assumed" it was a new piece since you had to wait for it.
Did it seem like a reasonable time from placing the order to been told it was in the boutique?
If you are not satisfied with her response, take it up the VCA ladder. You have your
images to back you up.
I like to give SA's the benefit of the doubt especially if you are looking to establish
a relationship & want those special pieces which you seem to be.
But you also have to "trust" your SA & this is where clearing the air may be to your benefit, JMO

 

[jellyv]

The issue here is that you were sold the same pendant you tried on, correct? If it was store fresh when you tried it on, you can't know that any other customer touched it...correct? If it was you only, perhaps the SA thought she was honoring your wishes without turning up another item, and then there should be no problem...right?

It's the pendant, not the SA, you mean to add to your collection. If the principle of her goofing up or whatever is enough to kill this transaction, then so be it. But maybe you did in fact get a fresh, new pendant as you hoped to get.

 

[Mrs.Z]

Is there something wrong with the pendant?

 

[Yodabest]

I can understand not wanting to be taken for a fool. I had a situation like that at Golden Goose. If you have reason to believe there is something wrong with this necklace then I would swap it for another. If this situation will come to mind whenever you wear it, then definitely get another then too. If it’s just that you wanted a “fresh” one but this one is in perfect condition, I’d
stick with what you have.

When they order a piece to a store, it likely ships from other stores where the necklace was in stock and you would have no idea who tried it on. If the piece is in perfect condition, that’s really what matters.

 

[Mrs.Z]

If the pendant is in perfect condition also consider that the SA was not permitted to order another one (perhaps from another store) when one is already in stock.

 

[smallfry]

As long as the piece you received is pristine, I would continue to enjoy it. I understand your frustration, but I wouldn’t bring this up to the SA or anyone above her. I certainly wouldn’t work with her again.

 

[lill_canele]

Generally when I try on a piece and ask if there are others (of the same kind that I can compare to), when my SA says that the piece is the only one in-store, they will take the initiative to tell me if it is brand new. ie. it is brand new, just unwrapped and put out on the floor.
However, these are my longtime SAs who've I built a relationship with. They tend to know what I prefer. They also know what I mean when I speak and interpret it correctly. So when I ask if there are any others available they understand that I'm looking for a brand new piece that has not be worn by others.

If you just want one in perfect condition, and it is in perfect condition. I'd just leave it. Not worth it IMO.

If it has visible wear and tear (and even some damage), that warrants clarification with the SA, first. I would not go as far as to "report" something. I'd probably like to clarify with the SA to see if we were on the same page the day we met.

Assuming the piece is in new condition + you don't stick with one SA anyway, then, honestly, who cares about the SA. And if that SA gives you a bad vibe or a poor first impression, just don't buy from or talk to that person again.

 

[xiaoxiao]

So… if I understand this correctly, the problem you have with the item is because it might have been tried on by someone else before?

 

[papertiger]

Unless it's damaged, buy it, or don't buy it. Anything in-between is a ridiculous waste of (negative) energy and unnecessary drama IMO.

 

[TC1]

After reading this my biggest take-away was that the pics you took of the pendant while wearing it were sharp enough to capture a serial number....mine certainly wouldn't have been
IMO if the pendant is what you wanted and in mint condition, let it go. Maybe get a new SA down the line.

 

[waterlily112]

Do you recall the SA taking note on the pendant with the serial number that you didn't want? I think it's easy for us to jump to conclusion that she was being sketchy or dishonest, but perhaps it could be a simple mistake as she didn't know which one is the new one? If you don't like the one you got, simply return it and let the SA know that's the same piece you've tried on before and wanted a different one, but then the newer one may've also been tried on by other clients since it arrived to the boutique. That's the thing with buying from boutique, especially the popular pieces/styles, some clients may've already tried it on prior to you. But I like to have the option of picking from multiple pieces especially if it's a stone that I'm purchasing. Pave pieces are fine imo, they're just gold and diamond, unless there are some obvious defect to it, I'd keep it and wear it. If you feel iffy about it, ask the SA to clean it for you.

 

[A1aGypsy]

Who knows what happened here. It might be that this one was intermixed with the new one in the back room. Or, it might be that the manager saw the order and, not knowing the circumstances, thought “what luck! We have one here.”

All of these necklaces have been touched by someone at some point.

 

[Kayceedee88]

I would discuss it with your SA first. Perhaps she has a plausible explanation.
She may have "assumed" it was a new piece since you had to wait for it.
Did it seem like a reasonable time from placing the order to been told it was in the boutique?
If you are not satisfied with her response, take it up the VCA ladder. You have your
images to back you up.
I like to give SA's the benefit of the doubt especially if you are looking to establish
a relationship & want those special pieces which you seem to be.
But you also have to "trust" your SA & this is where clearing the air may be to your benefit, JMO

TBH, I don’t think she assumed that it was a new piece she sold me. She most likely didn’t want to lose out on the sale, since there are several other boutiques in my city I could have bought this item from. Had she told me “No, she cannot order me another piece“ from the get-go, most likely I would have still taken it, given that I prefer to make my purchases in this boutique as I joined the mall’s Loyalty program with good incentives where this VCA boutique is located in. I’m just mad that she tried to fool me… I expected better service from a brand like VCA. Instead she lied and it leaves a sour taste in my mouth now…
But I agree with your comment that I have to trust the SA… I won’t make future purchases with this SA anymore but not sure if it was worth ”opening a can of worms” since I will still be buying from this boutique but from another SA…

I can understand not wanting to be taken for a fool. I had a situation like that at Golden Goose. If you have reason to believe there is something wrong with this necklace then I would swap it for another. If this situation will come to mind whenever you wear it, then definitely get another then too. If it’s just that you wanted a “fresh” one but this one is in perfect condition, I’d
stick with what you have.

When they order a piece to a store, it likely ships from other stores where the necklace was in stock and you would have no idea who tried it on. If the piece is in perfect condition, that’s really what matters.

Thanks for your comment. There’s nothing wrong with the necklace. I asked for a brand new piece as I know that the SA’s would do it if they had another one available. she could have simply said No, they didn't have another one, nor could they order one either. I would most likely still have taken this piece.
You’re most likely right! Another piece may have come from another boutique anyway… I just didn’t like how the SA handled the situation…

 

[Kayceedee88]

The issue here is that you were sold the same pendant you tried on, correct? If it was store fresh when you tried it on, you can't know that any other customer touched it...correct? If it was you only, perhaps the SA thought she was honoring your wishes without turning up another item, and then there should be no problem...right?

It's the pendant, not the SA, you mean to add to your collection. If the principle of her goofing up or whatever is enough to kill this transaction, then so be it. But maybe you did in fact get a fresh, new pendant as you hoped to get.

Correct, she sold me the same one that I tried on, telling me that it is a fresh one that she ordered from the head office. Why would this one come packaged in a clear plastic wrapper had they not tried to fool me? TBH, it is not the fact that I ended up getting the one I tried on, and as others have said here, there’s no guarantee that the “new one” they could have ordered in was untouched, but it is more the fact that they tried fool me… that’s simply being dishonest!