Quote:
Originally Posted by tyler1980
seems weird in the execution. However in London at a lot of places its similar in that they want to cater to local and existing clients they already know for hard to get pieces. It makes sense from a business perspective, as they are the ones who are likely to be repeat customers.
Sorry your 5712 hunt has been so frustrating 
My only data point i got from my AD was for my recent incoming of a hard to get piece was my watch had to be:
A. registered with Patek before I picked it up. I signed the card at delivery but the rest had already been submitted
B. paperwork was already filled out with my information and typed on my certificate of origin when it was shipped to the AD
C. because of A and B I paid for the watch before delivery and in full. It only took a week from order to delivery and I had a delivery date before I paid, but that was new for me.
This was all new as my previous purchases had not required this. I don't mind either way, but my AD said something about new requirements. So it would not surprise me if for waitlists since the watch is already spoken for that they will be allocated prior to getting to the AD from Patek. Not saying its the case, but its possible. I only have the one recent data point so its clearly not evidence of a trend. Maybe the business card is so they can contact you to pay when you are next up in the queue since it includes all your info? |
The chase is part of the fun for me. I could pay the grey price and have one in my hands tomorrow, but where is the fun in that? Nor do I want one without my name on the papers. It has given me plenty of opportunity to reflect on why I want this watch, and makes it all the much more likely it'll be a keeper once I get one.
What one of the dealers told me was that having a business card makes it less likely you are a flipper, as it shows you are employed in some industry other than watch flipping (it basically is a huge market in Hong Kong.) Even locals who don't have a business card because they may be retired or self employed get the brush off (my retired uncle told me one dealer said to him when he couldn't produce a business card was "how do I know you're not a watch flipper?"
The same dealer also told me that they will send my name over to the local distributor and check for previous purchases of the same references I requested to be waitlisted for. Any previous purchases of the same references would disqualify me from acquiring another one.
Whether this is all AD bunk or not, I have no problems with it as it does seem to have some logic to me in deterring flippers.