DIX30 district | A jewelry store where you can try on engagement rings at will

Buying an engagement ring is for many one of the most symbolically important transactions they will make in their lifetime. However, the shopping experience is not always user-friendly: it is difficult to try on a whole bunch of jewelry to make a good decision when they are stored behind locked display cases.

It is in response to these observations that the founder of Proud Diamond, Virginie Roy, has just opened a concept boutique at DIX30, in which you can try on rings as much as you like – and even take a few home for a trial period.

“Usually, in high-end jewelry stores, all the jewelry is under glass, and we are embarrassed to ask the salesman to take out ten of them. So we’ll end up trying one or two, and we’ll feel like we’re being judged if we don’t buy. I found that this experience made no sense,” summarizes the entrepreneur.

Additionally, many people who are getting married are quite young and fear being judged on their budget. “Most people aren’t even comfortable going into jewelry stores. We are afraid of not looking rich enough, we are embarrassed to arrive with a backpack, everything is uncomfortable,” she summarizes.

Shopping by stations

Since the founding of her company in 2021, Virginie Roy has offered jewelry adorned with precious stones designed in the laboratory, for ethical and environmental reasons. This manufacturing method also allows you to purchase more affordable rings. For example, a ring with a one-carat diamond from Proud Diamond can sell for $3,500, well below the price of a ring with a natural diamond.

Until now, all pieces were sold online.

For its first physical store, which opened its doors on Saturday in the Brossard shopping complex, it wanted to offer an experience very different from that of traditional jewelry stores.

The Press was able to test the concept a few days before the opening.

From the outset, we are surprised to see displays full of pretty rings that can be handled and tried on without the slightest supervision. We take a small tray on which we place all the rings that we like, whether because of the color of the stone, its shape, its size or even the metal of the band.

“From station to station, it helps you and takes you by the hand to create your custom jewelry,” she says.

It goes without saying that the rings left available to customers are fake with plastic ornaments.

Once a “perfect ring” model has been chosen, you enter the details into your customer account, and you receive the price the jewelry would cost within 48 hours by email. The goal is that everything will soon be automated so that the price can be given directly to the store.

Notice to partners

Attention partners for whom the shopping experience can be stressful: Proud Diamond customers can create an account when trying on rings, leave details about their finger size and favorite models, and give access to their better half.

Let’s say that this ensures that the “surprise” will be beautiful…

Virginie Roy plans to closely examine the use of the stations in the coming weeks, to make adjustments if necessary.

“I’ve never seen this anywhere else, but at the same time, I don’t understand why it hasn’t been done before. It’s not a purchase like any other, and we shouldn’t treat it like a purchase like any other. Usually it’s the ring of your life, it can’t be that you can just try on three because you’re uncomfortable,” she says.