Pearl Factory

I was here a few weeks ago to fix a jewelry and buy a pearl for a ring. There was a a person a head of us and we waited until it was our turn. Another rich looking customer came after us and the manager instead of serving us jumped to serve them and we had to wait a few more minutes until another staff (Erika) came to us. I tried to read the name of lady who refused to help us (who was the store manager) but it was hard to read from distance.
Erika was a nice person and if It wasn’t for her I would give this business 1 star rating.

This store is amazing! Buy a pearl shell for $ 14.99 and you’ll get a chance to see and open a real pearl shell. The pearl color is a surprise, you never know which color your pearl will be until you’ll open the shell. Every color have a symbol of something else. Here some that I remembered:
White: truth, honestly, peace
Gold: riches, wealth, success
Pink: health, love, faith
Blue: confident, loyalty, courage
Silver: wisdom, self control, security
Purple: artistic, creativity, passion
Black: independence, balance, control
(I might got confuse with some colors)
We got white pearl which is the most popular pearl. Good luck!

This place was great, they helped us get what we wanted. It’s hard to find a pearl place in general, but this exceeded my expectations. Tons of fun!

4 stars why? Because it is the best place ever but when they start showing u jewelry its the most expensive kind.
Over all the experience was fun and it was educational about learning about the pearl and how it is made. Our sales person was soo nice and sweet she made me and my boyfriend’s experience funa nd entertaining i loved it! I would definat2 go back!

Giving a 1 star because there is no place to give zero stars.
Rude, pretend to not understand English and the simplest of questions. Rude and not nice. Would not allow us to look at a ring setting until they put a hole in the pearl. What if we wanted to mount it in a setting that did not require a post?
Unprofessional, what a shame in their representation of business.
Will discourage anyone from ever going to one of their locations.

Fun and happy-​making!
Our sales person was Karry, AKA Woo Hui Ping. She was happy, friendly, pesonable, and entertaining. Great job, Karry!
My first experience here was nearly 30 years ago, and I was happy with it then. Went in on a whim, this time, with a young lady who had never seen such a thing before. Karry put on a great show, and my lady was fascinated. I wish you all could have seen her face! We bought a modest pendant setting, got another pearl for free, and put it in a modest ring setting. Pure delight! I’d recommend it to anyone with a pure heart and a love of happiness.
Now, for you haters, a lesson:
First: stop calling it a tourist trap! Of course it’s a tourist trap. You’re in the tourist district of Fisherman’s Wharf, for the love of all that’s good and righteous. There’s nothing down there except tourist traps! Isn’t that why you went, you tourist, you? Calling it a Tourist Trap is like using the N word in Harlem. For shame!
Second: To the ‘the settings are overpriced’ crowd: Of course they’re overpriced! Shop space isn’t cheap in Fisherman’s Wharf, especially in the… wait for it… Tourist District. You’re not paying merely for settings, anyway. You’re paying for fun, entertainment, the experience, and the happy memories. Hand over that plastic with a smile, you cheap buzzard. If all you want is cheap jewelry, shop on eBay, not in San Francisco.
Third: To anyone who used the word ‘pushy’: Of course they are! That’s how they make their living. As someone who knows, I’ll say that they have a well crafted sales machine. No one holds a gun to your head — if you don’t want anything more than the pearl, grow a pair, say a polite ‘No thank you’ and walk away. You’ll have gotten exactly what they advertised.
Fourth: If you’ve ever paid $ 50 bucks for a pair of movie tickets, some popcorn and milk duds, and a couple of cokes, don’t even think of calling this place overpriced. Silly peoples.
Last: Relax, enjoy, rejoice, be happy. Build memories. Have fun. And when you go on a holiday, spend money like there’s no tomorrow. After all, wouldn’t it be horrible if you got hit by a bus, and your credit cards were NOT maxed out?
Love and Kisses to all fun lovers everywhere,
Papa Tom

Strange but über happy little outfit in Fisherman’s Wharf. They were shouting a chant over each clam before smacking it to find a pearl inside.
They charge $ 15 per pearl, regardless of the size, but then gut you for a setting to use it in. We were happy to watch the chanting from afar and then move along. The sales people were really after us in a super pushy, hyper way which just made us walk faster.
Not my kind of thing but for those who like to pretend they are going pearl diving (cough) and/​or into jewelry this is for them.

Got married in San Francisco so of course we had to go down to Pier 39. I absolutely LOVE pearls, my engagement ring is a pearl so of course as soon as i saw it both my husband and I just knew i had to get a pearl! 14.99 what a steal! but what they dont tell you is that all of their setting are unimaginably overpriced! I am giving them 5 stars because the woman who helped us was absolutely amazing and friendly, she was a little pushy but i guess that just comes with the job. I got two pearls i pretty good sized one and a little one. turned one into a beautiful pendant! and 349 $ later i just couldn’t bring myself to spend more money on a setting for a second pear. We do live nearby and were told that we could bring the pearl back and add a setting onto it so I’m looking forward to getting to do that! A great experience for pearl lovers like myself!

The only reason why I’m giving them one star is because I can’t put zero stars. I was standing in the store with my boyfriend for twenty minutes before we finally just left. Nobody helped us. They were understaffed and ignored us. Finally I had to yell at them because their service was shockingly rude. They were probably ignoring us because we didn’t look like tourists ready to blow a lot of money. Don’t waste your time.

Watch out!!! They trapped my wife with $ 15 price but it went up from there once oyster was opened! They tried to push $ 500 setting! There is supposed to be a $ 25 setting but they wouldn’t show it to us.

Loved it! Of course it’s trap, but I just couldn’t help myself. A real pearl no matter the size for $ 15?!? I luckily got a decent sized pearl and I placed it on a ring. I always wear it! Even my husband went in on it. He got a pretty cool blue-​ish pearl and got a locket for it to be in. It was such a cool experience in such a wonderful city. Can’t wait to go back to San Francisco again soon.

They Sucked Me in!
I got curious about the little clam with a pearl in it and wanted to try it out. but as soon as they got me interested in the pearl; out came the up sale for mounting. I told the girl that over $ 100 for a pearl ring was just a rip off and she got very butt hurt. sorry if the truth hurts but I would be nuts to pay double.
She kept me there for at least 20 minutes trying to sell me crapping mountings. I finally gave up and just walked away without the pearl I had paid for (she ran after me and gave it to me)
Everything else about this place was top notch.

Pushy sales people, but it’s a fun experience opening an oyster to find your very own pearl inside. (Did this for my friend as a birthday gift.) They will try to talk you into buying a necklace to go along with your pearl. Just smile and shake your head «no» until they stop bringing out new jewelry items to go with the pearl.

TOURIST TRAP!!! DON’T DO IT! The idea is real cool and of course you want to get your loved ones something special. They lure you in with free or $ 15 pearls and then you have to spend at least $ 50-​$ 200 to make it into a pendant or something that you can actually use. They are beautiful but most likely overpriced.
My boyfriend and I spent $ 500 on what originally was going to be $ 30-​$ 100 for presents for our friends and family. Do your homework before you go to this place and think logically before you open up any free oysters that they throw at you. Can you really afford to spend $ 500 on probably overpriced gifts? If not, just walk away and don’t look back… these people are great sales people and once you open an oyster and make it into jewelry you cannot return your purchases.

C’mon people, this is a blast! What a fun touristy experience!
And a great souvenir. As long as you have some self control and don’t get sucked into buying the most expensive setting… settings start at $ 10 for a simple, pretty silver one, or $ 20 for a simple 14kt gold one. Add $ 14.99 for the pearl and that’s not un-​reasonable!
Never had any desire for a pearl, until my husband talked me into getting one as a souvenir on our trip to San Francisco. My first one was a decent sized pinkish pearl… got the simple $ 20 gold setting for it, and I love it (still wearing it now). I’m not a sucker, but it was so much fun I was hooked.
As it was coming up to Mother’s Day, we decided to get the same ‘package’ for our moms and sister, so I went back the next day. I did the little ceremony 3 more times, ended up with two more gorgeous nice sized white/​gold and pinkish pearls, and a large BLUE pearl, which looked beautiful on the $ 10 silver setting. The salesgirl told me I could have another pearl as a gift from her (as I had purchased 3). Cracked another oyster and got another gorgeous silver pearl.
Everyone loved their pearls when we got back, especially since they had a fun little story with them and were ‘hand picked’ by us. At $ 25-​$ 35 a piece (plus a free one), they were awesome souvenir/​gifts, and were enjoyed by all!
(oh, and we got the best pearls out of the darkest shelled, fattest oysters!)

Tourist trap — definitely — but a good one
Every time I go to the Pier I always look at this place, but never stop to get pick a pearl. I’m one of those people who gets really excited at opening presents because you never know what’s inside. Finally, at my last stop at the Pier I decided to open up a Pearl.
It took me awhile to decide on the perfect «ugly» clam. Apparently, the uglier the clam the bigger the pearl! Who knew? I for sure didn’t. They make you say Aloha on the count of 3 to welcome your pearl into the world. .. hmm okay. .. it’s just a pearl not a baby. .. but what the heck. ALOHA!!! And what a surprise I got, the white, pink tinged pearl was perfect & large, even the lady who opened the clam was surprised by the size. Too bad it wasn’t a pink or blue pearl like I had hoped but I was happy with the size =)
I decided to mount my pearl onto a ring. So they drilled a tiny hold into my pearl & mounted it with some type of superglue onto the ring. Cost for pearl & sterling silver ring about $ 65. Not too bad!
I want to try doing this again! It was so fun!

Once you’re reeled in. you’re bound to spend a small fortune here!
It’s a nice tourist attraction and experience. you pick your own oyster, knock three times and say «ALOHA!» and they go through the gooey oyster to find your pearl. THEN, they clean it up and drill a hole through it and get you with all the different settings. once you pick a setting, they’ll sell you a chain to go with it (if you chose a necklace), and voila. you can spend over $ 300 on a pearl necklace that started at just $ 14.99.
Cute stuff though!

Oh you tourist trap of evil doom. I adore you but I must take away some of your stars for the overpriced pieces. If you’re a sucker (like I am) then you get lured in by these oysters but of course the price you see is only for cracking one open. Then comes the setting because that’s where the price skyrockets. Not to mention they don’t have very many sterling silver pendants so you’re basically looking at all gold settings for pendants. But you know what, it’s the fun of it all. Sharing this ridiculous experience of opening (or watching someone else open) your oyster and finding what kind of pearl awaits you. Then putting together something that you know you’re going to enjoy (and if you think you aren’t, walk away). Good experience, friendly staff, but you should cringe at the pricing.

Total tourist trap. lol.
So I thought it was cute and all but I didn’t want to get sucked in to the gimmick… but my boyfriend thought it would be a better souvenir than if i got myself something with SAN FRANCISCO splayed everywhere. I finally yielded, and the sales woman told me to choose the ugliest oyster for the most beautiful pearls so that’s what I did.
1−2−3 ALOHA!!! She cracks it open and finds two pearls! I was giddy like a school girl because I had wanted earrings. The settings were expensive though, and the woman kept showing me the ones with diamonds (of course). In the end, I chose a cute dangle for my twin pearls.
I was happy and I was going to go on my merry way when she offers me a free oyster. All I heard was free, and I got overexcited and grabbed another one. I broke it open to find a decently size pearl with a pink sheen to it. I love pearls with a pink sheen to it… and that’s when it happens. I realized I still had to choose a setting and all the settings were much more expensive for the necklaces than the earrings.
I absolutely adore the pearls that I got but my poor sweet boyfriend who wanted to get me a nice souvenir from our first trip to San Francisco had to foot the bill. Well. I get lots of compliments on my pearls and it was a great experience and wonderful memory.

I am an absolute sucker for the Pearl Factory.
Yes I know they are total tourist gimmicks.
Yes I know they are overpriced.
Yes I know they inject a foreign object into the oyster and let it do it’s job.
Yes I know they rip us off on the settings.
I am still totally drawn to it! It’s the anticipation of getting something unknown. It’s like those grab bags you may find at carnivals. You just don’t know what you will get… eep :\
Anyway, this was my second pearl at the pearl factory, my first was at the one in the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas.
Luckily (maybe a deal maybe not) we always get coupons for a free pearl from coupon books or attached to tourist maps. You get to choose your free oyster when you purchase a 14k gold setting starting at $ 19.99.
The deal’s not too bad but obviously the setting is a dingy little pendant clasp – necklace not included. And as with everyone else I’m sure, I once again did not settle for the $ 19.99 setting but went for the $ 39.99 white gold setting (I have no control!!!).
Either way, I absolutely love the pearls I’ve gotten. They are all about 5.5−6mm. Maybe I just got lucky: D
The sales person we had here was helpful, I think they are all trained to be «enthusiastic» and cheery. Although, the first girl I spoke to didn’t understand when I was asking about the coupon. Funny because she could have easily spoke Cantonese to me instead… but she just got a little flustered and went for help. (I am and I do look Chinese) :D
I got sold on the $ 39.99 ‘white gold’ small pendant attachment since I got a silver pearl (yellow gold didn’t look good on it). Depending on the salesperson they will offer you a sterling silver setting (for the coupon) but usually the ones that cost more. I got a sterling silver ring setting with the coupon deal at Las Vegas.
Verdict:
— I am a sucker and I am going to start a collection.
— Remember it is a $ 15 dollar pearl and purchasing a $ 300 setting may not be the best idea but it will cross your mind.
— Have self control!!!
Tip:
— Use a coupon or ask if they have a $ 10 setting (usually sterling silver) and purchase the pearl.
Oh yeah. missed my flight because of this lol!!!