As I wrote a page ago

 

Where is the ShortGe )))) in Geneva right now plenty of them , I take all of them )))

 

They was a trick of course ))

instead of having empty places they are full of not for sale .

different way same result

 

In Zurich the same packed of “Not for Sale”

 

Fixed that sign...

 

)))))

 

I don’t think it’s a marketing tactic. I think it more a a philosophical decision as to how to run their business ad limit their growth rate overtime. A lot of companies do that, Hermès comes to mind. It makes their product more “special” and “focus”. I think that why the past few years, they spend a lot of resources reviving Tudor, so that they could relieve some of the pressure to make more.

 

How is this not a marketing tactic? It would seem to be the very definition of it in fact...

 

I understand that it would seem that way. my point is that it doesn’t’ come from marketing, but rather a philosophical decision not to grow past a certain point. There are advantages in restraint, especially in the luxury market. Other companies such as Hermès, have followed the same “restraint” route. Maybe it’s more of a European thing, in America it’s hard to understand that a company would not want to be bigger, and richer... But remember that those companies Rolex, Hermès, etc.., are private companies and don’t have to answer to stockholders, and in Rolex case, they don’t even have to make a profit...

 

You make it sound like these decisions are made is isolation - they are not. You may not want to call it marketing, but that is exactly what it is. Being seen as "restrained" and "exclusive" and "in demand" is all marketing, even if you don't recognize it as such. And yes this marketing approach can become so engrained that it becomes the company ethos...but in the end it's still marketing.

I agree that not having shareholders means they don't have to satisfy stock market analysts, meet quarterly earnings projections, etc. but again this has nothing to do with the decisions being based on marketing and desired brand perception.

 

I think Rolex do want to turn a healthy profit, you just have to compare MSRP and the actual quality of the product (good, but 5 to 9k good?) to see that. It just long-term greed, consolidated by long-term marketing, unhindered by the shortsightedness induced by public stockholding and rotating high level executives.

I just wonder if they haven't overproduced some basic models, and as they don't want to mark them down, brilliantly induced some "rarity" in some of their pro models to sell it instead. It seem to be working well (as opposed to buying back stock at ADs, sitting on inventories, etc, things that were done lately elsewhere in the industry). The new mangled serials # help as we can't know when the thing was produced?

 

I'm wondering if Rolex is really the culprit, pictures of 20 BLNO's in one shot and the high availability of every model on the grey market, if you're willing to pay, suggest to me AD's are offering them to the grey market resellers.

 

I was flying out of Heathrow Terminal 5 yesterday where they have a boutique. Absolutely no gents models other than Datejusts. No Day Dates and absolutely no sports models. Womens models were Datejusts again but they had some in gold or diamond encrusted.
A British Airways pilot walked in and asked if they had any sports models anywhere and was told no.

 

Hopefully the Rolex Exec’s will fly BA and arrive 3 hours late becuase the pilot didn’t have his GMT to correct for the time zone change

 

I thought buying a SS model in India will be a piece of cake as a common middle class Indian will not even understand how can a watch worth thousands of dollars exist. Whats so unique about it etc. For him buying a gold/diamond necklace for his wife for that money will make more sense ( as in a better investment and a better living environment with a friendly wife ). BUT guess what .. Rolex SS models are not availabe here as well. It was a shock to me. This only means that whatever Rolex dealer or Rolex is saying about increased demand in Asia or global reallocation etc etc etc is all a load of crap.
And are they really saying that only Rolex is suffering with this skill shortage , thats another load of crap.
basically all they say is load of crap. No offence to you please. i too want a submariner hope I get one soon.

 

I called into a my third AD is as many weeks yesterday to ask the same questions; "any stainless sports in stock, particularly an E1 or no date Sub?".

As always the response came, "no, none in stock. You can put your name down for an E1 and expect it in 1-2 years but we're not taking names for Subs". I sat down to try on a few other bits and asked about the shortage of stock. Again I was told that one of the reasons is the global reallocation of stock, I.e. That Europe and the states no longer get the supply they once did as Rolex now distributes stock more evenly around the world. They did also say that demand has indeed shot up and it's been perpetuated by the fact that people more than ever see Rolex's as a solid investment.

 

Seeing as I can't find any ADs with new stock I then had a look around some pawn shops/resellers.

Unfortunately none struck the right balance between condition and price but I can see myself swaying towards a later 14060m (I know the pics below are date models but no one had a no date).

 

Personally, I see no allure to the new style sub and love the smaller lugs and proportions of the older ones- and they are abundant on the used market- so you have a great selection from which to choose. We have seen at least 3 5-digit subs right here on our own classified’s in the last few months, all priced right and in great condition. Just be patient and someone here will makes your wish come true.

 

I fear that those people purchasing Rolexes as “solid investments” may be sorely disappointed in the future. A solid investment is a total market index fund, not a single watch. But to each his own.

 

Completely agree. I can't wait for the arse to fall out of the secondary Rolex market.