Did You Know?

West & Co. Jewelers is proud to be one of the very few select jewelry stores in Rochester NY, out of over a hundred stores in the greater Rochester NY area, which is qualified to be a member of the American Gem Society (AGS). The American Gem Society was founded in 1934 to form an association of jewelers dedicated to setting and maintaining the highest possible standards of business ethics and professionalism in the jewelry industry.

In doing so, the organization's founders sought to provide protection for consumers, so that they could make their fine jewelry purchases with peace of mind through dealing with an ethical and knowledgeable professional.

Fine jewelry has long been a "blind purchase." When purchasing a product like fine jewelry, there is a trust factor involved. Even with the recent deluge of information available on the Internet, understanding and correctly identifying the numerous value factors involved in fine jewelry requires extensive training and ongoing education.

For nearly seven decades, the American Gem Society has served the public through on-going education for members, through an emphasis on quality customer service, and through promoting high ethical standards in the jewelry industry.

The AGS has also worked to promote and establish laws and regulations that protect the jewelry buying public. To reinforce this effort, the AGS requires members to comply with all laws as well as the Society's own regulations and recommendations concerning ethical business practices - the ultimate in consumer protection.

The American Gem Society was established in 1934 by a group of independent jewelers and Robert M. Shipley, founder of the prestigious Gemological Institute of America (GIA). It was their vision to create a professional association dedicated to setting and maintaining the highest possible standards of business ethics and professionalism in the jewelry industry. In 1934, as the country was trying to emerge from the depths of the Great Depression, people were switching to any job or occupation they could find in order to survive. Unfortunately, those who entered the jewelry trade without the gemological training, ethical code, or professional dedication of the guilds of old were tarnishing the reputations of ethical jewelers.

Shipley saw the need to protect the consumer from those who would bend the truth to make a quick buck. He founded the Society as an organization in which membership was voluntary. But to be a member required gemological proficiency, truthfulness, high ethical standards, and re-examination EACH YEAR by educators and peers to maintain membership. What was true yesterday remains the same today; these standards build a solid foundation for success.

In the 1950s, the Society sent representatives to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hearings, which eventually led to the FTC's Trade Practice Rules for the Jewelry Industry. In the late 1960s and early 1970s members developed and adopted the AGS Diamond Grading Standards, designed to provide both the consumer and the trade with a set of methods and terms for describing the 4Cs.

During the 1980s and 1990s AGS continued to protect the consumer by developing the Certified Gemologist Appraiser curriculum and certification, and opening the AGS Laboratories. During our current decade, AGS representatives have played an active role in developing legislature to protect the diamond and gemstone trade. These legislative actions will help ensure the integrity of the gemstones, thereby protecting the consumers' investment.

As a member of the American Gem Society (AGS), we at West and Company firmly believe that the best way to attract customers is to educate them. By informing consumers on jewelry and gemstone quality, care and treatments, you can make an educated buying decision. We want you to understand all the factors that help determine quality and value.

As members of the AGS we at West and Company abide by the most stringent criteria in the industry, and take great pride in representing our merchandise correctly because we have worked very hard to make sure we have both knowledge and the ethics. One without the other is dangerous.