An interesting convo at the AD yesterday..

[dashdaddy]

Originally Posted by 42itus

Interesting. So much speculation. But Im going to go with the the explosion in demand and the hoarding by the grays. If the grey makrket controls the inventory they can control the price.


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This makes the most sense here. OP could be right about the precious metals, and this could be a contributing factor. But the underlying cause is most likely supply and demand...

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[Verdi]

Originally Posted by dtwer

As long as the watches are still widely available on the open market to anyone who is willing to pay the asking price, then there is no shortage. Period.

The Rolex game these days is about affordability, not about availability.

For us to say there is a shortage on Rolex is akin to me declaring there is a shortage on the Rolls Royce Phantom simply because I can't afford one.

Neah!
I can afford a GMT, I can afford a Daytona. Can I get one from AD? No.
Will I pay 50% extra at the grey? No.

So, I don't care for grey prices, for me there is a big shortage at the ADs.

[alphadweller]

The special custom made orders for Asia is a 2 years old theory. According to Rolex, they didn't change anything, the growing demand has been the cause for the shortage.

[Chester01]

Originally Posted by tahitianmoon

I was at the local Rolex AD yesterday with a friend who is a very good client of the store. The manager came out to speak with us and we talked about watches, styles, store sales, and then, the supply issue. I asked why the shortage and when did he see it ending potentially. He stated that the reason for the shortage was that 2 years earlier Rolex changed the manufacturing plant from steel production to precious metal to satisfy the Middle East market demand. He also said that Rolex should be back on line with steel production in 14 months or so and we would see steel models in AD's again. I thought that was interesting. I don't know if it's true but that was our discussion. Thoughts?

Um, no. Because despite what ever middleast demand, most PM models can be had at AD’s and often a discount in gray market. And oh, no ss shortage either. That is a supply chain problem due to massive gray market dealers. The fact that one can get any model they desire by weeks end (so long as one pony’s up the dough) is not a shortage. A real shortage means they can’t be had or are scarce everywhere.