S'pore woman claims keepsake jewellery company goes MIA with her S$278 & father's ashes

After her father passed away in September last year, a woman decided to create a keepsake from his ashes to remember him.

Guo (transliteration) spent S$278 to engage the services of a local company called "Keepsake by Ryo" through Instagram and sent them a portion of his ashes on Oct. 1, 2024.

She claimed she had not received her order, and the company ghosted her.

She told Shin Min Daily News that all she wants now is her father's ashes back.

Keepsake to preserve her father's memory

The 29-year-old told Shin Min that her family is still grieving and hopes to use her father’s ashes to create small ornaments so that he can always be with them.

She found Keepsake by Ryo, a local company offering services to make jewellery from ashes and breast milk.

Seeing that it had been in business for 10 years and had received many positive reviews, she ordered three trinkets—one for herself and two for her mother—paying a total of S$278.

Guo said she handed over part of the ashes to the company on Oct. 1 and was told the process would take 4 to 14 weeks to complete.

“The jewellery only requires a few grams of ashes. After I sent them, they didn’t provide much information about the progress,” she claimed.

In mid-December, Guo was informed that the founder had been hospitalised and could only check on the status of orders after being discharged.

While she understood at the time, she did not expect the company to lose contact after that.

"I sent a message saying that I understood the progress might be slow, but I wanted to know the status of my father’s ashes. I even said that it didn’t matter if the items couldn’t be completed, but I received no reply," she said.

Initially, Guo had hoped to get a refund, but now all she wants is to get her father’s ashes back.

She expressed her frustration, saying, “None of the other things matter. But these are the ashes of our beloved family members, and they are very precious. This has made me extremely anxious.”

Group chat with other affected customers

Guo revealed that other affected customers have created a group chat, and there are currently 80 people in the same situation. Some have reported the issue to the police, while others have filed complaints with the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE).

A Shin Min reporter spoke to several other victims.

One of them, Xu, shared that she spent S$120 to order a pair of earrings and a ring made from breast milk. She sent the breast milk in September last year but has yet to receive her order.

Xu and several other victims have since contacted the police, unable to tolerate the situation any longer.

Another victim, Liang, shared her experience of ordering commemorative jewellery from the company in 2020, which she was very satisfied with.

The order included a ring, an anklet made from breast milk, and a locket containing baby hair and the umbilical cord. In 2023, after giving birth to her second child, Liang asked the company to make the same jewellery.

Unexpectedly, the second set of jewellery was quickly damaged, and the company agreed to replace it for free.

However, when Liang sent the new umbilical cord and fetal hair in 2023, the company repeatedly delayed the process.

According to her communication records with the company, they promised to return the ashes on Dec. 20, but Liang has yet to receive them.

"In the end, they didn’t respond at all. I have filed a complaint with CASE," she said.

Founder claims he almost lost his life

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A post shared by Breastmilk, ashes, baby hair, pet fur jewellery! 💍 (@keepsakebyryo)

In a post on the social media account of Keepsake by Ryo on Dec. 26, the founder claimed he nearly lost his life and had been hospitalised for several weeks.

"In the second week of December, I almost lost my life. During my hospitalisation in the following weeks, I came to realise how harsh life can be… unexpectedly. After running my business for 10 years without issue, one near-death experience led to my work, service, reputation, and dedication being questioned and even tarnished, just because of a lack of responsiveness that was beyond my control."

While he has been discharged, he was still on extended leave, the caption said.

"This unforeseen and serious incident has paralysed my ability to work as efficiently as before," he explained.

The company will pause accepting new orders while they handle existing ones, he added.

"We seek your understanding as we make every effort to get things back on track."

Lack of communication

Guo revealed that the company did not provide a phone number and could only be contacted through private messages on their social media account.

“At the time, I sent the ashes to them, and they only gave me a P.O. Box to send it to. I didn’t feel comfortable with that, so I asked their courier to pick it up in person. But in the end, I still don’t know where it ended up,” she said.

The company’s website has been deactivated and is no longer accessible.

Mothership has reached out to Keepsake by Ryo for a statement but has yet to receive a response.

Top photo from Shin Min Daily News