My rant for today

[Israguard]

I am frustrated. Because I call one of Montreal's largest and best known AD's... and I know I am being fed bs.

I called the AD this morning with 3 watches in mind, as I want a "beater" that I will take to beach etc..


1) Submariner with date - black
2) GMT Black
3) The new anniversary HULK.

Now.. I already own a DSSD.. but I keep it in beyond mint & dust free.. and lol.. it aint ever going in water.. call me anal. So I wanted a 7k "toy" and chose the above mentioned three models.

The AD calls me back 15 minutes ago and gives me prices on the Sub with date and the GMT. Price difference between the two is $100.. as he says the Sub is more popular and commands the $100 more. I innocently asked him "is the movement the same?". He mumbles and says "yes... they just added a hand". I know this isnt true from what I have read recently here.

Oh it gets better..

I ask him.. "how about the green one?". He says.. "oh come on.. don't buy this.. I tell you this as a Friend.. Rolexes should not be green.. and besides, I can't give you a discount on it". I pushed some more.. and then I discover he of course doesnt have it in stock. I told him I insist on a price and let him call Rolex H/O and to call me back with his final price.

Folks.. I'm disgusted. A man who works at an AD who CLEARLY is talking from his rear end.. and is just a salesman. I don't pretend to know a thing about Rolex watches.. but this was an all time low for me. "You dont buy green Rolexes"... what the hell is that ?

I already have a blue face /18 k gold sub, exp II white, DSSD, T/T blue faced sub so I thought why go for yet another black face?.. I'll go for the green... Look at the reply I got..

Thanks for your time.

[Bane_of_your_life]

Most salespeople are full of BS, I tend to ignore their advice and ignore them as much as possible

[Watchflair]

It's amazing the lack of knowledge that some sales people have. You would figure someone selling a high ticket item would have a better working knowledge of what they sell and have a better handle towards customer service. I just had a similar experience w a pair of Gucci shoes. I personally love the HULK. Prob my next piece.

[Time2time]

Laughable.

Iv'e only ever had a salesperson at a Rolex Boutique talk sense.

The others.......................well, not very knowledgable or bright.

[biscotti]

A sub is over 8K and the Hulk's MSRP is 9150.00 CAD.

[bgriz]

Par for the course. Obviously buy what you like and set the bar low for expectations of AD sales people. Better yet, buy from a trusted seller here.

[Cleveland]

i think AD experences will change considerably over the next few years.

[esm]

Can't blame the salesman (of course he didn't have one in stock).... Don't we all know that there is NO such thing as - "The new anniversary HULK"

[swiss ghost]

Originally Posted by Israguard

I am frustrated. Because I call one of Montreal's largest and best known AD's... and I know I am being fed bs.

I called the AD this morning with 3 watches in mind, as I want a "beater" that I will take to beach etc..


1) Submariner with date - black
2) GMT Black
3) The new anniversary HULK.

Now.. I already own a DSSD.. but I keep it in beyond mint & dust free.. and lol.. it aint ever going in water.. call me anal. So I wanted a 7k "toy" and chose the above mentioned three models.

The AD calls me back 15 minutes ago and gives me prices on the Sub with date and the GMT. Price difference between the two is $100.. as he says the Sub is more popular and commands the $100 more. I innocently asked him "is the movement the same?". He mumbles and says "yes... they just added a hand". I know this isnt true from what I have read recently here.

Oh it gets better..

I ask him.. "how about the green one?". He says.. "oh come on.. don't buy this.. I tell you this as a Friend.. Rolexes should not be green.. and besides, I can't give you a discount on it". I pushed some more.. and then I discover he of course doesnt have it in stock. I told him I insist on a price and let him call Rolex H/O and to call me back with his final price.

Folks.. I'm disgusted. A man who works at an AD who CLEARLY is talking from his rear end.. and is just a salesman. I don't pretend to know a thing about Rolex watches.. but this was an all time low for me. "You dont buy green Rolexes"... what the hell is that ?

I already have a blue face /18 k gold sub, exp II white, DSSD, T/T blue faced sub so I thought why go for yet another black face?.. I'll go for the green... Look at the reply I got..

Thanks for your time.

whats an anniversary HULK

only one anniversary. the 16610LV....the116610LV is just a green sub

[ronbo710]

... I haven't bought from an AD in over 20 years. Many contributors on this Forum know infinitely more about Rolex than most AD's. If one does enough internet homework and "vetting" an honest seller can usually be found. The Who's Who on the Forum here is a GREAT resource. Cheers -Ronbo

[OCAlan]

From my observations, people on TRF will know much more than regular sales folk

[freddyttt]

In general people don't wanna answer question after question over the phone-

[Monte Cristo]

A funny and frustrating experience for a WIS and not the best thing for an AD sales person to be knocking one product over the other, but the sales person is just trying to sell what he has to make his commission (or keep his job). Probably not his fault for the lack of knowledge either as I understand it Rolex provides no AD training

The question is can he get what you want for the price that you want? If yes buy, if not off to DavidSW, Tony Geha, etc...

[gwalker]

Go try them on. I don't see an issue with the guy saying he doesn't like green rolexes. He's just a salesman and most don't know the brand inside and out as well as some on here or spend all their free time looking at watches. Remember many of them work at large jewelry stores that sell many other watch brands other than Rolex and have to know not just watches but all jewelry.

[Chewbacca]

hiya... the dssd is actually the best of your lot as a "beater" as you have a pretty diverse collection to begin with.... i may even say that my "beater" for your collection (if i were you) would be a real nice seiko marinemaster, GP Seak Hawk II or even a new tudor b-bay or pelagos... or, buy a used sub, exp2 or 16610lv on the classifieds...

but if you're rich, forget what i said above and good hunting...

[The GMT Master]

There are some good salespeople, some average salespeople, and some bad salespeople - the good ones are worth their weight in gold, and well worth finding. Not all ADs are bad

[Hairdude1]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

There are some good salespeople, some average salespeople, and some bad salespeople - the good ones are worth their weight in gold, and well worth finding. Not all ADs are bad

Very true!

[doubleinfive]

An AD is only as good as it's salespeople...

[Dr. Robert]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

There are some good salespeople, some average salespeople, and some bad salespeople - the good ones are worth their weight in gold, and well worth finding. Not all ADs are bad

If I was to buy a new Rolex retail, I'd only buy it from Chris The GMT Master.

[rmfnla]

Originally Posted by Israguard

I am frustrated. Because I call one of Montreal's largest and best known AD's... and I know I am being fed bs.

I called the AD this morning with 3 watches in mind, as I want a "beater" that I will take to beach etc..


1) Submariner with date - black
2) GMT Black
3) The new anniversary HULK.

Now.. I already own a DSSD.. but I keep it in beyond mint & dust free.. and lol.. it aint ever going in water.. call me anal. So I wanted a 7k "toy" and chose the above mentioned three models.

The AD calls me back 15 minutes ago and gives me prices on the Sub with date and the GMT. Price difference between the two is $100.. as he says the Sub is more popular and commands the $100 more. I innocently asked him "is the movement the same?". He mumbles and says "yes... they just added a hand". I know this isnt true from what I have read recently here.

Oh it gets better..

I ask him.. "how about the green one?". He says.. "oh come on.. don't buy this.. I tell you this as a Friend.. Rolexes should not be green.. and besides, I can't give you a discount on it". I pushed some more.. and then I discover he of course doesnt have it in stock. I told him I insist on a price and let him call Rolex H/O and to call me back with his final price.

Folks.. I'm disgusted. A man who works at an AD who CLEARLY is talking from his rear end.. and is just a salesman. I don't pretend to know a thing about Rolex watches.. but this was an all time low for me. "You dont buy green Rolexes"... what the hell is that ?

I already have a blue face /18 k gold sub, exp II white, DSSD, T/T blue faced sub so I thought why go for yet another black face?.. I'll go for the green... Look at the reply I got..

Thanks for your time.

You're anal. (Someone had to!)

[FeelingTheBlues]

Originally Posted by Monte Cristo

A funny and frustrating experience for a WIS and not the best thing for an AD sales person to be knocking one product over the other, but the sales person is just trying to sell what he has to make his commission (or keep his job). Probably not his fault for the lack of knowledge either as I understand it Rolex provides no AD training

The question is can he get what you want for the price that you want? If yes buy, if not off to DavidSW, Tony Geha, etc...

Well, as stated, he didn't have it in stock so that's probably why he bashed it (more or less, let's not exaggerate either), the man wanted to push the products he had in order to make a faster sale (perhaps not the best way to work and there is most probably a problem of disclosure but his job to sell and I am guessing he must have some pressure). Although I hate being pushed to buy something at some point I try to put myself in those people's shoes and I can understand they must not have the easiest job either.

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

There are some good salespeople, some average salespeople, and some bad salespeople - the good ones are worth their weight in gold, and well worth finding. Not all ADs are bad

Chris, once again, you are the voice of reason. I personally do not bash AD's and their employees for their knowledge (or lack there of), as long as the person is kind, not too pushy and polite I am fine (although I would have felt a tad uncomfortable in this situation given the feeling that this salesman wanted to push the customer in another direction). There are thousands of Rolex AD employees around the world, they can't all be enthusiasts like us and they can't all be the best, I don't think we should always try to test them with questions about things we've learned on a forum, let alone putting them all in the same category because some of them, here and there, are very bad.

[Burgo]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

There are some good salespeople, some average salespeople, and some bad salespeople - the good ones are worth their weight in gold, and well worth finding. Not all ADs are bad

x2 no training is provided, i found out most i know by pestering co-workers and this forum. and many AD's tend to be jewellers as well, which are much simpler and also take up the majority of sales and inquiries. So for a person to gain that sort of knowledge they have to be interested, which most are not. I'm not excusing any of it, sales staff in this situation should simply say that they don't know and will get someone more experienced. I hate it when they try and 'blag' their way through.

Like GMT said, there are some bad ones but don't tar us all with the same brush

[77T]

Originally Posted by doubleinfive

An AD is only as good as it's salespeople...

Salespeople are good for cashflow.

In terms of value to me, an AD is as good as its devotion to customer support after the sale.

Salespeople come and go. In-house watchmaker, good service and swift follow-up on customer support makes one AD stand out against the others.

[caryyee]

Also, many AD's stock multiple brands ... at mine, they stock Rolex, PP, VC, AP, JLC, IWC, Breguet, Chopard, Hublot, Tudor, Cartier, and Girard-Perregaux. Very hard to have an WIS's knowledge of all of those brands.

The guy I always speak to, he knows Rolex, AP, VC, IWC inside out, he is always a pleasure to deal with.

[Chewbacca]

Originally Posted by caryyee

Also, many AD's stock multiple brands ... at mine, they stock Rolex, PP, VC, AP, JLC, IWC, Breguet, Chopard, Hublot, Tudor, Cartier, and Girard-Perregaux. Very hard to have an WIS's knowledge of all of those brands.

well said.

[unclesallie]

why shucks, the Dude abides........in other words, relax.
If you want to spend an extra 50-60 percent buying at an AD, that's ok,
because then you 'really know' it's a rolex......

But I think the icing on the cake is to buy based on advice from a guy
who knows nothing about the watch he is selling you.......

[johnnyc]

HMM - a Deep Sea that will never see water. please explain

[brkanand]

Promoting sales is indeed what they are expected to do. Need not be knowledgebale. Sad but true in most cases! At the local AD, even my primitive knowledge of Rolex related knowledge makes them look at me with awe!

[JohnBoy]

Originally Posted by johnnyc

HMM - a Deep Sea that will never see water. please explain

Its a blind one - a 'No-see' Deep Sea.

[caryyee]

Originally Posted by unclesallie

If you want to spend an extra 50-60 percent buying at an AD, that's ok,
because then you 'really know' it's a rolex......

All my Rolex purchases at an AD (gold and Plat models) were all within 3-4% of the best TRF's sellers advertised prices, there isn't a big difference on some models