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Desmodromic
·It's a watch, not a new kidney.
I think this will be my new tag line.
Conversation with my Rolex AD
I think this will be my new tag line.
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Martin_J_N
·Out and about at the weekend and dropped into an AD away from my normal area, I was chatting to the SA and a prospective customer, the conversation centred around the time it takes to get a BLRO (the prospective customers grail watch), the SA advised that he would happily take either of our details and would add us to their system for whatever we wanted, if the BLRO is what we want we can have one but it will take time, the SA estimated that 4-5 years based on current supply from Rolex and the ridiculously large number of people that the AD has requests from for the watch.
The SA stated that they will prioritise customers who spend money in store as they want to look after customers who spend money with them but they don't specify what the customer has to spend, in the AD's eyes if you spend money in store then you will get moved up the ladder, if you don't you will move up the ladder just not as quickly.
In essence the AD is saying spend your money in my store and I will help you get the watch you want, spend the money elsewhere I'll get you your watch but i'm not going to rush, so they'll make sure that all their regular customers, those with a spending history are going to be prioritised, for watches that are hard to come by that's fine with me.
The SA stated that they will prioritise customers who spend money in store as they want to look after customers who spend money with them but they don't specify what the customer has to spend, in the AD's eyes if you spend money in store then you will get moved up the ladder, if you don't you will move up the ladder just not as quickly.
In essence the AD is saying spend your money in my store and I will help you get the watch you want, spend the money elsewhere I'll get you your watch but i'm not going to rush, so they'll make sure that all their regular customers, those with a spending history are going to be prioritised, for watches that are hard to come by that's fine with me.
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Dan S
·Out and about at the weekend and dropped into an AD away from my normal area, I was chatting to the SA and a prospective customer, the conversation centred around the time it takes to get a BLRO (the prospective customers grail watch), the SA advised that he would happily take either of our details and would add us to their system for whatever we wanted, if the BLRO is what we want we can have one but it will take time, the SA estimated that 4-5 years based on current supply from Rolex and the ridiculously large number of people that the AD has requests from for the watch.
The SA stated that they will prioritise customers who spend money in store as they want to look after customers who spend money with them but they don't specify what the customer has to spend, in the AD's eyes if you spend money in store then you will get moved up the ladder, if you don't you will move up the ladder just not as quickly.
In essence the AD is saying spend your money in my store and I will help you get the watch you want, spend the money elsewhere I'll get you your watch but i'm not going to rush, so they'll make sure that all their regular customers, those with a spending history are going to be prioritised, for watches that are hard to come by that's fine with me.
Any word on your Sub yet?
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Martin_J_N
·Any word on your Sub yet?
Not sure, I have requested one, but any Submariner purchase is going to be at least 18 months away. Next year will be a CHNR plus DJ36 for my better half which I am hoping to pick up in the first quarter of 2020, so if I go for a Sub it will be 2021 at the earliest. I am also looking at adding something different to my collection, maybe a JLC or Glashutte diver.
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speedydownunder
·Rolex Sydney Airport Boutique
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JwRosenthal
·
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rob#1
·
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MCC
·Which one did you go for ?
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EauTerre
·What puzzles me about Rolex is why anyone would willingly wait for months - and sometimes years - to overpay for a mid-tier mass produced Swiss luxury watch.
Let’s face it: There are plenty of available brands that equal Rolex in quality (Omega being one of them) and other brands that are, quite frankly, better. The difference is that most of those brands are readily available.
Let's see and assess what the competition is offering - to someone looking for a Sub alternative :
1) Tudor BB58 : great size and movement... but can't get past the ugly snowflake.
2) Omega Seamaster 300M : nice wavy dial, great movement... but too big, ugly helium escape valve, and absolutely abhorrent hands.
3) Omega PO 600 : basically the same issues as the SM 300M, though a bit better.
4) Omega Seamaster 300 : great size (39 mm version) and movement, bi-directional bezel... but lug width too small, obnoxious Broad Arrow hands, ugly fake vintage lume, dial a bit too busy, limited availability.
5) Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe : great size (38 mm version) and movement, nice date placement at 4h30... but ugly hands, hour markers way too small. The Hodinkee edition looks better, but with the caveat of being basically impossible to find.
6) Grand Seiko SBGA229 : great movement and finish... but TOO FOOKIN' BIG and quite ugly hands.
There are more modestly sized GS models, but as they aren't divers they fall outside of the scope of this survey.
This list is not exhaustive and obviously subject to very personal assessments 😁
But it serves to underline my point : to a number of people, including me, being told "but look, other brands make watches which are just as good" is just not good enough. Because other watch companies might make equally fine products, but these won't be as technically or esthetically desirable in our view.
Notice how I'm not referring to brand exclusivity : we don't really care about this aspect. Pointing at PP, AP and VC might divert the attention of nouveaux riches and instagrammers who buy a watch to make a statement, but won't work on us. The Rolex sports models simply bear a combination of looks, technical characteristics and price point which we can hardly find elsewhere.
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Wetworks
·Because there's simply no alternative.
They might be as good in quality, but not as good in design.
Let's see and assess what the competition is offering - to someone looking for a Sub alternative :
1) Tudor BB58 : great size and movement... but can't get past the ugly snowflake.
2) Omega Seamaster 300M : nice wavy dial, great movement... but too big, ugly helium escape valve, and absolutely abhorrent hands.
3) Omega PO 600 : basically the same issues as the SM 300M, though a bit better.
4) Omega Seamaster 300 : great size (39 mm version) and movement, bi-directional bezel... but lug width too small, obnoxious Broad Arrow hands, ugly fake vintage lume, dial a bit too busy, limited availability.
5) Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe : great size (38 mm version) and movement, nice date placement at 4h30... but ugly hands, hour markers way too small. The Hodinkee edition looks better, but with the caveat of being basically impossible to find.
6) Grand Seiko SBGA229 : great movement and finish... but TOO FOOKIN' BIG and quite ugly hands.
There are more modestly sized GS models, but as they aren't divers they fall outside of the scope of this survey.
This list is not exhaustive and obviously subject to very personal assessments 😁
But it serves to underline my point : to a number of people, including me, being told "but look, other brands make watches which are just as good" is just not good enough. Because other watch companies might make equally fine products, but these won't be as technically or esthetically desirable in our view.
Notice how I'm not referring to brand exclusivity : we don't really care about this aspect. Pointing at PP, AP and VC might divert the attention of nouveaux riches and instagrammers who buy a watch to make a statement, but won't work on us. The Rolex sports models simply bear a combination of looks, technical characteristics and price point which we can hardly find elsewhere.
Ummm, ya think? Seriously though, while I can understand personal tastes, the last thing any proponent of Rolex should be critiquing, it's watch hands. The Mercedes/Tri-mark has to be one of the silliest, if not the silliest, hour hand I've ever seen on a higher-end timepiece. This especially holds true given that the commonly used name for the hands comes from a younger company. Seriously, their sister brand gets it right with the Snowflake, much less goofy.
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerThey might be as good in quality, but not as good in design.
If these designs suit your tastes, that's fine. But this is just a matter of taste, not anything else. For me, there's nothing in the current Rolex line up that I would spend money on, even if it were available, or even with a healthy discount...
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EauTerre
·The Mercedes/Tri-mark has to be one of the silliest, if not the silliest, hour hand I've ever seen on a higher-end timepiece.
Also, as far as I can tell, this hour hand design dates back to the WWI wristwatches (if not earlier) :
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EauTerre
·If these designs suit your tastes, that's fine. But this is just a matter of taste, not anything else. For me, there's nothing in the current Rolex line up that I would spend money on, even if it were available, or even with a healthy discount...
But for those whose Omega (and others) designs don't cut it, there's no choice but to wait in line for a Rolex. Hence the rationality behind our behaviour, which I tried to demonstrate in my post.
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerAnyone enticed by the current Omega divers' looks would do well to buy them online at a discount and with immediate availability.
But for those whose Omega (and others) designs don't cut it, there's no choice but to wait in line for a Rolex. Hence the rationality behind our behaviour, which I tried to demonstrate in my post.
You mean "your" behaviour...
BTW there's nothing in Omega current line up that I am buying either. But there are plenty of other watches out there that are just as good (or better) than either Rolex or Omega.
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerYou may well find it ugly, because tastes vary greatly. But silly ? Given that it serves the dual function of differentiating the hour hand from minutes hand, as well as avoiding the former to be hidden by the latter, I wouldn't call it silly.
Also, as far as I can tell, this hour hand design dates back to the WWI wristwatches (if not earlier) :
That is not the same design...those are commonly known as cathedral hands, not Mercedes hands...
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EauTerre
·You mean "your" behaviour...
That is not the same design...those are commonly known as cathedral hands, not Mercedes hands...
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerTrue but at this point it's not about finding good or better watches. It's all about brand recognition and status symbol (for non-collectors).
For Rolex it always has been to a certain extent, and they actively seek that demographic with their advertising. "A crown for every achievement" and ads like that certainly promote the brand as a status symbol brand.
I think with the hype over secondary market values, the number of people seeking the brand for the sake of exclusivity or a quick profit has increased significantly. Rolex and Omega are mid-tier brands, but both are trying very hard to price themselves up into a higher level...
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerI mean the behaviour of people who share the same mindset as mine.
Yes certainly.
I can see a very clear and direct filiation in the Rolex design, connected to those. At least that's my interpretation.
Yes, Rolex does copy things, and that sort of manner of making progress (buying up patents and suppliers) has been a big part of their strategy over the life of the company, along with spending more on marketing than anyone else.
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mattonthewater
·to the OP, this is SOP for most all Rolex dealers.
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Gamma
·Nothing new or surprising here. Personally what I don’t get is why someone would pay 2x retail for a grey market steel Rolex when for just a little more they could get a precious metal model at retail price with a modest level of patience. Not only are you not being ripped off (as much) but it will logically retain its value more into the future.
And as for Rolex being an “exclusive” brand that is laughable. Yes hard to get perhaps, but between the 1mm watches they make every year and the excellent fakes out there they are common as horse muck on people’s wrists in most big cities globally.
P.S. for full disclosure I own an Explorer 😀
And as for Rolex being an “exclusive” brand that is laughable. Yes hard to get perhaps, but between the 1mm watches they make every year and the excellent fakes out there they are common as horse muck on people’s wrists in most big cities globally.
P.S. for full disclosure I own an Explorer 😀
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