I know this is not the answer you're looking for, but it depends. If it were me, I'd, as you said, dress up nicely and go to a boutique and have a chat with a representative. Show them that I'm...
I know this is not the answer you're looking for, but it depends. If it were me, I'd, as you said, dress up nicely and go to a boutique and have a chat with a representative. Show them that I'm knowledgeable about the watch and I care about their brand. Preferably make up a story that doesn't involve me getting a watch for my boss but also not one that's ostensibly made up either. I'd never bring up the word money, but always talk about how much the watch would mean to me. If this isn't an urgent matter, I wouldn't even bring up buying the watch on the spot until my second or even third visit. I'd convey to the representative that I'm interested in a certain model and that the watch is my grail, something I'd hope to get soon once I get that promotion from work, or once he or she says yes, or something like that.
If none of that works, try chrono24.com and pay the premium but that comes with risks of its own.
I get that, but they're not suffering from scarcity of demand and their most valuable asset is their brand. If they sell their watches to every schmuck who happen to walk into their boutique,...
I get that, but they're not suffering from scarcity of demand and their most valuable asset is their brand. If they sell their watches to every schmuck who happen to walk into their boutique, they're hurting their image.
Rolex is not even the worst example. They might even be considered lax in this regard. There are other brands whose watches you won't get your hands on, regardless of money, unless you have a long history of relationship with their ADs.
It's absolute laughable and I would advise everyone wanting to get a Rolex (or any other watch brand using the same ruse) to seriously consider if they really want to buy into what this is...
It's absolute laughable and I would advise everyone wanting to get a Rolex (or any other watch brand using the same ruse) to seriously consider if they really want to buy into what this is...
It's the same in the car world. Ferrari is notoriously a pain in the ass to buy a vehicle from. Bugatti (used to?) invite interested customers to dinner at his castle as a test of their...
It's the same in the car world. Ferrari is notoriously a pain in the ass to buy a vehicle from. Bugatti (used to?) invite interested customers to dinner at his castle as a test of their "pedigree." he turned down kings because they lacked "civility."
Even with Porsche which produces more cars than most of their competitors prioritizes customers with an "established" relationship on their higher tier vehicles. Once I owned two Porsches that I started getting invited to "prerelease" events to test drive new models and occasionally when a particularly nice sports car comes through the salesman will offer me a test drive before it hits the lot for public sale.
I actually understand Bugatti. They hand build 80 cars per year. At that scale, I can see the owner taking a personal interest in who they are selling to. Rolex produces 1.05 million per year. The...
I actually understand Bugatti. They hand build 80 cars per year. At that scale, I can see the owner taking a personal interest in who they are selling to.
Rolex produces 1.05 million per year. The gatekeepers aren't personally invested in the company, they are sales drones hawking mass production jewellery.
It's different per authorized dealer, but some do not care about resellers. It's an open secret in the watch world that many Rolex dealers have relationships with resellers. Many are scummier than...
It's different per authorized dealer, but some do not care about resellers. It's an open secret in the watch world that many Rolex dealers have relationships with resellers. Many are scummier than what the above conversations paint them to be.
I guess I say this because I want to wish you the best of luck in finding the watch you want, but these things are unpredictable. I've heard of people going into a store in my city once, expressing interest, and then getting a call back weeks later. I've gone and visited two different dealers a total of four times and I haven't had a single experience where they even cared to show interest in me. It's been two years and no calls; I've moved on.
I was looking for an Oyster Perpetual or a Submariner, both popular enough models that there was a long waitlist for. If it was a sporty stainless steel model, the store had none available and...
I was looking for an Oyster Perpetual or a Submariner, both popular enough models that there was a long waitlist for. If it was a sporty stainless steel model, the store had none available and were all waitlisted.
I would bet that the reasons I never got a callback were that I had zero purchase history at the dealer, I was after the same watches as many others, and they didn't think I was as serious as others. The last is speculation but I've never been offered coffee or alcohol when I've walked in whereas my cousin has. I walked in wearing jeans and a T-shirt or jeans and a hoodie.
Jesus. Ive been looking for an old accutron as a gift for awhile and thought that sucked. I can't imagine putting this much effort in for something that's mostly just clout.
Jesus. Ive been looking for an old accutron as a gift for awhile and thought that sucked. I can't imagine putting this much effort in for something that's mostly just clout.
Some if it was me not being that great at searching and some of it is being unsure which model they originally had that I’m trying to replace (or something similar). Not helped by me accidentally...
Some if it was me not being that great at searching and some of it is being unsure which model they originally had that I’m trying to replace (or something similar).
Not helped by me accidentally getting a women’s size watch the first time I tried.
Would they refuse on principle if you walked in like practically any other purchase and said “I’d like to buy [specific model]. Do you have in stock? Will it be the same price as on the Rolex...
Would they refuse on principle if you walked in like practically any other purchase and said “I’d like to buy [specific model]. Do you have in stock? Will it be the same price as on the Rolex website?”
Or is it like car sales haggling, where you have to pretend to not be in a rush so that they can pretend to entice you a better deal?
It depends on the boutique and representative. You might be lucky and they might just sell it to you but it's not likely. If it's not that kind of AD, you might hurt your chances even more by...
Would they refuse on principle if you walked in like practically any other purchase and said “I’d like to buy [specific model].
It depends on the boutique and representative. You might be lucky and they might just sell it to you but it's not likely. If it's not that kind of AD, you might hurt your chances even more by asking those type of questions though, as they make your cluelessness apparent. You have to give the representative the sense that you know what you're talking about and your interest isn't merely financial but sentimental. Most ADs don't want to sell watches to someone who will then flip it to make a quick profit. You've got to make them believe that you will be the owner of the watch and it will mean something to you.
Just want to add that if you end up buying this from a reseller, I highly recommend having a professional inspect it. You do not want to end up buying a counterfeit because you will not get your...
Just want to add that if you end up buying this from a reseller, I highly recommend having a professional inspect it. You do not want to end up buying a counterfeit because you will not get your money back.
No AD is going to sell you that watch without purchase history. I wouldn't even waste my time trying. Your best bet is to buy on the secondary market. Chrono24 is the go to website. There are a...
No AD is going to sell you that watch without purchase history. I wouldn't even waste my time trying. Your best bet is to buy on the secondary market.
Chrono24 is the go to website. There are a bunch of platinum Daytonas for sale anywhere from $90k to $120k. Obviously look into the seller before buying and make sure it comes with box and papers.
Here is one for sale with a seller located in Switzerland. Link. I don't know anything about that particular seller so do your own research, you can probably meet him in person if you are local.
My experience is a bit different than some of the others. In certain places, it's all about money and vendors expect that you don't care about the brand for any reason other than that it's...
My experience is a bit different than some of the others. In certain places, it's all about money and vendors expect that you don't care about the brand for any reason other than that it's expensive.
I don't think you need to play games, necessarily. My recommendation is you go to a high-end tourist town, walk into the store, and simply say "I'd like to buy X watch for a client of mine, can you get one?"
If you're flying through Dubai or Doha anytime soon.. that'd be a good place to pick one up too.
I know this is not the answer you're looking for, but it depends. If it were me, I'd, as you said, dress up nicely and go to a boutique and have a chat with a representative. Show them that I'm knowledgeable about the watch and I care about their brand. Preferably make up a story that doesn't involve me getting a watch for my boss but also not one that's ostensibly made up either. I'd never bring up the word money, but always talk about how much the watch would mean to me. If this isn't an urgent matter, I wouldn't even bring up buying the watch on the spot until my second or even third visit. I'd convey to the representative that I'm interested in a certain model and that the watch is my grail, something I'd hope to get soon once I get that promotion from work, or once he or she says yes, or something like that.
If none of that works, try chrono24.com and pay the premium but that comes with risks of its own.
It’s wild to me that the process of simply buying a watch could involve such a (to me) bizarre ritual.
I get that, but they're not suffering from scarcity of demand and their most valuable asset is their brand. If they sell their watches to every schmuck who happen to walk into their boutique, they're hurting their image.
Rolex is not even the worst example. They might even be considered lax in this regard. There are other brands whose watches you won't get your hands on, regardless of money, unless you have a long history of relationship with their ADs.
It's absolute laughable and I would advise everyone wanting to get a Rolex (or any other watch brand using the same ruse) to seriously consider if they really want to buy into what this is...
I'm of the same opinion. Usually money talks loud enough by itself.
It's the same in the car world. Ferrari is notoriously a pain in the ass to buy a vehicle from. Bugatti (used to?) invite interested customers to dinner at his castle as a test of their "pedigree." he turned down kings because they lacked "civility."
Even with Porsche which produces more cars than most of their competitors prioritizes customers with an "established" relationship on their higher tier vehicles. Once I owned two Porsches that I started getting invited to "prerelease" events to test drive new models and occasionally when a particularly nice sports car comes through the salesman will offer me a test drive before it hits the lot for public sale.
I actually understand Bugatti. They hand build 80 cars per year. At that scale, I can see the owner taking a personal interest in who they are selling to.
Rolex produces 1.05 million per year. The gatekeepers aren't personally invested in the company, they are sales drones hawking mass production jewellery.
It's different per authorized dealer, but some do not care about resellers. It's an open secret in the watch world that many Rolex dealers have relationships with resellers. Many are scummier than what the above conversations paint them to be.
I guess I say this because I want to wish you the best of luck in finding the watch you want, but these things are unpredictable. I've heard of people going into a store in my city once, expressing interest, and then getting a call back weeks later. I've gone and visited two different dealers a total of four times and I haven't had a single experience where they even cared to show interest in me. It's been two years and no calls; I've moved on.
I was looking for an Oyster Perpetual or a Submariner, both popular enough models that there was a long waitlist for. If it was a sporty stainless steel model, the store had none available and were all waitlisted.
I would bet that the reasons I never got a callback were that I had zero purchase history at the dealer, I was after the same watches as many others, and they didn't think I was as serious as others. The last is speculation but I've never been offered coffee or alcohol when I've walked in whereas my cousin has. I walked in wearing jeans and a T-shirt or jeans and a hoodie.
Jesus. Ive been looking for an old accutron as a gift for awhile and thought that sucked. I can't imagine putting this much effort in for something that's mostly just clout.
What's the trouble here? Old Accutrons aren't that hard to find on ebay and at respectable online dealers too if you're willing to pay for that.
Some if it was me not being that great at searching and some of it is being unsure which model they originally had that I’m trying to replace (or something similar).
Not helped by me accidentally getting a women’s size watch the first time I tried.
Would they refuse on principle if you walked in like practically any other purchase and said “I’d like to buy [specific model]. Do you have in stock? Will it be the same price as on the Rolex website?”
Or is it like car sales haggling, where you have to pretend to not be in a rush so that they can pretend to entice you a better deal?
It depends on the boutique and representative. You might be lucky and they might just sell it to you but it's not likely. If it's not that kind of AD, you might hurt your chances even more by asking those type of questions though, as they make your cluelessness apparent. You have to give the representative the sense that you know what you're talking about and your interest isn't merely financial but sentimental. Most ADs don't want to sell watches to someone who will then flip it to make a quick profit. You've got to make them believe that you will be the owner of the watch and it will mean something to you.
This may be too personal, so feel free not to answer, but what do you do that this is a requirement of the job? I'm so interested now.
That's really cool! Sounds like an incredibly interesting job!
Just want to add that if you end up buying this from a reseller, I highly recommend having a professional inspect it. You do not want to end up buying a counterfeit because you will not get your money back.
No AD is going to sell you that watch without purchase history. I wouldn't even waste my time trying. Your best bet is to buy on the secondary market.
Chrono24 is the go to website. There are a bunch of platinum Daytonas for sale anywhere from $90k to $120k. Obviously look into the seller before buying and make sure it comes with box and papers.
Here is one for sale with a seller located in Switzerland. Link. I don't know anything about that particular seller so do your own research, you can probably meet him in person if you are local.
Good luck!
Is your client willing to purchase a non-mint one, and get it refurbished?
My experience is a bit different than some of the others. In certain places, it's all about money and vendors expect that you don't care about the brand for any reason other than that it's expensive.
I don't think you need to play games, necessarily. My recommendation is you go to a high-end tourist town, walk into the store, and simply say "I'd like to buy X watch for a client of mine, can you get one?"
If you're flying through Dubai or Doha anytime soon.. that'd be a good place to pick one up too.
If this model is on waitlist at Rolex boutiques and authorized sellers, a greymarket dealer may have new watches available at a premium.
https://www.jomashop.com/rolex-watch-116506iblso.html