Luxury customers like to visit the shop, see/feel/try on the product, and walk out of the store with it. No manufacturer is going to set up expensive boutiques if the eventual sales occur over the internet, what's the point? The boutique concept works especially well when the manufacturers can control production and distribution, like Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and sometimes Rolex. But setting up showrooms so people can come in and see the products and then let them slip away for a possible later sale over the internet makes little sense.
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