Man gets $14,000 Cartier earrings for just $14 — just because the brand made one small mistake

Everyone’s looking for a good bargain. Even in the tiniest of purchases, most people like to go, “Is there a discount on this?” A good deal always feels rewarding. Now, imagine the jubilation of a person who grabbed the best deal of his life, getting his hands on jewelry worth thousands for a mere $14– all because of a mistake. Luxury jewelry brand Cartier was in for a surprise when one lucky customer checked out gold earrings retailing at about $14,000 without burning a hole in his pocket, per USA Today. 

Rogelio Villarreal (@drepute) from Mexico was hoping for an indifferent day when he went to the bathroom one fine morning, but returned a happy man. Scrolling mindlessly on his phone, like it’s done, Villareal’s eyes fell upon a shiny piece of jewelry on Instagram. The 18-carat rose-gold Clash de Cartier earrings, worth $11,600 a pair, were selling for only 237 Mexican pesos, equivalent to $13.91. Recognizing the steal deal, the man did not wait to tap the checkout option and bought the Cartier jewelry. Like any ordinary individual, Villarreal daydreamed about owning expensive necklaces from the luxury jeweller and sighed. Little did he know, he had manifested it for real. 

“I was amazed to see how much the necklaces cost and so on, and I said, ‘Someday,’ until I saw the earrings. I swear I broke out in a cold sweat,” Villarreal broke the story in a now-deleted X post. However, this was only the beginning of a bigger ordeal for him. Soon after he bought two sets of the earrings, the Cartier earrings bounced back to their original retail price on the shopping site, amounting to 237,000 Mexican pesos (USD 13,890.93). Within a week of the purchase, Cartier was notified of the massive pricing error caused due to a technical glitch, and tried to cancel his order. They reportedly suggested that the items were no longer available to be shipped.

Determined in his resolve, Villarreal declined to cancel the order, and then came the Cartier representatives, ringing his phone to clarify the issue. He said the reps informed him that the earrings he “ordered were not at the correct price,” and hence, should be canceled. To compensate for his inconvenience, Villarreal would be offered a gift– a complimentary bottle of Cartier Cuvée champagne and a leather Cartier item, the reps stated in an email. But Villarreal was not going to let that go easily. He fought for it and filed a consumer complaint with the Matamoros branch of a consumer protection agency, citing a law stated in the company’s contact form itself. The law empowered a consumer to take a good supplier to court for not abiding by the terms and conditions of a purchase. 

Later, a corporate lawyer, Jorge Lopez Zozaya, outlined how the agency could penalize Cartier for bigger fines if found guilty, per The New York Times. Fortunately for Villarreal, the jewelry brand bowed out and delivered the earrings to him without going into any more of a controversy. He later confirmed on social media and said the earrings arrived after months. He stated in follow-up posts that he gifted the earrings to his mother. On Instagram (@rovillja), Villareal shared a video flaunting the dazzling earrings on a woman's fingers, and he wrote in the caption, "These Cartiers don't go with my zip code, but they look cool."