Tala Jewelers

We are writing to share our disastrous experience with Tala Jewelers. We approached Tala in September 2015 to make engagement and wedding rings for our marriage at the end of October. Despite repeated assurances that the many design issues we raised would be resolved in the final product, Tala delivered a wedding set that retained these flaws. They damaged an heirloom diamond, and have refused to take responsibility for an unsatisfactory product. The proprietor, Arto Atmadjian, has treated us as annoyances rather than valued customers. We used the bride’s wedding set only for our marriage celebration; since then, we have closeted the set away, with the groom’s ring joining it more recently. These rings represent nothing but pain and anguish in our otherwise happy married life.nnWe were initially impressed with Arto’s customer service skills. He encouraged frequent communication, as his customary style was somewhat different from our vision for our rings. We showed Arto several examples of the style we had in mind (i.e., light, organic, hand-worked feel). He assured us he could execute such a project and that we would work together to get the design right. But we are now faced with rings we hate, an heirloom diamond that is damaged, and deep emotional wounds inflicted by Arto’s insistence that we are the dreaded, eternally dissatisfied customers that tradesmen despise working with. We see things in a completely different light.nnBeginning with our initial consultation, Arto’s CAD designs for my wife’s wedding set were heavy and cold, almost with an industrial feel. We were encouraged to deliver continual feedback to get the design right. We did so for weeks, through emails and in-person consultations and even building models to demonstrate elements in the designs that needed to be changed. When differences remained between Arto’s designs and our visions, he always assured us that they would disappear in the product, as CAD was the problem, not his skills to execute. “Trust me” he repeated in every consultation, and we did. The night before our marriage, we looked at the rings for first time together. We were crestfallen. The groom’s ring was much as expected and competently executed. But the bride’s rings were a disaster. They looked as they had in the CAD renderings, meaning they were cold and heavy and industrial. My wife’s rings did not fit and the craftsmanship was below expectation. The heirloom diamond, which had a small chip at the girdle when delivered to Tala, now was visibly cracked through the table.nnFor over eight months, I have raised the design and execution issues with Arto in several in-person meetings. Of late, he has accused me of continuing to raise new problems. But this is not true. We presented the core list of problems within a few weeks of the wedding, and these complaints have not changed. As we moved through the design discussions before the wedding, we were made to feel picky, demanding, and ridiculous. My wife in particular did not feel like her opinion was respected or valued. She felt that she was being managed, and I agree with her. When I raised these issues after the wedding, Arto said that he couldn’t think of what he might have done to give that impression. Every interaction I have had with him after the wedding confirms my wife’s impression and extends her experience to me. Arto remains dismissive, impatient, and in general annoyed by us. He has no sense of responsibility for producing our deep dissatisfactions with his services and work.nnWe would like to have had some demonstration from Tala Jewelers that they understand our grievances. Sadly, we have been made to feel demanding and contrary instead of like valued customers who have entrusted the firm with an expensive and deeply emotional custom commission on the happiest day of their lives. We are sad and hurt and regretful that we chose Tala for our wedding rings. We hope you consider our experiences with them when it is time for you to partner with a jeweler for your most important projects.