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Hodinkee is now an Omega AD
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absoluteczech
·Good luck to him, there will need to be a massive change in the industry to support that though. It definitely won't be anytime soon.
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JPE.88305
·CLYMER:
"No discounts, ever. Do you ask for a discount on a Chanel bag? The industry is changing, and brands are becoming more aligned with reality in terms of their own pricing. We offer SO much value add versus most retailers, the idea of discounts is seldom even broached by the buyers. The days of discounts on truly great watches are coming to an end, broadly speaking."
That's a joke. Chanel has an an approach to their product that is vastly different than Omega, in terms of limited production, defined (and frequent) regular price increases, and limited access. And there's no 'grey market' for Chanel purses--only vintage/used.
I can walk into 3 local stores and choose from an array of Omega watches that have been sitting in display cases for months if not longer. The nearest Chanel boutique is a few hours away and their product turns over faster than my wife when I crawl into bed after a few drams of Macallan 18.
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rainking
·That is a real quote he made on hodinkee.com comments section.
Regardless, exactly what value add does Hodinkee provide? In my world, zero. But obviously there will be plenty of fools (there already are) who slurp the Hodinkee Kool-Aid and will think it's cool to buy from them. Look, I don't hate Hodinkee or anything, and I enjoy some of its content about watches, but it's the last place I would actually buy a watch from, especially for MSRP. I bought one of its straps. Once. Not because I care about the Hodinkee brand, but I liked the look of it--in the picture. Real life, it was a total piece of garbage. That was the first and last time those people will ever get a cent from me LOL
Edited:
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eugeneandresson
·exactly what value add does Hodinkee provide?
They put the silent-H in Homega ...
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jsducote
·CLYMER:
"No discounts, ever. Do you ask for a discount on a Chanel bag? The industry is changing, and brands are becoming more aligned with reality in terms of their own pricing. We offer SO much value add versus most retailers, the idea of discounts is seldom even broached by the buyers. The days of discounts on truly great watches are coming to an end, broadly speaking."
"So much value add" indeed. I nearly choked on my tea.
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speedyproftw
·CLYMER:
"No discounts, ever. Do you ask for a discount on a Chanel bag? The industry is changing, and brands are becoming more aligned with reality in terms of their own pricing. We offer SO much value add versus most retailers, the idea of discounts is seldom even broached by the buyers. The days of discounts on truly great watches are coming to an end, broadly speaking."
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STANDY
·CLYMER:
We offer SO much value add versus most retailers
1) you get a Hodinkee paper bag so the recycling guy thinks your hip
2) you can buy a overpriced magazine and a watch at the same time. ( Shipping a magazine to Australia costs more than the actual magazine itself )
3) nah that's all I got
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pianomankd
·Maybe Clymer's button up sweater was a little tight that day.
Everyone says foolish things sometimes!
Everyone says foolish things sometimes!
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Riviera Paradise
·Omega will now have a selection of their watches supposedly "curated" by Jack & the Hodinkee team. I think Omega/Swatch saw how much Hodinkee exposure helped getting Tudor back in the game, especially for the North American market.
As long as Hodinkee do not have to hold these watches in stock, I think this is a good move for them from a pure marketing perspective.
However, to make a profit $$ from actual watch sales, I think Hodinkee would have to curate their Omega selection to more exclusive models such as the Seamaster NYC City edition, Apollo 8 DSOTM, Speedy LEs. Can't see why they chose that entry-level Deville watch instead of the Hour Vision or new Tresor blue dial in SS.
With Swatch 50% dependent on the Chinese market + Honk Kong riots + already holding a massive inventory of CHF$7.1billion (almost equivalent to their annual sales at CHF8.48billion) Swatch will probably be forced to flood the grey market again soon, even though they have stated in their financial reporting that they are actively combating grey market dealers...well, if that does indeed happen I can't see how Hodinkee will be able move these watches at MSRP.
As long as Hodinkee do not have to hold these watches in stock, I think this is a good move for them from a pure marketing perspective.
However, to make a profit $$ from actual watch sales, I think Hodinkee would have to curate their Omega selection to more exclusive models such as the Seamaster NYC City edition, Apollo 8 DSOTM, Speedy LEs. Can't see why they chose that entry-level Deville watch instead of the Hour Vision or new Tresor blue dial in SS.
With Swatch 50% dependent on the Chinese market + Honk Kong riots + already holding a massive inventory of CHF$7.1billion (almost equivalent to their annual sales at CHF8.48billion) Swatch will probably be forced to flood the grey market again soon, even though they have stated in their financial reporting that they are actively combating grey market dealers...well, if that does indeed happen I can't see how Hodinkee will be able move these watches at MSRP.
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Speedy 419
·Most certainly Hodinkee was told they must sell Omega watches at full MSRP as part of their deal to become an AD, so it's not surprising this is their policy but I'm a bit surprised at his "Are you f-ing kidding me?" attitude about it. People are still going to look for a deal and not every market commands what the NYC market commands in spite of what he may (pretend to) believe.
I had a similar feeling when I read the quotes, especially the one from Clymer. I've enjoyed reading Hodinkee's articles, but their tone is changing and not in a good way. It's beginning to feel very snobbish, IMO.
I'm sure the agreement is to sell at full MSRP, but there are just too many options to buy at a discount. IIRC, you get an additional year of warranty buying from Hodinkee, but there really isn't enough value-add to justify paying full MSRP.
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abrod520
·Stopped by the Hodinkee Omega popup today since I’m back home for the holiday. As with any Hodinkee event, it wasn’t terribly interesting for an actual watch nerd but yes, you can see Hodinkee straps in person (not a bad thing IMO). Also had a bunch of Omega NATOs. But there were a number of nice Omega Museum pieces which were cool to see, including a very very nice 2915 and a couple of 2913s. Worth a half hour or so if you’re in town
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speedyproftw
·I had a similar feeling when I read the quotes, especially the one from Clymer. I've enjoyed reading Hodinkee's articles, but their tone is changing and not in a good way. It's beginning to feel very snobbish, IMO.
I'm sure the agreement is to sell at full MSRP, but there are just too many options to buy at a discount. IIRC, you get an additional year of warranty buying from Hodinkee, but there really isn't enough value-add to justify paying full MSRP.
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Desmodromic
·Yeah, agree. The tone has gotten noticeably more snobby with some exceptions like James Stacey, of course. The website is also much less interesting. Lots of things they are selling or promoting and not nearly as much interesting stuff about actual watches. Sadly now that they're going to be a dealer for multiple brands, I think Hodinkee's best days are behind them as an enthusiast website. They claim they'll keep the commercial and journalistic aspects separate, but that's just not realistic long term. Oh well, at least we still have Fratello!
As long as they keep Jack Forster, they will be alright. I try to read everything he writes, even about watches I don't care about, because I always learn something.
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speedyproftw
·As long as they keep Jack Forster, they will be alright. I try to read everything he writes, even about watches I don't care about, because I always learn something.
