A pink topaz Belle Époque pendant-brooch and a Victorian Egyptian Revival choker were also highlights at a recent Anderson & Garland sale.
Nordstrom Flash-Sale Site Sued Over Vintage Rolex Sales
A consumer in California is suing HauteLook, claiming it is misleading consumers regarding the quality and value of the “authentic” vintage Rolex watches it sometimes sells.
Los Angeles-- A consumer in California is suing HauteLook, claiming it is misleading consumers regarding the quality and value of the “authentic” vintage Rolex watches being offered on the flash-sale site, court papers show.
Los Angeles resident Vahdat Aghdasy filed suit against HauteLook and parent company Nordstrom Inc. on March 17 in California federal court, charging the retailers with fraud; unfair, fraudulent and unlawful business acts and practices; and misleading, deceptive and untrue advertising.
Aghdasy claims that he purchased a watch purported to be an “authentic” vintage Rolex from HauteLook in October 2015 and thought he was getting a watch that looked the same as the picture on the website but was being sold for 50 to 75 percent off the retail price.
The plaintiff also believed he was getting a Rolex shipped by Rolex because one of HauteLook’s “key selling points” is its claims that its merchandise is “100 percent authentic and comes direct from the brands,” court papers state. While the company does have a disclaimer stating that this might not be the case with the watches its sells, that disclaimer is “in small print and difficult to locate.”
What Aghdasy received instead, according to the lawsuit, was “an inferior Rolex-packaged watch, which contained many non-Rolex parts” and was “damaged and in poor condition, (and) did not conform to the photograph in HauteLook’s solicitation.”
The watch is worth “substantially” less than advertised and is accompanied by a “certified appraisal” from a company called SwissWatchAppraisers that the lawsuit alleges is not an appraisal of the actual watch Aghdasy received but, rather, an appraisal of what that watch would be worth if it was an authentic Rolex.
The suit even goes so far as to claim that SwissWatchAppraisers was a company “formed, organized, sponsored, funded and/or aided” by HauteLook and Nordstrom “for the express purpose of providing fraudulent appraisals.”
It noted that there’s no contact information for SwissWatchAppraisers on the appraisal itself, and the number listed on what appears to be the company’s website is disconnected, a fact confirmed Wednesday by National Jeweler.
National Jeweler also was able to locate an email address on the SwissWatchAppraisers website. An email sent to that address Wednesday evening went unreturned overnight.
Nordstrom did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit.
Aghdasy’s suit is being pursued as a class action in U.S. District Court for the Central
Rolex did not respond to request for comment when asked if it plans to take any legal action in the case. An online search of court records in both U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and federal court in New York, where Rolex U.S.A. is based, did not turn up any lawsuits filed by Rolex against Nordstrom.
In the legal notices section of its website, the well-known luxury watch brand states that genuine Rolex products are sold through official Rolex retailers only and that it cannot ensure the authenticity of watches sold online.
The Latest

The event, which will co-locate with the Monterey Bay Jade Festival, will bring education sessions focused on jade to the United States.

The charm is a celebration of springtime as April showers bring May flowers with the piece’s cluster of diamond raindrops.

Bench jewelers spend years honing their skills, Jewelers of America’s Certification validates their talents.

The National Retail Federation expects retail sales growth to return to pre-pandemic levels as consumers continue to face inflation.


The 4-carat, old mine brilliant-cut diamond engagement ring was co-designed by Willis and New York City-based brand Karina Noel.

Rio Tinto unearthed the diamond at its Diavik mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories.

Natural diamonds mean more than lab-grown, but when every cut is ideal, they all look the same. Customers want more—Facets of Fire delivers.

The multisensory experience, open April 8-13, will feature the brand’s silver creations among dream-like scenes of natural landscapes.

The virtual event will take place April 7 at 3 p.m.

The pieces in “Animali Tarallo” portray animals from stingrays to elephants through portraits and interpretations of their patterns.

Parent company Saks Global said the iconic location will be open through the holiday season as it decides what to do with the space.

Ronald Winston, son of Harry Winston, donated the diamonds to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

The educational event will take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, this May.

The independent jeweler first opened its doors in 1888.

The layoffs come amid the TV shopping channel’s efforts to restructure and focus on live shopping through social media.

The debut event will take place in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighborhood this fall.

The roundtable will take place May 17 ahead of the trade show’s welcome dinner.

The “Peanuts x Monica Rich Kosann” collection features the comic strip’s classic vocabulary across 10 bracelet designs.

Three industry experts dive into the complexities of the material often marketed as an “ethical” alternative for metal in jewelry.

Diamonds are not only one of the most prominent gemstones, but the birthstone for those born in April.

The Utah-based company known for making wedding bands has acquired Doubloon Golf.

The longtime luxury executive led one of LVMH’s watch brands, TAG Heuer, for 12 years before taking over Bulgari in 2013.

Authorities said the robbers fled with jewelry and 70 Rolex watches, later taking pictures of themselves posing with big stacks of cash.

Lotus Gemology founder Richard W. Hughes has translated Heinrich Fischer’s 1880 book “Nephrit und Jadeit” from its original German.

The ring's design features contrasting lines influenced by work from architecture-inspired photographer Nikola Olic.

The Conference Board’s index fell as consumers continued to worry about the impact of tariffs, the labor market, and the price of eggs.