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[MonBK]

I've heard the same thing from two AD's.

Don't know if it's true or the regular bs.

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by HKtoter

Chris,
I stopped by my local AD yesterday while I was in town. The saleswoman who helped me was a true professional and a Rolex WIS. She spotted me as I entered the side entrance and immediately commented and complemented my 16710 Pepsi. Even going so far to mention the SEL bracelet and lug holed case. She wore a stunningly beautiful Lady-Datejust President.
After chatting for a while and looking at a few watches, I told her that my next will be a 14060M. We spoke about what's been selling and the type that's slow to move. She also told me that Rolex will be filling the case sometime next month.
The big news from her;
As of late February, Rolex has stopped with the 2%-3% kickback to the AD if the timepiece is paid for within 30 days. Any truth to this? Or is just RolexUSA?

Thanks,
Steve

Hi Steve,

It's always nice to hear of fellow WISes in the trade, sounds like you had a good chat

As for your question, if the policy has changed over here (I'm not even entirely sure if we get that benefit), I've not heard about it. Then again, I don't really have access to the financial side of things, it's something that the MD has been dealing with. I have to say, I'm a little out of the loop at present, not had the chance to work a day in the shop since early January due to my University commitments unfortunately. I'm expecting a call from the boss in the next couple of days though, so I'll bring it up then, see if he's willing to divulge

Sorry I can't give you a better answer right now,

Chris

[wuzzzer]

Originally Posted by MonBK

I've heard the same thing from two AD's.

Don't know if it's true or the regular bs.

'tis true unfortunately.

[ratty]

Hi Chris

Is it possible in the UK to buy a black dial for a SS Daytona without having to swap the white one? If so, any idea how much one would cost?

Thanks

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by ratty

Hi Chris

Is it possible in the UK to buy a black dial for a SS Daytona without having to swap the white one? If so, any idea how much one would cost?

Thanks

Hi Graham,

Not through ADs, anyway. I believe the only time you can change it on SS is within the first three months of purchase for the sum of £150, and that would be a swap

Chris

[ratty]

Thank you.

[Changmaisausage]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

Hi Carlos,

I will be honest with you here, I don't know as I haven't been told, so I can't confirm or deny the rumours. Sorry on that one

I was informed recently from a Rolex employee (event co-ordinator) that he received a 50% off his Rolex that year he had been with the company for five years. The discount is only after five years on completion of ten years you are able to buy another and so forth.

Ps. he bought a green sub (LV) and very nice it was.

[Vee-Dweller]

hi chris, the wife picked me a new sub c up from a uk ad over the weekend as a birthday present and very nice it is but it's running +10 - +17 seconds a day fast. i've had a few rolex watches and they have always been +1 or +2 seconds a day straight out of the boxes. should i give the watch more break in time or take it back to the ad and get them to send to the uk rsc for regulation? how long would it be away for? dont really want to loose a near £5K new watch for months and months when it's only days old. i know it's a mechanical watch but i expect much better accuracy from my rolexes.

great thread thanks.............

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by Changmaisausage

I was informed recently from a Rolex employee (event co-ordinator) that he received a 50% off his Rolex that year he had been with the company for five years. The discount is only after five years on completion of ten years you are able to buy another and so forth.

Ps. he bought a green sub (LV) and very nice it was.

Interesting stuff, thanks for your input

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by Vee-Dweller

hi chris, the wife picked me a new sub c up from a uk ad over the weekend as a birthday present and very nice it is but it's running +10 - +17 seconds a day fast. i've had a few rolex watches and they have always been +1 or +2 seconds a day straight out of the boxes. should i give the watch more break in time or take it back to the ad and get them to send to the uk rsc for regulation? how long would it be away for? dont really want to loose a near £5K new watch for months and months when it's only days old. i know it's a mechanical watch but i expect much better accuracy from my rolexes.

great thread thanks.............

Hello,

I wouldn't panic too much yet - you've only had it for a few days, sometimes a watch needs to settle in. Just as a point, have you given it a full manual wind yet? A watch always performs best when at the top of its power band, if it's low on power, it can gain a fair bit. If that doesn't solve it, then it probably needs regulating - if your AD has a Rolex trained watchmaker on site, they should be able to do it for you without the need for sending it to Kings Hill

Hope this helps,

Chris

[Vee-Dweller]

thanks for the quick response, yes i gave it a full 30 turns manual wind that seems to have made no difference ,rested last night crown down. from 10pm last night to 10pm tonight +11 secs. my ad doesn't have a rolex watchmaker. in your experience how long would rsc need it for?
thanks again..

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by Vee-Dweller

thanks for the quick response, yes i gave it a full 30 turns manual wind that seems to have made no difference ,rested last night crown down. from 10pm last night to 10pm tonight +11 secs. my ad doesn't have a rolex watchmaker. in your experience how long would rsc need it for?
thanks again..

Hmm, okay - I would still recommend leaving it for at least a week, if it's still not cooperating, then it's time to get it sorted under warranty. It's been a little while since I last sorted out a warranty issue (the perils of not being able to work at the shop right now), so I'm not fully up to date on turnaround times. A full service is still taking 16-18 weeks, but they fast track warranty work, so it'll be significantly quicker than that. Best thing to do is to double check with your AD for the latest turnaround times - I would have thought it would be 6-8 weeks at the very most

[MonBK]

Only 6-8 weeks to regulate a brand new, just bought under warranty watch? :r ofl:

[STEELINOX]

Originally Posted by MonBK

Only 6-8 weeks to regulate a brand new, just bought under warranty watch? :r ofl:

If I wuld of read what Chris said just now ~ a bead of sweat would materialize on my brow, in pure utter angst and disgust, fall off my nose and onto the crystal of the watch, roll towards the bezel and then under it AND then re-appear on the inside of the dial just to the right of the date aperture...

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by MonBK

Only 6-8 weeks to regulate a brand new, just bought under warranty watch? :r ofl:

I did say at the very most. There are still massive backlogs from the RSC's move of premises. As I say, I'm out of the loop at the moment, I would prefer to be overly conservative in my estimate than too optimistic

[Vee-Dweller]

i'll give it a week then give them a ring. thanks for the advice . one thing i would say about the sub c is thats it's the first rolex i've owned that feels how i would expect a rolex to feel if that makes any sense.

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by Vee-Dweller

i'll give it a week then give them a ring. thanks for the advice . one thing i would say about the sub c is thats it's the first rolex i've owned that feels how i would expect a rolex to feel if that makes any sense.

It makes perfect sense, the revised models just give you such a sense of confidence. They ooze refinement, nothing else quite feels like them

[STEELINOX]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

It makes perfect sense, the revised models just give you such a sense of confidence. They ooze refinement, nothing else quite feels like them

I would disagree, but thats just me

[clnance]

Does Rolex offer dial swaps on 3 year old datejusts? If so, are all dials available?

[Expatbob]

New to the forum, but fascinating thread.. I've been researching a new SubC for a while now, and this thread has pretty much answered every question I had (and a lot more besides!).. Well done for taking the time to share not only your considerable knowledge but also your insights into how an AD runs.

2 questions that I don't think have been raised (although apologies if they have)...

- does the old mantra of cash is king win out when negotiating a discount? Surely cash must get at least a 3% discount just compared to card handling costs? I assume high end jewellers/ADs probably accept American Express given the type of people who are likely to buy Rolexes, but can you get a better deal with another credit card/cash?

- you obviously see a lot of watches on a lot of wrists... Do you ever tell a customer if you think that a particular watch doesn't suit his wrist size? From my own perspective, my wrist is a tad over 6.5" and I thought the Sub looked fine (well fantastic!) when I tried it on, although I was concerned about the larger case/lugs beforehand. I accept it's probably a bit difficult to talk someone out of sports watch - guess you have more scope on other lines.

Cheers again!

[TKB]

wow this thread is amazing!!

thanks Chris this if by far the most info on any thread ive read on TRF!

my question is: is a "crown collection" day-date really as rare as rolex represents it to be? same with the meteorite dial?

what percentage of MSRP value do ADs usually offer as trade in? is there a specific formula?


Thanks Chris!!

[Fiery]

Originally Posted by Expatbob

- you obviously see a lot of watches on a lot of wrists... Do you ever tell a customer if you think that a particular watch doesn't suit his wrist size? From my own perspective, my wrist is a tad over 6.5" and I thought the Sub looked fine (well fantastic!) when I tried it on, although I was concerned about the larger case/lugs beforehand. I accept it's probably a bit difficult to talk someone out of sports watch - guess you have more scope on other lines.

Although I'm not Chris, I hope you don't mind if I tell you about my experiences on this. My wrist is around 6.3-6.5 inches, and when I bought my first Rolex at our AD, I've tried on the SS Sub-C LN and the rhodium arabic dial WG/SS DateJust II. The sales lady observed while I tried on both watches, but didn't say anything. I didn't actually want to choose the DJ II, I just wanted to try it on, but when I gave it back and told the lady that I'd buy the Sub-C, she said "It suits you a lot better than the DJ II". I guess she meant the Sub-C looks better on my skinny wrist, and that it suits my casual clothing style better. She also said a bit later on that "When someone wants to own a Submariner, he wants a Submariner and nothing else will do". I guess she had a point there

[Expatbob]

Originally Posted by Fiery

She also said a bit later on that "When someone wants to own a Submariner, he wants a Submariner and nothing else will do". I guess she had a point there

Thanks for sharing your own experiences - appreciated.

Funny, I'm starting to get that feeling too! Other watches that were on my shortlist when I started looking for a new sporty SS watch seemed to have moved down the list - guess the salespeople see that a lot when certain new models come out! Trying it on was just confirmation that I'd made the right choice (not that I've bought it yet!). Don't think being only interested in 1 model disadvantages you, mind, when it comes to negotiating - you know what you want, and if you don't think you're getting a good deal (notwithstanding it's still a very popular watch), you're free to go elsewhere... Thankfully there does appear to be reasonable availability.

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by clnance

Does Rolex offer dial swaps on 3 year old datejusts? If so, are all dials available?

Sorry for the slow reply, didn't see this post! Yes, they should do - they may ask to do it as part of a service, but you should be able to swap out for any dial they have in stock that has been available for you particular model

[TheVTCGuy]

Hey Chris! THANK YOU!!!! Thank you man sooooo very much!!!! I just received that new EXP II 42MM Orange Hand you sent from your store! I Love it!!!! And getting the first one in the world was way worth that extra $1,000 "administrative fee" I paid directly to you (wink wink -nudge nudge). Dude, I absolutely LOVE this watch... thanks again!





Oh... Oh wait...!!!! It was supposed to be a secret! I forgot!!!! Oh.. uh... Where is that Unsend button!?!? Unsend.... UNSEND!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!!

[z32turbo]

Originally Posted by TheVTCGuy

Hey Chris! THANK YOU!!!! Thank you man sooooo very much!!!! I just received that new EXP II 42MM Orange Hand you sent from your store! I Love it!!!! And getting the first one in the world was way worth that extra $1,000 "administrative fee" I paid directly to you (wink wink -nudge nudge). Dude, I absolutely LOVE this watch... thanks again!





Oh... Oh wait...!!!! It was supposed to be a secret! I forgot!!!! Oh.. uh... Where is that Unsend button!?!? Unsend.... UNSEND!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!!

:r ofl:

It pays to be the first doesn't it!!!!

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by Expatbob

New to the forum, but fascinating thread.. I've been researching a new SubC for a while now, and this thread has pretty much answered every question I had (and a lot more besides!).. Well done for taking the time to share not only your considerable knowledge but also your insights into how an AD runs.

2 questions that I don't think have been raised (although apologies if they have)...

- does the old mantra of cash is king win out when negotiating a discount? Surely cash must get at least a 3% discount just compared to card handling costs? I assume high end jewellers/ADs probably accept American Express given the type of people who are likely to buy Rolexes, but can you get a better deal with another credit card/cash?

- you obviously see a lot of watches on a lot of wrists... Do you ever tell a customer if you think that a particular watch doesn't suit his wrist size? From my own perspective, my wrist is a tad over 6.5" and I thought the Sub looked fine (well fantastic!) when I tried it on, although I was concerned about the larger case/lugs beforehand. I accept it's probably a bit difficult to talk someone out of sports watch - guess you have more scope on other lines.

Cheers again!

Thankyou for your kind words, hopefully I'll be able to answer your questions

I would guess it would vary from place to place. For example, the business I work for will take cash, debit cards or credit cards without incurring any charges (I don't know whether that's just absorbed by the business, or whether we have some kind of arrangement with the card operators, I'm not privy to that information). In my experience, when it comes to discount, the attitude of the customer plays quite a big part - if I can tell they're here to buy and not to mess around, then my job is to find the best price favourable to both the customer and the business, rather than just focus on selling the watch based purely on its merits. If anything, confidence rather than cash is King

The one thing I always try to be with a customer is honest, and I have commented that one watch looks better than another on their wrist on many occasions. If I'm asked for an opinion, or think that another watch for the price range would be better on the wrist, then I'll suggest it - doesn't hurt to get another one out of the case to try on. I had one chap who was after a small watch - he didn't really know what he was after, it was an impulse purchase, and was open to suggestions. I think I spent an hour or more with him getting different watches out of the case, establishing what he really wanted from a watch - he tried on sports watches, Datejusts, Air Kings, Dates, Omega De Villes and Aqua Terras, none of which were quite right. Interestingly, he ended up going home with a white and rose gold Cellini Danaos, which I brought over as a bit of a long shot. It was love at first sight, and he's been back in a couple of times since to say how much he's enjoying wearing it - that's one of the nice things about a good sale, it's always great to see a customer over the moon with a watch because you've taken the time to find the absolute perfect watch for them. In any case, I think your wrist will be absolutely fine for a Sub, I think wrists of 6 inches and above can easily pull one off

Hope this helps!

Chris

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by TKB

wow this thread is amazing!!

thanks Chris this if by far the most info on any thread ive read on TRF!

my question is: is a "crown collection" day-date really as rare as rolex represents it to be? same with the meteorite dial?

what percentage of MSRP value do ADs usually offer as trade in? is there a specific formula?


Thanks Chris!!

Hello Tai,

Now correct me if I'm wrong, but I think, when you're referring to the Crown Collection, are you referring to the 39mm Day-Date Special Edition? Gents model, on the Pearlmaster bracelet, diamond bezel, available in yellow, Tridor and platinum. If it is, then yes, it is rare, simply because it is prohibitively expensive for most to have. I would expect that very few ADs, probably just the very biggest outlets, have the capability to keep one in stock - I know I certainly haven't seen one in the three and a half years I've been working at the shop.

As for trade ins, I would expect each individual AD has their own policy. Our policy is to research a fair market price, at which we will sell it, and work out a small profit margin, taking into account a service if the watch needs it. I think our way is pretty fair, we're not ripping anyone off either when buying or selling. Other ADs may not be quite as ethical when it comes to pricing policies

All the best,

Chris

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by TheVTCGuy

Hey Chris! THANK YOU!!!! Thank you man sooooo very much!!!! I just received that new EXP II 42MM Orange Hand you sent from your store! I Love it!!!! And getting the first one in the world was way worth that extra $1,000 "administrative fee" I paid directly to you (wink wink -nudge nudge). Dude, I absolutely LOVE this watch... thanks again!





Oh... Oh wait...!!!! It was supposed to be a secret! I forgot!!!! Oh.. uh... Where is that Unsend button!?!? Unsend.... UNSEND!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!!

You actually received the watch? It was supposed to be a scam!!

[TheVTCGuy]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

You actually received the watch? It was supposed to be a scam!!

Well, the jokes on you my friend!!! Because yes, I did receive it... a Genuine Rolex EXP II 42MM Orange hand. Once I put the battery in it started ticking like a charm!



P.S. I didn't know this also had an alarm, stopwatch, and is solar powered