If you want to sell gold jewelry, you should not just hand it over to the first dealer. A K-Geld sample shows: The offers vary greatly. The best offer was twice as high as the worst.
On posters and online at Kaufengold.ch, Gold Business Time GmbH based in Nyon VD promises: “We buy your precious metals at the best price.” With over 40 branches, this dealer has the most locations in Switzerland.
Other companies also advertise that they buy scrap gold at the best prices: for example, Rent a Box with its eight stores, Goldhaus Basel, and the Swiss Precious Metals Trade in Zurich, which belongs to Säntinox AG in Teufen AR.
You should not be dazzled by promises of the best price. This is shown by the K-Geld sample: A test customer visited the stores of 15 gold and jewelry buyers in German-speaking Switzerland with all kinds of jewelry. She offered the dealers gold chains, bracelets, rings, brooches, and a watch for purchase. Some pieces were set with diamonds, other gemstones, or pearls.
In the Kaufengold branch in Winterthur ZH, an employee first checked the stamps on the jewelry with a jeweler’s loupe. The stamps show how high the precious metal content is. For jewelry, this is usually 75 or 58.5 percent. This means: Out of 1000 grams, 750 or 585 grams are gold. This information is stamped at a certain spot on the jewelry.
If this information was missing, the employee rubbed the jewelry on a small slate board. He dripped a special testing acid onto the abrasion. Depending on the composition of the acid, the abrasion dissolves. This method can determine whether it is real gold and how pure it is.
The employee then divided the jewelry into two piles – one with the 18-carat jewelry and one with the 14-carat jewelry – and weighed the precious metal. He subtracted four grams for the gemstones in the rings, pendants, bracelets, brooches, and earrings. Regarding the watch, the employee said it was just gold-plated and therefore worthless.
Best offer at Swiss Precious Metals Trade in Zurich
Finally, Kaufengold offered 7462 francs for the entire jewelry. This is far from the best price in the sample (see table). When the test customer pointed out that Kaufengold.ch advertised that they also buy diamonds, the employee replied: The diamonds presented were too small to be recycled. The supply of diamonds on the market exceeds the demand.
The best offer came from the buyer Swiss Precious Metals Trade. The branch in Zurich offered 9490 francs for the pieces.
According to manager Heinrich Bott, most of the gold customers offer for purchase is melted down and sold on the stock exchange. Only extraordinary used jewelry is suitable for resale, primarily those from luxury brands. For this, Bott pays more than the gold price. He only buys diamonds with a minimum weight of 0.25 carats and only with a certificate of authenticity.
The second- and third-best prices were offered by the international dealers Degussa in Zurich with 8,944 francs and Philoro in Wittenbach SG with 8,875 francs. In the stores, the jewelry pieces are tested with X-ray methods and gemstone testing devices. This also allows for the detection of other precious metals, which impacts the price.
The difference between the best offer and the lowest offer in the K-Geld sample was 4917 francs. At the dealer Goldhaus Mel’Or in Schaffhausen, K-Geld would have received only 4,573 francs for the jewelry — less than half of the best offer. When asked about it, Mel’Or managing director Cihad Uygur said he was surprised by this difference. He mentioned high melting costs and a risk balance due to the large fluctuations in the gold price as possible reasons. Anything that isn’t gold is subtracted from the weight and affects the price.
Before the sample, K-Geld had the jewelry weighed and evaluated at Lienhard Fine Jewellery in Wettingen AG, a registered precious metal buyer, based on the current stock market price. Adjusted to the reference value of November 6, the jewelry would therefore have been worth 9,826 francs. “However, you would not get this price from any dealer,” says business owner Simon Lienhard.
Among other things, melting costs, a risk balance for fluctuating prices, pre-financing costs, and usual fixed costs such as shop rent or wages are subtracted. Anyone offering scrap gold should expect reductions of 10 to 20 percent compared to the gold price, explains Lienhard.
In the sample, this reduction ranged from 3.4 to 53.5 percent. With most dealers, K-Geld was able to quickly and easily get an offer. The calculated value would have been paid in cash or transferred to an account.
- Always get several offers before selling gold.
- Reputable providers post their current prices in the store or publish them online. Sometimes, as a bait offer, the higher price for pure gold (24 karat) is indicated. The gold content of jewelry made in Switzerland, Germany, or Austria is usually 14 or 18 karats.
- You can determine the approximate material value of gold jewelry yourself. A calculation example for 18-carat jewelry with 75 percent purity: If the price per gram of pure gold is 103 francs, multiply this by 0.75. This gives a gram price of 77.25 francs. Multiply this amount by the weight of the jewelry.
- Ask the seller for a clear view of the scale. Note the weight of the jewelry pieces.
- Well-crafted or antique pieces can bring in more than the material value, especially if there’s a certificate of authenticity. In that case, get offers from jewelers, antique dealers, or auction houses.
- It is advisable to have large and valuable gemstones on pieces of jewelry appraised separately by a gemstone expert.
| What the dealers offered for the jewelry | |
|---|---|
| Buyer | Offered Price |
| Schweizer Edelmetallhandel, Oberdorfstrasse 14, 8001 Zürich. Weiteres Geschäft in Teufen AR. Schweizer-edelmetallhandel.ch | 9490.– |
| Degussa, Bleicherweg 41, 8002 Zürich. Weitere Filiale in Genf. Degussa-goldhandel.ch | 8944.– |
| Philoro Ankauf, St.Gallerstrasse 4, 49300 Wittenbach SG. Weitere Filiale in Zürich. Philoro.ch | 8875.– |
| Numisantique, Gerechtigkeitsgasse 80, 3011 Bern. Numisantique.com | 8722.– |
| Erwin Dietrich, Werdmühlestrasse 4, 8001 Zürich. Numismatik.ch | 8656.– |
| Goldhaus Basel, Falknerstrasse 17, 4001 Basel. Goldhausbasel.ch | 8387.– |
| Schmuckgalerie, Badstrasse 4, 5400 Baden. Schmuckgalerie.ch | 8259.– |
| Saphir Uhren & Schmuck, Obergasse 29, 8400 Winterthur ZH. Weiteres Geschäft in Frauenfeld TG. Saphiruhr.ch | 8059.– |
| Schmuckbörse, Stadthausstrasse 6, 6003 Luzern. Schmuckboerseluzern.ch | 7491.– |
| Kaufengold.ch, Obertor 40, 8400 Winterthur. Weitere Filialen an über 40 Orten. Kaufengold.ch | 7462.– |
| Rent a Box, Buebematt 1, 6003 Luzern. Weitere Filialen in sieben Städten. Rent-a-box.ch | 5477.– |
| Goldhaus Mel’Or, Löwengässchen 6, 8200 Schaffhausen. Goldhaus-melor.ch | 4573.– |
Buyers of antique jewelry are picky
The sample also shows that it is difficult to sell jewelry to dealers for resale. Buyers of antique and vintage jewelry, such as Harry Hoffmann in Zurich or the Jewelry Exchange in Lucerne, were very picky. According to their own statements, they only accept exquisite and timeless pieces. There is currently little demand for used jewelry, according to other jewelers and dealers.
