Buying pearls in Shanghai? If you’re unsure, you might get some help.

Thursday November 5, 2009

A reader recently wrote in the following, "I bought a very expensive pearl necklace at Fanghua in Beijing. When I returned home to the USA and had the necklace appraised, our jeweler said it was not worth the price I paid for it."

This is very disappointing for anyone and when you're buying something expensive and think you're getting a good value, then it's doubly so. My general advice has always been if you're not an expert buyer, then be do be careful. A good guideline is to spend what you're comfortable losing - so if what you bought breaks or turns out to be a fake, then you're not too disappointed. Of course, buying pearls in China can be a good value. If you know what you're doing, South Sea pearls can be purchased at a fraction of what you'd pay elsewhere (US$1000 vs $10,000 elsewhere) but that's still a significant amount of money and not many folks would be happy if their $1000 strand turned out to be fake.

So buyer, do beware. If you're shopping in Shanghai and want some help buying pearls, then you may want to look into using a personal shopper like Ms. Angela McDonald. McDonald's been in Shanghai for many years, speaks Chinese and has her own pearl business. She's now offering tours and educational seminars to teach people how to buy and she takes people to reputable sellers.

If you're on your own, then make sure you keep your head about you, bargain hard and test the pearls for fakes.