ASA Ruling (Upheld) - More Misleading

[Marietta]

I completely agree. The misleading claims have increased significantly since Jake took over, and presenters who used to be more genuine have now become untrustworthy too.

Rosie always avoided misleading claims, but now she does it. Poppy was the same, and now she's started as well. Steph used to be genuine, but she has progressively gotten worse over the past few months. At one time, Ellis "show everyone how to buy, Christiano" Ward was one of the best presenters - now she's one of the worst for misleading claims.

Even Jeff changes his style when covering daytime shifts. He still avoids misleading claims, but his sales pitches become noticeably more pushy - something he never does on his weekend night shifts.

Gemporia was never perfect. Even under Steve Bennett, they would occasionally make dubious claims, and there are historic rulings on the ASA website. However, those instances were rare. These days, it seems to be happening DAILY.

Jake has always been full of s**t - and I think it's telling that since he took over, that attitude appears to have spread to the presenters too.

I cannot believe that Steve Bennett though that Jake would be the solution when Colin Wagstaffe was shown the door. In my opinion, Jake was, and remains, one of the biggest problems with Gemporia.

If I owned the business, Jake and Troth would be the first to be given their P45's.

They would, deservedly, be my first two, also. Can you just imagine the change in viewership if Troth were gone? Read the reviews, the main reason people don't watch is TROTH, droning on incessantly about..... nothing, really. No-one has ANY interest in what he has to say!
And then there's Jake! He was given the MD position because he married the boss's daughter. He has no background in the jewellery business. As I said before, family loyalty is one thing but at the expense of destroying the business? No, I don't think so!
Get rid, and save the show!!

 

[TheManWithNoName]

They would, deservedly, be my first two, also. Can you just imagine the change in viewership if Troth were gone? Read the reviews, the main reason people don't watch is TROTH, droning on incessantly about..... nothing, really. No-one has ANY interest in what he has to say!

I completely agree. The guy is an absolute bore. He must be detrimental to viewing figures, yet for some reason, they insist on keeping him. I suspect they have to justify his salary and find him something to do between the rare occasions when he’s actually buying stones for the company and peddling 'Jade' that isn't really Jade (Quartzite and Serpentine are not 'Jade' Dave - stop shystering).

And then there's Jake! He was given the MD position because he married the boss's daughter.

I agree with this too. He’s one of those people who happened to be in the right place at the right time. His background is working at Little Chef and then the Gemporia warehouse. At no other company would someone with that kind of experience be thrust into the role of MD.

As I said before, family loyalty is one thing but at the expense of destroying the business? No, I don't think so!
Get rid, and save the show!!

Sadly, he won't be going anywhere. Somehow, Gemporia have just announced a £4m profit after a few years of struggles.

I'm not sure whether that's because Jake is some kind of entrepreneurial/managerial genius, despite coming across as the village idiot on screen – or whether they've simply hiked prices so much, cut costs by buying lower-quality stones, and offered paltry gram weights of metal in their cheesewire settings, that they're raking the money in.

I suspect it's the latter.

 

[Marietta]

I completely agree. The guy is an absolute bore. He must be detrimental to viewing figures, yet for some reason, they insist on keeping him. I suspect they have to justify his salary and find him something to do between the rare occasions when he’s actually buying stones for the company and peddling 'Jade' that isn't really Jade (Quartzite and Serpentine are not 'Jade' Dave - stop shystering).



I agree with this too. He’s one of those people who happened to be in the right place at the right time. His background is working at Little Chef and then the Gemporia warehouse. At no other company would someone with that kind of experience be thrust into the role of MD.



Sadly, he won't be going anywhere. Somehow, Gemporia have just announced a £4m profit after a few years of struggles.

I'm not sure whether that's because Jake is some kind of entrepreneurial/managerial genius, despite coming across as the village idiot on screen – or whether they've simply hiked prices so much, cut costs by buying lower-quality stones, and offered paltry gram weights of metal in their cheesewire settings, that they're raking the money in.

I suspect it's the latter.

Price hikes, cheese-wire bands on rings and any scam they can think of, that's why Gemporia seem to be doing alright at the moment. It's certainly not because of the wonderful MD's dazzling IQ. He was good for nothing else, in my opinion!

 

[Marietta]

Price hikes, cheese-wire bands on rings and any scam they can think of, that's why Gemporia seem to be doing alright at the moment. It's certainly not because of the wonderful MD's dazzling IQ. He was good for nothing else, in my opinion!

Village Idiot sounds about right!!

 

[Nico]

Jake and Wayno are both geezers with on the job experience and connections to Steve. I think Steve hires in his likeness- uneducated, dyslexic with an appetite for business. Don’t get me wrong, he has done well for himself and some of our purchases have been satisfactory. We know Jake is a son in law, but Wayne started in Steve’s software postal business, probably packing orders. Now he’s sales manager with zero experience outside of Steve’s businesses. I wonder if Steve relies on consultancy firms on strategy- it seems so, given it is based on cost cutting which is what they specialise in (postage, quality of jewelry of late, cutting back on producer presenter ratios, not hiring best talent, selling more Chinese made product).

 

[TheManWithNoName]

Jake and Wayno are both geezers with on the job experience and connections to Steve. I think Steve hires in his likeness- uneducated, dyslexic with an appetite for business.

The thing with Steve is that he clearly has a business brain and has done very well for himself. He started at the bottom and worked his way up.

Steve’s only downfall is that, rather than hiring the best people for the job - such as a CEO or MD with proven business experience - he appears to go for people he can trust, namely friends and family.

Jake and his predecessor, Colin, both come across as village idiots - seemingly getting to where they are by being in the right place at the right time, around the right people (their job histories can be openly seen on LinkedIn). Colin always came across as incredibly dim on-air, and Jake Thompson tries so hard to be 'the viewers’ mate' with his false, nicey-nicey persona. But it’s patronising, and he just comes across as a poor man’s Derek Trotter. Jake makes Mike Mason look like the best salesperson in the world. I cringe whenever Jake's VTs are shown. He really needs to watch them back and see how cringey they really are. I get the urge to throw a brick at my screen every time I see that awful Gem Collector VT where he says "Gem Collector, I salute you". Patronising t**t.

And judging by the tightness of his shirts, the only appetite Jake has any visible signs of is for pies and pasties.

 

[historymystery]

To be fair, Gemporia of old used to sell really good quality jewellery, in some nice designs, at very reasonable prices. It used to be the only thing they sold, so it HAD to be good quality - otherwise they wouldn't have got repeat customers, and then they wouldn't have lasted as a business. They varied from the likes of TJC, Price Drop, etc because they specialised solely in jewellery rather than being a 'jack of all trades, master of none' selly telly channel that would sell anything and everything.

These days though, they've turned into yet another selly telly channel that sells everything (CBD products, make-up, 'health' products, candles, jewellery, etc). The quality of jewellery has gone downhill (significantly), with poor to average quality stones and lightweight metal settings. Their prices have gone through the roof, and they come across as desperate for your money. Customer service is poor. Refund turnaround time is poor. Their warranty period is shocking and insulting.

Buying from a jewellers doesn't equate to buying good quality or provide guarantees. Their store owners and staff aren't always particularly knowledgeable either. I popped into a local jewellers a few years ago and asked them about a Sapphire ring that was in their window. They didn't know the origin of the stone and they didn't know what treatment it had had (I could clearly see that it had been diffused). Yet they were charging a VERY hefty price tag for it.

To be fair, Gemporia of old used to sell really good quality jewellery, in some nice designs, at very reasonable prices.

Absolutely sums it up - this is the reason so many of us were happy to buy from them, myself included. The prices were fair and the quality was excellent, innovative designs, good metal weights and stones that many of us had never seen before. And we enjoyed learning about the stones and the mining of them; the presenters were really knowledgeable about what they were selling. No comparison to what we see on screen today, with all the claptrap that's spouted by those with little or no knowledge of what they're flogging, which in the main is overpriced rubbish with pie in the sky descriptions (or no descriptions at all).