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Speedmaster 321 Ed White

N
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I bought a 3861 last year from an AD(paid full price) and if I could do it again, I wouldn't.

I should have gone to an Omega Boutique and paid the same price, but established a purchase history for a 321.

The current situation is so weird. Boutiques do not seem to have 321s to offer, yet the grey market seems to have plenty of new ones only a few $K over MSRP. If ADs can't get the 321, are the Omega Boutiques selling the 321s out the back door?
 
YY77
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It depends per region, my AD in Holland had a 321 in stock for walk in customers and told me it wouldn't take long is he had to order one.
 
dsio
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I don’t believe many boutiques would be selling them out the back door, Omega has a pretty good grasp of who they sell their special watches to via the boutiques, I received an email from Bienne commenting on the combination of watches I had purchased and one of them was via an AD with the others via boutique.
 
twizit
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N njlam
I bought a 3861 last year from an AD(paid full price) and if I could do it again, I wouldn't.

I should have gone to an Omega Boutique and paid the same price, but established a purchase history for a 321.

The current situation is so weird. Boutiques do not seem to have 321s to offer, yet the grey market seems to have plenty of new ones only a few $K over MSRP. If ADs can't get the 321, are the Omega Boutiques selling the 321s out the back door?

I can only go off my personal experience, having picked up my 321 from my local OB earlier this year. I had some, but not excessive, history with the OB, having purchased two watches from them over the last couple of years. Having expressed an interest in the 321 (I was also relatively new to Speedmasters) at the start of this calendar year, they noted that they were getting them in relatively frequently, although at the time this appeared to be one per quarter (this is a UK London OB). Got the call around April saying they had one for me. At this point the guy I've dealt with before noted that they seemed to be getting one per month. Not enough for them to be "in stock" but certainly not unobtainium.

Also worth noting that when I visited in the January, I happened to be in there the day they had a 321 in the boutique, ready for another customer to pick up. They were quite happy for me to view it (at which point I knew I loved it), and openly asked if I would be interested if the named customer didn't turn up to take it. Obvs my answer was yes, but the customer did take that one - but the point being that it's got to be worthwhile popping into your OB and trying your luck. You never know and sometimes it's a case of right time right place - at the very least it can't help to strike up a conversation and talk watches with the staff - they're usually really happy to spend the time for someone that shows a genuine interest.

Good luck whatever happens.
 
flash_in_the_pan
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More likely an Omega Boutique sold a 321 to a profiteer/flipper that resold it to a watch reseller.

I paid a deposit for the Snoopy with an OB when it was first announced. No screening whatsoever. If you had a credit card that worked, then they took your order. Some of the Snoopys were sold into the resell market soon after delivery. I understand, with the 321, there may be some purchase history required to get on the real list.
 
Evitzee
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I count 37 BNIB, in stock 321s on C24, that doesn't sound like a lot for a watch that's been in production for a few years now. Some hard to get watches will always make it to the grey market.
 
Indices
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Evitzee Evitzee
I count 37 BNIB, in stock 321s on C24, that doesn't sound like a lot for a watch that's been in production for a few years now. Some hard to get watches will always make it to the grey market.
It is not a lot, especially when compared to the 3500 BNIB Daytona’s from the same production period 2021-2024, it’s less than 1%.
 
N
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twizit twizit
I can only go off my personal experience, having picked up my 321 from my local OB earlier this year. I had some, but not excessive, history with the OB, having purchased two watches from them over the last couple of years. Having expressed an interest in the 321 (I was also relatively new to Speedmasters) at the start of this calendar year, they noted that they were getting them in relatively frequently, although at the time this appeared to be one per quarter (this is a UK London OB). Got the call around April saying they had one for me. At this point the guy I've dealt with before noted that they seemed to be getting one per month. Not enough for them to be "in stock" but certainly not unobtainium.

Also worth noting that when I visited in the January, I happened to be in there the day they had a 321 in the boutique, ready for another customer to pick up. They were quite happy for me to view it (at which point I knew I loved it), and openly asked if I would be interested if the named customer didn't turn up to take it. Obvs my answer was yes, but the customer did take that one - but the point being that it's got to be worthwhile popping into your OB and trying your luck. You never know and sometimes it's a case of right time right place - at the very least it can't help to strike up a conversation and talk watches with the staff - they're usually really happy to spend the time for someone that shows a genuine interest.

Good luck whatever happens.
Thanks. In the states, I have been told ADs do not/cannot carry the 321, and the only OB I can visit is the flagship on 5th Ave in NYC (who told me they do not get them regularly and they have a long list of bigger customers). The grey premium seems to be around $2K to $5K.
 
twizit
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N njlam
Thanks. In the states, I have been told ADs do not/cannot carry the 321, and the only OB I can visit is the flagship on 5th Ave in NYC (who told me they do not get them regularly and they have a long list of bigger customers). The grey premium seems to be around $2K to $5K.

Ouch. Guess one small benefit of being closer to Switzerland and with London having at least 4 OB’s, even if on straight currency translation if feels like we usually pay a slightly higher price in GBP. Good luck getting in on one.
 
Evitzee
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At this point the premium for a grey market 321 is pretty reasonable, that's a better option than trying to score one from an OB, imo. I went grey in March 2022, about a $2.2k premium after all fees and costs, but I've had 2 1/2 years of enjoyment out of the watch. Enjoy life while you can.
 
N
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OP here. I finally got one!

An OB opened in my town in September and I was one of the first to express my interest in the 321. Got the call yesterday morning and picked the watch up in the early afternoon.

I am grateful to the salesperson and her manager for making this happen as I had almost lost hope and planned to go grey in 2025.

While I will probably keep my 3861 (which I bought from an AD who couldn't get the 321), the 321 is a pretty special watch both on the wrist and in the collection.
 
flash_in_the_pan
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N njlam
OP here. I finally got one!

An OB opened in my town in September and I was one of the first to express my interest in the 321. Got the call yesterday morning and picked the watch up in the early afternoon.

I am grateful to the salesperson and her manager for making this happen as I had almost lost hope and planned to go grey in 2025.

While I will probably keep my 3861 (which I bought from an AD who couldn't get the 321), the 321 is a pretty special watch both on the wrist and in the collection.


Congratulations.
 
bsowers34
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My OB just called and offered me one they got today unexpectedly. Had to pass, but someone in Tennessee is getting one today.
 
N
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Interesting datapoints...before I got mine last week, I had decided the grey premium had gotten low enough ($1k-$2K) that I was going to go grey in 2025.

Perhaps the watch market is slowing....
 
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