The high-end jeweler Cartier made a huge mistake, inadvertently pricing a pair of gold-and-diamond earrings for a ridiculous $14 when their actual price was missing two crucial zeros, leading to a lucky buyer from Mexico ordering them for practically nothing.
The earrings were listed on the brand’s website for 237 pesos ($14), instead of the original price, 237,000 pesos ($14,000).
Rogelio Villarreal, who was nonchalantly scrolling through the website when he came across the offer that was too good to be true, purchased two sets of the earrings right away. At that price, he could just wait for another occasion to give them away as a gift.
“I broke out in a cold sweat,” Villarreal posted on X.
The mistaken pricing and purchase was followed by months of back and forth negotiating during which Villarreal says Cartier offered him a consolation prize instead of the jewelry, though Mexican officials supported his position that the brand had an obligation to stay true to the advertised price.
Last week, Villareal finally received the earrings at his price, posting a video of himself online unboxing the jewelry. It wasn’t easy. Villarreal, who is a doctor doing his medical residency, said he had to fight long and hard to get the company to actually deliver the earrings at the advertised price; they offered to send him a bottle of champagne instead.
The company has not yet commented on the situation.
Meanwhile, some people criticized Villarreal, saying he took advantage of what they saw as an honest mistake on behalf of Cartier, arguing he should have returned them or should pay taxes on them. Villarreal rebuts that he deserved this once in a lifetime break as a hardworking citizen.
“I have the worst luck in the world and I’ve never made any money, and what I have is because I bought it,” he wrote in another post on X.
Jesus Montaño, the spokesman for Mexico’s consumer protection agency, known as Profeco, confirmed Villarreal’s struggle and supported his position.
“He filed a complaint in December,” Montaño said. “There is a conciliation hearing scheduled for May 3, but the consumer already received his purchase.”
When asked about the ethics of the situation, Montaño said companies “have to respect the published price.” If there’s a mistake, “it’s not the consumer’s fault.”
Regarding the fate of the jewelry, Villarreal says he gave one of the earring sets to his mother. Now we wonder, who will the lucky recipient of the second pair?
