OK, this is probably a really stupid question, but It's always been one I've thought of. When looking at the watch market, you can pick up an Omega for £200 and less, but with brands like IWC and JLC and many others, the minimum I would expect to pay is much higher even for the lowest piece. Some of these £200 pieces are in-house movements and not all ETA so I wouldn't have thought that would be the reason...anyone able to explain? Let's get a discussion going! Best wishes everyone, Dan
There are a number of factors that spring to mind; marketing, limited number production, perceived status and / or desirability.
You can still pick up IWC electronics for a few hundred pounds, great watches and undervalued in my opinion.
Ebay im afraid, plenty on there at optimistic prices but they do turn up for a lot less from time to time.
I have often wondered the same, I think the main reason is perceived value. I remember as a teenager there was a brand of jeans that were really cheap. Then they kind of disappeared for a while and the price was 5 times as much as they used to be and all of a sudden they were very popular.
Definitely branding and marketing. To some degree, certain brands obviously offer a better product than others, but when it comes to brands in a similar echelon, like Rolex and Omega, Rolex can charge a premium due to its brand image and perceived exclusivity.
same thing for other markets. Lexus vs Toyota. At one point, a lexus was literally a 1:1 rebadged toyota that people would pay more for. Go figure. Economy vs First class. Both seats get you there at the same time (im generalizing of course, more to this one). Apple vs Android. Yikes, dont start this one.
Look at the Coaxial movement omegas pricing ! For their Corporate reasons these carry a hefty price premium compared to their predecessors.
This book may be of interest. It even includes a chapter on Omega and the way its fit (until recently) in the Swatch group stable of brands. One thing to consider is that it's not the Western markets that have been setting prices and branding strategies in the luxury watch industry over the past decade. This table shows the value of Swiss watch exports: Where you have a big middle class like in the US or Western Europe, making populux / affordable luxury products makes sense, as you can make a lot of money selling to not-really-that-expensive watches to a lot of people. But in a highly unequal economy like China or the UAE there is no big middle class, the money is all concentrated at the top, and it makes more sense to market to the high end. Omega has traditionally taken the former approach; it's now switching to the latter in pursuit of more money.