Like many guys, I was uneducated and a bit nervous to buy an engagement ring for my (now) fiancee. Because I didn't want to botch up the ring buying with one she didn't like, we started looking at styles together.
We started our adventure by checking out some of the mall jewelers. I think that was a good step as we had a lot of questions and a lot of different jewelers in close proximity to compare. However, I didn't feel totally comfortable with any of them or their policies and wanted to check out a couple stores outside of the malls.
Our first stop was Shane Co and we already could tell the difference between it and the mall jewelers. The return policy was much better and the selection was broader. Unfortunately, we felt like the saleswoman here was ""putting up with us"" and was slightly annoyed the entire time. Not sure why, maybe a bad day, but it definitely left an impression. Still, we were happier with Shane Co than the others at this point and found a couple rings my girlfriend loved. But then it was off to Wedding Day Diamonds.
Walking in the doors at Wedding Day in St Louis Park, we were greeted by the largest selection of rings yet. Personally, I was happy that we'd narrowed in on a couple of styles she liked by now to help the process along, but I think she could have spent all afternoon trying on them all. :) The staff was the friendliest and most helpful yet and the warranty policy was perfect; short of totally losing your ring, Wedding Day covers everything you could think of that could happen to it. That gave me a nice peace of mind. After our first visit we'd decided that we felt most comfortable with Wedding Day due to their staff, policies, selection (she had 3-4 that were her ""favorites"" at this point), and general vibe we felt.
At this point it was down to me to make some decisions and do things on my own. And this is where I was extremely grateful we chose Wedding Day. The staff was extremely helpful, particularly Charlie. Charlie worked with me from our first visit up to the end. I probably stopped in 2-3 times on my own, had 20+ emails, and a few phone calls with Charlie on the ring I wanted to get, how we wanted to customize it, and trying to make it fit within the budget I had set. Despite my worries that I was taking too much of his time Charlie kept reassuring me that I was doing nothing of the sort and that he wanted to help me make this ring perfect... exactly what I'd hoped to hear.
All the communication was worth it, the ring we were able to come up with together was perfect and customized just enough to make it truly unique and within my budget. My fiancee LOVES it and I've caught her frequently starring at it when she's supposed to be doing other things. Fortunately that hasn't yet happened while she's been driving.
I'd highly recommend Wedding Day for all of the above mentioned reasons; selection, staff, the experience, and warranty. I'd regret it if I didn't mention others at the store that were super helpful as well. Besides Charlie (I'm so thankful I didn't burn him out with all of my emails and questions) the rest of the staff was just as pleasant and kind. Aaron helped educate me on diamonds and what to look for and never once did I feel like I was being upsold on things that didn't really matter to us, and a fun guy to talk to. Also the office manager Jessica, who was also great to talk to and, when I nervously told her the plan of the proposal the night I picked my ring up, got all excited and assured me my girlfriend would love it.
To wrap up this overly long review, in retrospect I have absolutely zero regrets about going to Wedding Day Diamonds for our engagement ring. While the selection and warranty are certainly differentiators, to me it was the staff that separates Wedding Day from the crowded pack of jewelers.
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