Sam Arabbetou Jewellers Jewelry Store in Southsea, Portsmouth

Reviews

1. James Hutchinson ★☆☆☆☆

   Wanted to support a local jewellers for what was a simple job of resizing a ring. This process took nearly a month to complete. The nephew of Sam was extremely rude and standoffish from the off and throughout he took the ring and said they would give me a call to provide a quote. Over a week passed by and still no call so I rang and was spoken to rudely on the phone asking if I was in a rush or something and they would call me when they had time. After another few days I received a call saying they would have to slightly bend the ring because of the resizing and would I be happy to have this done. I asked if I could speak with them and show me in person and was told to return the following Monday. Shocked by the visit I was told the ring had already been done.. despite never receiving a quote or call back! I asked for it back and then they seemed to not have the key for the safe at that time. This raised alarm bells and their behaviour was very shady and unprofessional, not having a choice I was told to return a few days later. As a good will gesture he ‘offered me some discount’ from the price to resize not that I had a choice as they had already carried out the work. I’d not had any contact for nearly 2 weeks when I called I was told I would get a call back and never did, when I visited the store no one was in or the safe was locked. Finally today Sam was in, who was ‘just about to call me’..Just happy to get my ring back it was a good job in the end but overall I wouldn’t recommend. Open hours are random from advertised, no one seems to have a clue and the customer service is by far was the worst experience I’ve had dealing with any jewellers.

   1 year ago
2. Terry Kavanagh ★☆☆☆☆

   Deliberately broke my watch. I’ve never left a bad review for a retailer before, but I can’t ignore the appalling, arrogant, deceitful service I received from Sam Arabbetou Jewellers. I left in a Seiko mechanical watch for a service. It was keeping poor time, losing about two minutes a day. I was told they would assess the watch free of charge and contact me with a quote for the service. A few days later, they phoned to tell me the service would cost £850! I expressed my disbelief - I could buy the watch new for £780. The man on the phone told me that was the price because it was a very complicated procedure. I told him I could buy a new movement for the watch for a fraction of the price they were quoting. He then lied to me and told me “you can’t just swap the movement”. Of course you can. He then proceeded to speak over me as I tried to query the price further, so I hung up. A little while later that day, I went in to pick up the watch. The man I’d spoken to on the phone immediately started verbally attacking me, telling me that I was very rude and shouldn’t hang up. I replied by saying that their quotation was outrageous. He told me if I wanted it for less, I should go to a cheap repair place. I asked him if he considered Seiko UK a cheap repair place - they would do the service for £230, nearly a quarter of what he was trying to charge. He told me the watch wasn’t ready for pickup, though I could have it back in pieces, if I wanted. I said I wanted it back in the same condition I’d left it in to them. He told me he’d contact me when it was ready. After 10 days, I’d heard nothing so I called into the shop with my wife. Determined to avoid a confrontation, I merely asked for the watch back. He gave it to me. On inspection, the second hand wasn’t attached and was floating around the dial. I told him this. He then lied and said it was like that when I handed it in. It wasn’t. Still, knowing I wasn’t going to get anywhere, I left. At home, I wound the watch to test it. Nothing happened - not working at all. At this stage I’d had enough, but my wife wanted to go back to the shop one more time to try to get them to act professionally. I wished her luck and watched her head off. Ten minutes later, she was back. The man we’d spoken to previously, plus the owner of the shop, whom we’d never seen before, had both treated her very badly. When she said the watch wasn’t working, the young man said “Why would I waste my time putting it back together correctly?”. He basically admitted he’d deliberately returned the watch in a broken condition. The owner shouted at my wife and demanded she leave the shop. I’m now sending the watch to Seiko for a professional service - something I should have done in the first place. I wanted to support a local business, but this experience has made me think twice. I don’t know what mess Seiko will find when they open the watch - whether parts have been broken or are missing. I’ll update this review when I hear from Seiko. To summarise: * I left in a working (though slow-running) watch for a free service appraisal; * I was quoted more than the cost of a new watch, and nearly four times the official Seiko UK price, for the service; * When I refused the quote, I was told I was very rude and my custom wasn’t welcome; * When the watch was returned, it was in a completely non-functional state - which was a deliberate decision, as indicated by the shop assistant’s own comments. To say I’m astounded by the appalling customer service here is a massive understatement. Perhaps other customers fare better, but I’d sincerely advise anyone else with a watch that needs servicing to consider your options.

   1 year ago
3. Lana Barford ★★★★★

   I had my platinum ring with 2 carats diamond resized before Xmas. Amazing service ! I’m so happy with a price and advice. Will recommend to all my friends and definitely come back to this shop.

   almost 2 years ago

1. Iain Kirby ★★★★★

   I've been looking for a trusted watch dealer for a while. My Grandads 90 plus year old watch was in need of some TLC and a new strap. Jordan was at hand to advise and got me a strap which matched the watches vintage. Very happy. 100% recommended 10/10. Some nice pieces in there as well. I will be back

   almost 2 years ago
2. Louise at Humming bee ★★★★★

   I got a link replaced on a pendant so that I could wear it safely on a necklace. Repair completed in the time specified. Professional and friendly service.

   almost 3 years ago
3. Kevin Youngs ★★★★★

   Recently had an extra link added to my Rolex . The service was good and completed in a timely manner . I would recommend.

   almost 3 years ago

1. Karen Wills ★★★★★

   I had my Rolex serviced here and I 100% recommend them! A very efficient and knowledgeable team, I normally go to London to get my watches serviced but now I will be bring them all here. It's great to have something like this in Southsea.

   almost 4 years ago

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