Disrespectful customer service
When it came time to pay, I attempted to use my American Express via contactless payment. It declined, so I immediately called Amex and put them on speaker in front of the sales associate. Amex explained that the issue was with the contactless payment and that I needed to use my physical card, which unfortunately I did not have with me.
I explained that although I would have preferred to use my Amex for the points, particularly considering this was certainly not a cheap purchase, it was absolutely fine and I could simply pay with another card.
This is where the experience became extremely uncomfortable.
Another staff member, who I believe may have been a manager, came over, closed the door and stood very closely over me while everything was being dealt with. I was then told that if my card declined one more time, they would not be able to sell the pieces to me.
I was asked for ID and provided my driver’s licence. As I had recently moved, the address was being managed with a temporary address sticker, and I was told they could not accept it. I then provided government-issued digital identification, which was initially rejected because it did not have a photograph. I subsequently provided another government-issued digital ID displaying my driver’s licence, which was finally accepted.
Throughout all of this, I felt like I was being watched and treated with suspicion. It became so uncomfortable that I actually said to the staff, “I feel like I’m being treated like a criminal or a scammer.”
Despite me saying this explicitly, not one person apologised or made any meaningful attempt to make me feel more comfortable.
I understand that Cartier has security procedures, particularly for high-value purchases, and I have absolutely no issue with appropriate identification or payment verification. What I object to is the way I was treated while those procedures were being carried out. I had called American Express openly in front of the staff, had another card available to pay for the purchase and provided multiple forms of government identification.
Eventually, despite being completely ready and able to pay with another card, I decided I no longer wanted to make the purchase. When I said I was sorry but would not be proceeding, the response I received was simply, “Okay.” So I walked out.
The complete lack of apology or effort to recover the situation was particularly disappointing. After this experience, I can unfortunately understand why this boutique’s customer rating is so low.
I then walked over to Bvlgari and purchased two beautiful pieces there instead. The difference in service was night and day. I was treated with dignity, respect and warmth and received genuine five-star customer service from beginning to end.
That experience at Bvlgari REMINDED me of what purchasing luxury jewellery should actually feel like. Cartier missed the most basic customer service which is respect.
Though my SA ?Angela was absolutely amazing it was the manager who was extremely rude and disrespectful - with this customer service I don’t even know how they are still in business!
Yeah don’t waste your money on Cartier there are soo many different luxury brands out there that they know how to respect their customers