i don't doubt your credentials at all, however, King Fook is the largest dealers of luxury timepieces in Hong Kong and the guy who we purchased the daytona from (and who we have purchased timepieces from for a very long time) told us the whole story of Rolex only supplying specific amounts and setting prices and not going below a certain discount level.

The SE Asian market is arguably the largest market for luxury watches in the world and with them being in a slump, they have cut prices to attract tourists.

In fact, high-end retail outlets in Australia have to travel overseas to purchase timepieces for clients that they cannot acquire themselves.

remember fellow americans, look outside YOUR square, there is a whole world out there that is probably undiscovered. ie your country is not the only country selling real genuine rolex watches or similar.

have you been to Hong Kong or Singapore or Dubai? it will blow your mind. There were watches there that blew my mind!!!
You know the BLING BLING that all the rap stars wear? they were there, sitting in all their glory.
they had all the brands and more that i was only slightly familiar with.
12 year old children wear tag heuer formula 1 in SE Asia.
the wealth over there is unbelievable.

Your price on a used stainless daytona is a little rich though. expecting people to pay that is highway robbery.
my watch has been valued and certified for insurance purposes as well and it complies.

 

nfr,
wow! thanks for spending that time to write all that info, it's more for me to learn.
but, i must say, some of the stuff you say is just not right... while probably alot is right.

i can't say much about the US market, since it's new to me.

the jewelry store i walked into today, had a rolex plaque stating they are a rolex authorized dealer. they might have stole that though or could have been at one time.

i have $200K worth of rolexes sitting in stock.. all bought from real authorized dealers... when they were able to sell at a bigger discount. even today we can discount , just not that much.

for you to say 99.999% of hk market's watch are used is just not true. they may be bought and exchanged hands, but they are never worn. i know because we deal a lot of watches there. and i also know the guy who controls the biggest share of the HK watch trade. we all buy and sell name brand watches, and we never sell used watches as new, never sell customized watches (custom diamonds, bracelets, etc.) without disclosing them as such items. new unaltered watches are new. because in the end, it's our a$$ on the line. we manufacture diamond jewelry and sell those as well. to screw up in watches would tarnish our jewelry image. we are talking about tens of millions a year in hk, taiwan and japan. of course, there are those that don't do it this way... they are everywhere, not just in HK.

btw: we sell to dealers, certified rolex technicians... if it's fake, one of them would have found out already in the last 12 years.

now i don't know why there's such a big descrepancy btwn what you know about the market and what many ppl are talking about. i am sure some of what you say is correct. and i can only refute the stuff i know about. i.e. watches in hk.

don't you think that it may be possible that rolex gives this kind of story to help protect it's market, its profit margin, and the margins of its authorized dealers??
to scare ppl into paying up for assurance?

thanks,

 

Even though it will cost more, you should only buy a new Rolex or any expensive timepiece (Rolex, Omega, Tag Heuer, Breitling, etc) from an authorized dealer. If you buy it from the grey market, Rolex will not honor it and refuse warranty.

 

you can actually find some authorized dealers that will give you a deal.

timezone.com is a great site. There is a sales corner forum also.
chroncentric.com is good also, especially for omega info.

If you buy from out of state, you wont have to pay sales taxes (if you have sales tax).

I've found a couple authorized omega stores that will give me a 30% discount on a seamaster. This is as good as any graymarket or online store will give.

 

tsw....

The fact of the matter is, you and I are right, and you and I are wrong.

Here is why....
Supposed you or the owner of that shop you are talking about are good, honest people...great, like I said, you are the .0001% that are honest. Fact of the matter is, the grey market for watches, Rolex ESPECIALLY, if one that cannot be caught. Like I said, my boss had a ROLEX mechanic working for him. You can VTEC an S2000 3 times over the watch, trash it, and he would fix it to spec, and no one else, including OTHER rolex mechanics would know. Ive seen it done. EVERYTHING on a Rolex is piece by piece, and can be individually replaced down to the bracelet pins. (with new parts mind you)
so like I said, if you are a REAL authorized dealer, and have REAL NEW watches, then you are the minority,and a rarity.

Also, no matter how trustworthhy a site may seem, things like this you shouldnt buy if you cant see it first.

Mav...you are correct, but just to add....

Rolex does a sort of mafia thing so to speak, not only will they NOT honor warranty, but they will "black flag" your serial number, and your watch is now a timex with a rolex badge, its worthless.

slh7d....
Like I said...you "can" find a deal on a watch , but it will NEVER be more than 10% off MSRP, and thats a rarity. A ROLEX THAT IS NEW WILL NEVER EVER DROP IN PRICE. They have NO reason to discount it. Beware of major discounts, it is 100% used. Trust me, this is WHAT I DID. A person would come in looking for a President in 18K gold....I would say "It retails for $44,000, but Ill give it to you for $25,900." This is what I did, and was trained to do, VERY WELL.

Also, Omega is not Rolex. I have 2 Omegas, and love them, but they dont run a ship as tight as good old Rolie.

 

Wow! All this talk about expensive watches really saddens me to think how unfair the world is. While people are looking to spend $20K for a watch, there are children in the world who'd go days without any food and are ridden with many diseases.

God, why must thee punish some of your children so?!!

 

Hey, you're welcome. No, I'm not in that business at all, but I do associate with people who buy high-end jewelry and watches. One guy has a Rolex guy on retainer to service his collection, he has so many of them

I've worn this watch for the past six years... http://www.chronomaster.co.uk/Bven_V...sic_auto_s.jpg

I do like watches, so when I have the disposable income to buy more, I'm sure I'll add to my collection. I always liked the Corum $20 gold coin watch as a dress watch.

I was shopping on Jewelers' Row in Philly around five years ago, and saw a Stainless Steel Daytona in a store that sold mostly low-end watches, which I thought was odd.
I asked about it, and they said the owner's son wanted one, but Rolex (or their distributor) made him buy two, so they put one up for sale in the store.
The sales guy said "Yeah, we've had it there for about six months now, but no-one wants to pay $6300 for it."
I figured that was funny, considering how scarce they were, so I told the guy I was going to post on timezone about it.
I was in there a month later, and asked about the watch.
He said "Oh wow, was that you put it on the internet?? We got a call at 9am the next day from a guy in CA who just bought it over the phone!"

 

NFRs2000NYC, can you please go into more detail about this "black flag" subject? I'm assuming you mean that Rolex black flags your serial making your resale value worth nothing?

BTW, unfortunately I diagree with you... I just brought a Rolex Daytona, I like it but my Omega Seamaster is still my favorite watch. I love it! Thats just my opinion and it boils down to personal tastes.

 

hey guys,

i am concerned about this "black list" thing...

so Rolex will not service 2nd hand watches? because essentially our customers just have to say "i bought the watch from a friend", and with original certificate in hand with an authorized rolex retailer's stamp on it. how can they deny warrantee on it.?? if they do, then where's the value of the investment come from, if 2nd hand watches are denied by rolex?

it's all about relationships. in this trade, my partner and other people make really small, tiny margins per watch. but they make money on VOLUME. you can go to a dealer and negotiate your heart out. and all we have to do is walk in and ask for a watch and buy it at a discount no end consumer can get. it's all because of years of friendship and on the volume. we have the volume they need to sustain the business.

yellafeva, i know what you are saying.. but think of it like stock or options investment. that's what i am learning. i am hoping when i have made my share of profits, i won't change and still donate a lot i am marrying into this biz, so i have to help grow the company.

 

[QUOTE=mav,Sep 13 2004, 03:01 PM] NFRs2000NYC, can you please go into more detail about this "black flag" subject?