I don't understand the recent Rolex SS craze/shortage. What am I missing?

pumpernikiel

True - but any interruption of current operations (i.e. closing cooperation with a distributor and appointing another one) is always a painful exercise. They need to find legal ground for ceasing the contract, probably they have no solid proof of wrongdoing, and of course there is no guarantee that the new distributor will do it differently. Going direct could be a way out but it is always more expensive so with brick and mortar setup. From e-commerce they probably want to stay away... So, it is easier to stick to what they know and what they've done for years. Don't get me wrong - i am not defending them, just trying to share that probably from their financial stand point it is just not worth it to dig into this so deep. And of course you are right that who suffers the most is the end-customer, which is a real shame.

pumpernikiel

need to find legal ground for ceasing the contract, probably they have no solid proof of wrongdoing, and of course there is no guarantee that the new distributor will do it differently.

pumpernikiel

For sure there is and was an unbalanced relationship between Rolex and its ADs. But you also indicated yourself that there was a lawsuit between both parties. I don't know the details of that battle but what it shows is that even after signig such an unbalanced contract the AD will still want to put up a fight. And that in itself is a pain in the bottom - even for Rolex.

cvalue13

Wasn’t sure whether to post in this thread or the “how often do you see a nice watch in public” thread, but:

In NYC on business for the last several days, specifically for design week and the International Contemporary Furniture Fair. Accordingly, I’m spending much of my time in networking events amongst high-end industrial and modern furniture designers. And, the epicenter of these activities is around SoHo, Chelsea, NoLita and the other “it” places-to-be-seen.

The number of Rolexes is staggering. From 50+ year-old successful modern furniture executives and designers, to young women sitting at coffeeshops, everywhere you look there are stainless and TT Rolexes.

At last night’s event I saw a hesalite 3861, and was wearing my NEW321, but saw at least a dozen others in modern SS Rolex sports watches.

cvalue13

not to disagree or agree with anything else you noted, but to point out that the above-quoted is unknown but likely not true

I don’t know of any available copies of a contemporary Rolex AD contract. But last year in connection with a lawsuit one AD contract was made public, dating from the 90’s/early 2000’s I believe. In that contract, Rolex had absolute and singular authority to terminate in its sole discretion for any reason whatsoever. This is not a surprising arrangement for a party with wildly disproportionate leverage.

While we don’t have a contemporary contract, I can’t imagine that since the 1990’s Rolex has lost its leverage or loosened its terms for ADs in this respect. If anything, given the history of Rolex since the 1990’s to today, I’d expect a Rolex to have gotten more not less draconian.

So? Whatever else may be true of Rolex’s view of ADs, I do not think Rolex’s thinking has anything to do with contractual troubles of terminating an AD relationship.

Nobel Prize

I actually brought only a Datejust with me because of all the horror stories, so wanted something fairly inconspicuous. But, to your point, Rolex was in every other wrist. especially the smaller women DJ and OP versions

cvalue13

I believe the horror stories have been vastly overblown.

Like anything/anywhere, there are surely some localized areas, at certain times of the day, that present disproportionate risk to someone with poor judgment.

But if wearing a Rolex in trendy parts of NYC is risky, either this city has gone mad or decided there is safety in numbers and they can’t take them all.

AAAKK

Needed an excuse to post this, still makes me laugh. I think it might of been an @Archer post where I first saw it a couple of yrs ago

AAAKK

Needed an excuse to post this, still makes me laugh. I think it might of been an @Archer post where I first saw it a couple of yrs ago

johnireland

You think it might get more than Paul Newman's personal Daytona? $11,000,000. That to me is an absurd price...and I'll wager Newman would have agreed. And I think Aldrin would agree if his watch got anywhere near that. If those guys wouldn't pay silly prices for a watch, why should any of us? I sense a bit of manufacture bias in your remark.

Scooterino36

One was involved in arguably one of the most important human achievements in history, the other was a Hollywood actor's watch. Seems clear to me.

johnireland

You think it might get more than Paul Newman's personal Daytona? $11,000,000. That to me is an absurd price...and I'll wager Newman would have agreed. And I think Aldrin would agree if his watch got anywhere near that. If those guys wouldn't pay silly prices for a watch, why should any of us? I sense a bit of manufacture bias in your remark.