Why is jewelry so cheap in China?

If you intend to shop for a diamond engagement ring in Hong Kong or China, there are 3 important things you need to know before hitting the stores. Also, I’ll reveal the best places to buy a diamond where you can save money and get better quality at the same time.

Large jewelry chain store along Queen’s Road Central in Hong Kong

#1 – Superstitious Belief of Fengshui & Cultural Stereotyping

The Chinese (especially those in Hong Kong) are generally superstitious people who believe in feng shui and quirky beliefs. For example, the figure 8, pronounced as “faat” in Cantonese, is an auspicious number believed to bring about wealth and fortune.

Needless to say, a diamond with a carat weight of 0.88 or even laser inscriptions bearing digits of 8 would be a huge selling point for marketing.

On the other hand, the number four (4) is considered an inauspicious number as it sounds like and represent death in both Cantonese and Mandarin. Because of this, you rarely see diamond rings in sizes of 0.44ct or 1.44ct for obvious reasons.

Besides superstitions, one of the key things to note about the Chinese market is the misconceived stereotyping of high color/clarity diamonds as being more “beautiful”. In the Asian market, the preferred choice of color lies with the colorless range of D-F.

Likewise, diamonds with higher clarity grades above VS1 you are perceived to be better and of higher quality. Here’s what I was told by a local friend of mine. “When people buy jewelry in Hong Kong, the factor of “face” and social status is a huge consideration in their purchase decision.

So, what does these all mean to to you? Well, if are shopping for a diamond engagement ring, the amount of available selections is going to be limited and extremely costly because of the higher color/clarity ratings.

#2 – Jewelers Have Extremely Poor Knowledge About Cut Quality

In the Chinese diamond market, there is a lack of tangible data like the ASET, Idealscope and H&A images.

Now, I want you to get this straight. Better clarity or color means jack if the diamond’s cut quality is mediocre. Cut is the main factor that directly affects how much sparkle and brilliance a diamond has.

I find the general cut quality of diamonds in the Chinese market to be slightly better than most other places around the world (although there is still significant room for improvement). Diamonds with GIA triple excellent grades are highly sought after by consumers and most people tend to shop for stones with such certifications in mind.

However, when it comes to buying top notch diamonds cut for supreme light performance and precision craftsmanship, the market falls short. The truth is, the majority of GIA triple excellent diamonds have huge variations in light performance.

The fact that most Chinese jewelers have poor knowledge in cut quality means there isn’t any tangible cut data available for you to make educated decisions. Furthermore, most salespeople employ high pressure selling which makes shopping in a physical store an unpleasant experience.

If you are looking for a diamond ring that has superb craftsmanship and brilliance, I recommend checking vendors like White Flash, Blue Nile and James Allen.

#3 – Prices of Diamonds in the Chinese Market

Most people have a misguided belief that diamonds are cheaper in the Chinese market. In terms of pricing, I find that lower prices in Hong Kong only exist if you intend to get rings from branded stores like Cartier or Tiffany’s when compared to the US.

The same cannot be said with non-branded diamond rings. Due to high rentals and overheads, the pricing of private jewelers and local chain stores such Chou Sang Sang or Chou Tai Fook are extremely high when compared to chain stores in other parts of the world.

In fact, the non-branded diamond rings are almost as expensive as big international brands. For this reason, it doesn’t make sense to pay a huge premium for an unrecognizable local brand when you could top up a little more to buy something similar at Tiffany & Co.

At the end of the day, it just doesn’t make sense to be shopping in the Chinese market from a consumer’s point of view unless you intend to purchase branded goods. Why would you want to pay high prices for sub-par quality anyway? It’s dumb and a huge waste of money.

Shop Smart: You Can Get Better Quality And Much Lower Prices Online

Here’s a quick price comparison against 2 highly recommended online vendors to show you the stark differences. Besides paying significantly lower prices, you really get the cream of the crop selections of finely cut diamonds by going online.

* This price comparison was performed using a 1 carat D VS1 round brilliant cut at the time of writing. Current prices may have changed but the relative costs will remain the same. The price range is representative of how precise the diamond is cut to and also other factors like presence of fluorescence. Read this article for more details…

Here’s the thing. Getting better prices is not the main reason to go online. The most important factor of going online is that you get FULL transparency of what you are buying and much better diamond selections.

Instead of encountering pushy salespeople who simply want to make a commission off a sale, you get to shop in a calm mind and make decisions based on tangible data like magnified 360° videos and scope images.

Besides ideally cut diamonds, vendors like White Flash, Blue Nile and James Allen have very consumer orientated sales policies and you are fully protected with risk-free guarantees. NONE of the local Chinese vendors will offer this to you.

In the 4th and final post of my adventures in Hong Kong, I am going to do a blog post of the touristy places I visited. If you plan to visit Hong Kong in the near future, it might serve as a good reference for you.

Related Articles

Share This Page on Social Media!

China’s wholesale jewelry manufacturing capabilities have been widely praised by international enterprises. Many global jewelry wholesalers prefer to outsource wholesale jewelry production to Chinese suppliers. So, why do China’s wholesale jewelry suppliers enjoy such a great popularity? What advantages do they have? How to choose a good wholesale jewelry supplier? And what kind of wholesale jewelry is the best purchase?

Don’t worry, in this article, you will learn everything about sourcing wholesale jewelry in China. If you are looking for the most cost-effective wholesale jewelry, then this article will definitely help you.

What are the advantages of sourcing wholesale jewelry in China?

China has become the world’s second largest economy and has been recognized as the most influential manufacturing place for many years. For any jewelry wholesaler, the purchase of products will directly affect your business. Here, I’ve summarized a series of advantages of purchasing wholesale jewelry in China:

Low costs

Finding high quality jewelry at low costs is a priority for your sourcing. Compared with foreign suppliers, Chinese suppliers can offer cheaper prices for wholesale jewelry. This is due to the easy access to the cheap fine raw materials, skilled labor, and the ability to produce on a large scale.

Wide range of suppliers

In addition, China has a wide network of jewelry suppliers, which provides great convenience for bulk jewelry buyers all over the world. The large number of suppliers will allow you to have a wider selection and more competitive prices.

Efficiency

For any company with an online jewelry brand, the speed of updating your products is very important. Now the online wholesale jewelry competition is increasingly fierce, products can be quickly replicated. However, China’s bulk jewelry suppliers can not only have high delivery efficiency, but also strong production capacity.

How to avoid unreliable Chinese wholesale jewelry suppliers?

For the above reasons, China’s wholesale jewelry suppliers have become the first choice of many jewelers. However, not all of them can provide you with quality products and services. It is not advisable to choose a supplier at random, which can lead to huge losses for you. So what kind of Chinese bulk jewelry suppliers should you avoid?

Liars

You should focus on preventing this from happening. You’ve probably heard of a lot of people getting scammed during purchase, so, to reduce your risk, you should do a thorough investigation of your supplier. For example, their addresses, phone numbers, reviews, partners, social media accounts, etc.

Customized service

In general, if your order quantity is small, many suppliers may not be willing to provide you with customized services like packages and labels. However, there are some reliable Chinese suppliers such as Jewelrykg that can provide you with product and packaging design services

Quality and quantity

When there are problems with your jewelry quality and quantity, that can be very frustrating. This is especially common when you buy wholesale. Because many wholesalers will sell your defective products in order to earn more money. So, you should pay highly attention to this.

Things you should not do when purchasing wholesale jewelry in China

Cooperate with different types of wholesalers

If you want to purchase bulk jewelry, then it is best for you to work with a specialized jewelry supplier. For this not only guarantees the quality of the products, but also can help you save a lot of money.

Only cooperate with well-known wholesalers

China has many large and well-known wholesalers, such as AliExpress and Alibaba. But you will find that most of their MOQ are generally higher. Instead, many other wholesale jewelry suppliers, like Jewelrykg, JewelryBund, and VerySelection, are great options. Not only experienced, but also can provide you with very fashionable bulk jewelry at a lower price.

Only look for free shipping wholesalers

Free shipping is certainly good, but it’s not reliable for a global wholesale jewelry supplier. In general, if you encounter free shipping, there is very likely that the price of the product is not realistic.

Different providers have different shipping policies, and there are many ways to add to your costs. For example,  buyer pays freight. But there are a lot of buyer-friendly policies out there, like Jewelrykg shipping costs depend on the weight of the order, the more you buy, the better deal you get.

What are the current trends in purchasing wholesale jewelry?

It is important for every bulk jewelry buyer to purchase what is in vogue, depending on your own brand style. So what is the popular trend of wholesale accessories now? Let’s take a look.

Minimalist

Minimalist jewelry has become very popular in recent years. This type of jewelry is usually simple in color, simple in design, and made of platinum, silver, pearl, etc. At the same time, suitable for all kinds of clothing collocation.

Personalized

Personalized jewelry is more suitable for young consumers. They generally pursue jewelry style that conforms to their own aesthetic value and are unwilling to follow the trend. This type of jewelry usually has a variety of colors, unique and exaggerated designs, and materials are usually gold plating, stainless steel, resin, etc.

Korean

Korean-style jewelry has been in popularity for many years. It is exquisite in design and sweet in style. At the same time, this kind of jewelry generally coincides with popular clothing and is very suitable for daily wear. Materials are generally silver, stainless steel, rhinestones, zircon, pearls and so on.

Vintage

Vintage jewelry can enhance one’s temperament. This type of jewelry is usually dark in color, with complex patterns, and the material is usually gems, gold, pearls, etc.

Ethnic

Ethnic jewelry style generally has in rich colors, exaggerated styles, and unique patterns. The materials are usually wood, stone, leather, gems, etc.

Another way of wholesale purchasing?

Have you ever thought about how to achieve the highest cost effectiveness by wholesale? In fact, you can try to change the wholesale purchase method.

I’m sure the name Jewelrykg is familiar to you. Jewelrykg, a Chinese jewelry wholesale company gaining great popularity in recent years, has risen to the top of the list mainly because of its new sales model: jewelry wholesale by weight.

You’ve probably heard of this before, but you don’t know much about it. Then I suggest you purchase in this way, because it can bring you huge benefits.

You must have come across some bulk jewelry suppliers that offer jewelry at very low prices, however, the quality of jewelry cannot be guaranteed. For example, it can be really annoying if you buy bulk jewelry that is very old, dirty, or even has visible scratches.

However, that wouldn’t happen if you buy jewelry by weight.

What is jewelry wholesale by kilogram?

Buying jewelry by kilogram is a cheaper way of sourcing than regular wholesale prices. In general, one kilogram will contain 100-350 pieces of jewelry. You can choose a variety of best-selling, quality items from Jewelrykg and finally calculate the price by weight. This wholesale model breaks the traditional jewelry wholesale method and greatly improves the shopping experience. At Jewelrykg, for example, a kilogram of jewelry costs $23 or less, and you get a lot of discounts.

Why choose Jewelrykg?

No MOQ requirement, 1 piece is also wholesale price

Get full refunds within 15 days

Top quality, no rust, no oxidation.

Diversified product styles.

Independent packages.

Complete after-sales system.

Professional Customization

Support 24/6

Final Words

The bulk jewelry market is becoming increasingly competitive. So, how to purchase high quality jewelry at the lowest cost is the key. If you want to know more about wholesale jewelry from China, you can also check out our related blog.

Finally, feel free to let us know your opinions in the comment section below! We write about things that we love and we think you’ll like too. We hope this article can provide you with some helpful information. In addition, if you have any questions or opinions, please leave a message below, we will be very happy to hear your voices.