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Are today’s watch prices are control?
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JwRosenthal
·I'm quite sure that @mzinski was being ironic. And frankly, I'm sure most of us are well aware that almost all crashes and other disasters were preceded by a period of loosening regulations. During periods of growth, it's popular to criticize the government for holding business back with regulations, but then after an "incident", the same people blame the government for failing to protect them. Same with everything ... health/drug safety, environmental safety/pollution, nuclear energy, real estate/debt bubbles, risky financial products, anti-trust/monopolies, etc.
I'm not so sure it's really short memory ... it's more likely simple greed and a lack of personal responsibility.
And yes @STANDY paying $3.50 for a cup of black coffee....are you fυcking kidding me?? That’s what the minimum wage was when I entered the working world!
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kip595
·In thinking of this, I personally wonder at times if some of the high-end companies not just of the watch world (Rolex, Patek, etc.), but of luxury goods in general such as Bentley, Mont Blanc pens, certain bespoke tailors, ultra rare whiskies like some of the already limited release Macallans, and so on, have a sort of a back up plan akin to what E.L. Cord did with his Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg auto group when the original Great Depression hit: don't worry about the prices, if anything make them higher, and further restrict much new stock people can actually get when they DO want to buy it. For A-C-D, some say it worked, for a time at least, in that the few people who still had the funds for the absolute 'finest' were more ego-motivated than ever to get it, and spent the money anyway, sometimes to spite their own fates.
*For the record, that's just a thought, I'm not even sure I myself fully agree with the supposed logic of it. Oi, and coffee I have given up on and just make at home these days. ☕
*For the record, that's just a thought, I'm not even sure I myself fully agree with the supposed logic of it. Oi, and coffee I have given up on and just make at home these days. ☕
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jaguar11
·Did you know it costs EUR 93 per month to feed a family of 6 in Kenya?
With € 25 we can provide a family with clean water for approx. 8 days
- With € 50 we can provide a family with clean water for around 17 days
- With € 100 we can provide a family with clean water for approximately 33 days
Watches... 8 or 20k... does it really matter....
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Socks
·The price of everything in the western world is out of control..
$5 for a cup of milk with a shot of coffee in it, yet people pay it. Fu*king crazy if you asked me 30 years ago you would be paying so much for a cup of warm milk , and don't get me started on the price of fermented vegetable drinks (beer for the record)
20 years ago if someone told you there would be drive trough coffee shops you would have said that was a sh*t business idea! Who the hell would use one of those?!
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BlueOtter
·If it's vintage watches we are talking about, I don't think so.
When I first started with the hobby maybe about 8 years ago, it was absurd to see say, a 35mm Longines Tre Tacches for the same prices they are trading at today. I remember scoffing at a Matthew Bain sales post that had an oversized Longines "Calatrava" for approximately $4000 USD and denouncing it as a major rip off - but I guess not anymore. The very reason I started to buy and collect vintage watches was that as a relatively cash strapped student back then, I could enjoy fantastic movements, historical pedigree, and great design at very reasonable prices. But I'm afraid with vintage watch prices inching closer and closer to the prices of well-made independent watches, the value proposition is arguably lost to me. That is not to say that I don't buy vintage watches anymore, but it has definitely lost its lustre.
When I first started with the hobby maybe about 8 years ago, it was absurd to see say, a 35mm Longines Tre Tacches for the same prices they are trading at today. I remember scoffing at a Matthew Bain sales post that had an oversized Longines "Calatrava" for approximately $4000 USD and denouncing it as a major rip off - but I guess not anymore. The very reason I started to buy and collect vintage watches was that as a relatively cash strapped student back then, I could enjoy fantastic movements, historical pedigree, and great design at very reasonable prices. But I'm afraid with vintage watch prices inching closer and closer to the prices of well-made independent watches, the value proposition is arguably lost to me. That is not to say that I don't buy vintage watches anymore, but it has definitely lost its lustre.
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budgewink
·Yes alot of the prices are completely insane but it's a bonkers world we live in and there are a lot of people with a serious amount of money out there.
Will I ever buy a brand new watch at a crazy amount?....I seriously doubt it, i'd never buy a brand new car either I don't think.
OP can you edit your post title so it makes sense please?
Will I ever buy a brand new watch at a crazy amount?....I seriously doubt it, i'd never buy a brand new car either I don't think.
OP can you edit your post title so it makes sense please?
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Wooden_spoon
·I think it’s nearing a tipping point to be honest. I do believe that part of the mental calculation and therefore the demand is the faith that prices will keep going up. I think that pretty much defines a bubble.
if you were to ask a non-WIS how much a watch is worth I’m pretty sure that guess would be lower than these prices. I remember asking my wife how much she thought one of mine was worth and she was shocked.
So I agree with OP that these prices are inflated. Now that might be perfectly sustainable if there are enough people who are willing to pay. Probably with all of the wealth generated recently in the top 5% there are enough people to sustain these high prices. I hope so.
if you were to ask a non-WIS how much a watch is worth I’m pretty sure that guess would be lower than these prices. I remember asking my wife how much she thought one of mine was worth and she was shocked.
So I agree with OP that these prices are inflated. Now that might be perfectly sustainable if there are enough people who are willing to pay. Probably with all of the wealth generated recently in the top 5% there are enough people to sustain these high prices. I hope so.
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Dan S
·I remember asking my wife how much she thought one of mine was worth and she was shocked.
Huge mistake, young Padawan. 😉 The ego tempts us to ask these questions, but there is really no upside.
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TimeODanaos
·I remember asking my wife how much she thought one of mine was worth and she was shocked.
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funkright
·I'd rather pay $1,000 over MSRP for a Rolex GMT-Master 2 or a Daytona rather than $1,000 below MSRP for a Datejust. I bet you would too if given the opportunity 😉
Definitely wouldn't concur with what you've put forward. Rolex isn't compelling for me, but for the possibility of profit taking, that's about it. And I'd be pretty far down my Rolex AD's list to think about that. Sooooo many examples of quality horology, especially in the secondary market, without overpaying for a brand's advertising and product arbitrage.
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funkright
·I'm afraid you're missing the point and are being too literal in your interpretation. I took Rolex as an example. Feel free to replace Rolex with Patek, VC, AP, JLC, FPJ or whatever brand you appreciate more. My point is that paying over MSRP does not necessarily mean you're getting a bad deal.
For me overpaying does make it a bad deal, I just used Rolex as my example. It's artificial based on cheap money chasing a store of perceived wealth instead of activitely becoming a multiplier in the economy. Like Chinese money chasing empty apartments in newly built cities on their Mainland or tulips many years ago in Holland. It's all perspective, you've got yours and I've got mine.
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STANDY
··schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collectorWent to buy a Rolex Sub couldn't, Speedy Tuesday 1 dropped a week later.
Omega 1 Rolex 0 and had a nice holiday with the coin left over. I don't chase companies to spend money.
Omega 1 Rolex 0 and had a nice holiday with the coin left over. I don't chase companies to spend money.
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cvalue13
·I think it’s nearing a tipping point to be honest. I do believe that part of the mental calculation and therefore the demand is the faith that prices will keep going up. I think that pretty much defines a bubble.
I read industry folks who say this is why the luxury brands are not ramping up production straight into the bubble (particularly after the whole Hong Kong/China business evaporated).
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Rman
·Yes today’s watch prices are control.
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eugeneandresson
·The price of everything in the western world is out of control..
$5 for a cup of milk with a shot of coffee in it, yet people pay it. Fu*king crazy if you asked me 30 years ago you would be paying so much for a cup of warm milk , and don't get me started on the price of fermented vegetable drinks (beer for the record)
What about the price of a bottle of water? To me the world went mad the moment they started bottling water and selling it in shops next to coke (it’s not that difficult to fill a reusable bottle at home), and now at restaurants too. Sure, rather drink the former than the latter, but I grew up and lived my whole life drinking good water virtually free from taps...bottled water is pure madness. I get real pissed when I go to a restaurant and ask for tap water and they look at me like I am mad.
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Archer
··Omega Qualified Watchmaker
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JwRosenthal
·What about the price of a bottle of water? To me the world went mad the moment they started bottling water and selling it in shops next to coke (it’s not that difficult to fill a reusable bottle at home), and now at restaurants too. Sure, rather drink the former than the latter, but I grew up and lived my whole life drinking good water virtually free from taps...bottled water is pure madness. I get real pissed when I go to a restaurant and ask for tap water and they look at me like I am mad.
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Vercingetorix
··Spam RiskSame- I got the "sparkling or still" question once and I answered "still", and they brought me a pretty glass designer bottle of plain water..to which I said- no, I wanted tap water...looked am me like I had just asked for glass of urine.
