Gold ornament shopping: A thorough comparison between online and traditional purchase

No matter whatever the price, gold is always on demand. But in this age of advanced technology, where from pin to shoe, we buy online, we still prefer to purchase gold directly from the jewellery stores. Especially in India, where there are thousands of jewellery shop options, who offer almost same schemes and occasional discounts for almost all classes of people, buyers like to visit their preferred stores in order to purchase the finest gold jewellery that marks the trust, purity and authentication.

On the other hand, purchasers of US, UK and other first world countries prefer buying online. This inequality leads us to generate a solid comparison between the online and traditional purchase of the gold ornaments.

As we all know, everything has its own advantages and disadvantages. This comparison will show up all of it and hopes to lead to a good conclusion that may help the future gold buyers.

Authentication

Gold without authentication is like flowers without scent. BIS hallmark is a must in all the gold jewelry nowadays. This acts as the authentication certificate of the gold which marks its purity and quality. If you buy from a store, you can easily look for the hallmark or ask the staffs, but in online shopping, you may not get proper hallmark jewellery.

Color, size and quality

Your eyes are the best evaluator for judging these parameters. Moreover, in online buying, the product may vary with the product showed on the site. Therefore, in this case, traditional purchasing is the best.

Purity

24 Carat is the purest gold, which can’t be turned to jewellery as it is malleable. Alloys such as nickel, silver & copper are mixed with the gold to make it not fragile. While purchasing online, check the purity of the gold and if it varies from what shows on the site, do ask questions.

Time Investment

No doubt, in traditional shopping you have to invest more time than in online shopping. You can always log into the sites and buy online gold, but if you go for traditional shopping, you need to prepare a checklist of both the jewellery and the shops you prefer. Moreover, it takes time to choose the perfect ornament when you’re in the shop. On the other hand, you can select your jewellery hassle-freely from the online shopping marts.

Customization

This is a common benefit you will get on both the traditional and online shopping. Almost all jewellery shops take orders to manufacture custom ornaments of your choice and desire. Some stores also keep experts who can draw the design of jewellery which you want in order to produce them perfectly and quickly.

A decade before, you may crib about the online marts regarding this point, but today, many online sites offer custom options i.e., you can choose the size, color, metal, material, stones (if any), cut, design, thickness, matt or glossy, price, shipping mode and everything else related to jewelry designing and order online.

Shipping & Delivery

This can become a headache if you have chosen a wrong online jewellery store. Sometimes, they delay a few days more from their estimated shipping time. If you have an urgency of getting your jewellery done, you should opt for traditional jewellery purchase process.

Collection

Online sites are the winner in this option! With a huge seller base, they have a great good collection of the gold jewellery on their sites. You may not get the one which your heart is looking for in the retail marts, but you will definitely get that or design equivalent to it in one of those online shopping centres.

Price

Price may differ between retail stores and online shops. Online shops sometimes include taxes, making & shipping charges and other hidden costs along with the gold price. In traditional shopping, you will be relieved from the shipping charges and hidden costs.

Refund

Every shop has its own refund policies. Make sure you read the charges fully and this is applicable for both the retail and online stores.

Last but not the least, today, almost all retail stores have their own websites from where you can purchase ornaments online. As an exception, there are online stores who have no retail shops though and only operate through their online sites like the e-commerce websites. Prior to your purchase, you should always check all the stores, make a draft to compare between them and read all the policies carefully. 

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