Malabar Gold & Diamonds – A Review

Our Rating 3.6 out of 5.

Compare Malabar Gold & Diamonds with James Allen.

Visiting websites such as James Allen and Blue Nile for purchasing a diamond engagement ring, or any other piece of jewelry for that matter, is strongly recommended. Malabar Gold & Diamonds is not the best place to look for diamonds and engagement rings, neither in-store and nor online. Their pricing is exponentially high, the selection is very limited, and the customer service is not what a customer who intends to spend a large sum of money deserves.

It is worth a visit to pop into one of the stores if possible, but it will soon be discovered why it is recommended to purchase elsewhere.

A Brief History

Malabar is a certified Indian Jewelry Group by BIS whose headquarters can be found in Kozhikode, Kerala, in India. The Malabar Group of Companies came to life in 1993, founded by M. P. Ahammed who remains as the company chairman to this day.

The extent of Malabar is quite impressive, spanning over 250 showrooms scattered across 10 different countries, making them one of the largest jewelry chains in the world.

The Malabar Company also owns Malabar Watches that deals in luxury watches in boutiques across India.

Notably, the company created the longest gold chain with over 4 million links, measuring 5 kilometers long and weighing 240 kilograms, named the Dubai Celebration Chain. It has been listed in the Guinness World Book of Records.

What Malabar Gold & Diamonds Offer

The Malabar stores are bright, pleasant, and mainly focused on displaying gold items instead of diamonds and engagement rings. This is fairly common in the area because gold is more highly traded there than diamond.

A customer will be required to look around a bit to find the diamond display, though they should not expect to be offered any help by a customer service agent unless they ask for it. Customer service is not a strong point at Malabar, though it will improve their overall rating a great deal if they could work on this. Understandably, it is hard to manage staff, especially for a company as large as Malabar, but the salespeople are at the forefront of the business, and impressions do last.

What Makes Malabar Gold & Diamonds Stand Out?

Diamonds: The diamonds sold at Malabar are very hit and miss, implying that one would be required to have a good eye for diamonds to be sure not to buy a subpar one. Although it can still be difficult to find a good quality diamond, there are still some available if enough time is taken to look for them.

Bridal Lookbook: Customers can find the Malabar Bridal Lookbook online. This brief document contains all the jewelry a bride could need, and there are some stunning pieces in the collection, for both the traditional and modern bride.

Lifetime Product Service: Malabar offer their customers a Lifetime Product Service having to do with the polishing, cleaning or repairs of an item once it has been purchased.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds Pricing

Malabar Gold & Diamonds pride themselves on providing value to their customers, but this does not ring true with the pricing of their diamonds and engagement rings. For such a large retailer, it can be expected that their costs of running a business would be much higher than that of an online retailer, but Malabar seem to have pushed their prices up to the extreme.

When comparing two similar diamonds and settings from Malabar and Blue Nile, the Blue Nile engagement ring would come in at nearly half the price. That is a whopping saving, and for the same budget spent on a subpar diamond and setting at Malabar, a decent diamond engagement ring from Blue Nile would be a much better buy.

Custom Orders

Malabar offers a fairly comprehensive custom design option for clients. Using their online site, a customer can either upload a dream design or choose one on the site and add any desired changes to it. Malabar service agents will get back to them with an estimated price and the duration of manufacturing. Afterward, payment is made, following which the jewelry is crafted and shipped for delivery. This is a much more modern way of customized jewelry and makes life much easier for the client.

Website Ease of Use

The Malabar Gold & Diamonds website is pleasant. It is interactive, full of great imagery of their different jewelry, and contains enough information to assist the client in the purchasing process.

It is also incredibly easy to view engagement rings on the site which is an extremely helpful feature. There are also many other rings advertised on the site, implying that there is something for every taste. There are only a few pictures offered per each ring, but to make up for it, there is a vast amount of information and product detail offered.

There are different links available that explain all aspects of the business, including helpful FAQs and other handy information that is important for customers.

Customer Service

Malabar might not have the best reputation for its service in-store, but they do have good after sales services that make up for it slightly.

Free Product Insurance: Items bought from Malabar come with free 1-year insurance against loss, damage, riot, strike, malicious damage, burglary, accidents, and theft.

Returns: There is a 14-day return policy for items purchased, which will be refunded in full or for an exchange of another product.

Certified Jewelry: Malabar uses BIS Hallmark, IGI, and PGI to certify their gold jewelry.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds Financing Options

Malabar offers scheme payment to customers that can be applied for online, but this is only available to customers in India.

Why You Should Choose Malabar Gold & Diamonds

• Bright and appealing stores
• Large range of gold jewelry
• 250 stores across 10 countries

Malabar Gold & Diamonds – More for Gold

Malabar is a good place to look for purchasing a gold item or a piece of jewelry, but, unfortunately, the same cannot be said for purchasing a diamond engagement ring from any of their stores. The diamonds are overpriced and often of subpar quality. A customer would hence be better off spending the same amount online at James Allen or Blue Nile and receiving a far superior diamond engagement ring instead of spending the same—or, worse, more—amount of Malabar.

Here is the Official Website:  https://www.malabargoldanddiamonds.com/