AP Hongkong dealer first time

[aldyrifqi]

Hi im new to AP
i know the price are insane now
im just want to get for myself 15450st grey dial
i went to 2 store (and passed lot of other AP dealer) they dont have anything even in display.

the SA very nice made me some waiting list form, and the even ask my name card they said AP like to know their costumer.

do you think its worth to wait ?


i dont mind to wait TBH

[JF100]

AP hong kong are complete douche bags. I aksed them when was the last time they saw Gold RO pass through their doors and their reply was 'I can't remember, years ago'. They barely have any idea of the models their brand stocks and they treat you like you should bow down and kiss their feet for the chance to spend 50k on a watch. Utter madness. Not a good sales service AT all.

[GS93108]

Originally Posted by JF100

AP hong kong are complete douche bags. I aksed them when was the last time they saw Gold RO pass through their doors and their reply was 'I can't remember, years ago'. They barely have any idea of the models their brand stocks and they treat you like you should bow down and kiss their feet for the chance to spend 50k on a watch. Utter madness. Not a good sales service AT all.

That's harsh.

If in doubt go to AP House. They are knowledgable and for sure nice people.

[GS93108]

Originally Posted by aldyrifqi

Hi im new to AP
i know the price are insane now
im just want to get for myself 15450st grey dial
i went to 2 store (and passed lot of other AP dealer) they dont have anything even in display.

the SA very nice made me some waiting list form, and the even ask my name card they said AP like to know their costumer.

do you think its worth to wait ?


i dont mind to wait TBH

If you don't mind waiting then you having nothing to lose.

[macrowatch]

Just make sure it’s an awesome business card.

[JF100]

Originally Posted by macrowatch

Just make sure it’s an awesome business card.

haha this made me chuckle. So true.

[melhk]

Make sure you go to an AP boutique like the one in CWB and avoid all the ADs otherwise you will be wasting your time.

From experience, the SA at the boutiques are very friendly and helpful, they will put you in their list just make sure you to specified the exact reference you want.

I encourage you to tell your SA that you want to try the different variation of 15450ST (they will ask you to pass by the boutique to try different colors as they receive them - already sold of course) as it's a nice way to keep the conversation going and make sure it's the reference you want.

[aldyrifqi]

Originally Posted by melhk

Make sure you go to an AP boutique like the one in CWB and avoid all the ADs otherwise you will be wasting your time.

From experience, the SA at the boutiques are very friendly and helpful, they will put you in their list just make sure you to specified the exact reference you want.

I encourage you to tell your SA that you want to try the different variation of 15450ST (they will ask you to pass by the boutique to try different colors as they receive them - already sold of course) as it's a nice way to keep the conversation going and make sure it's the reference you want.

what is the different between Boutique and AD? and how to differentiate them?

Yes i went to the AP in front of timesquare SA very friendly and want to invite me to show the AP House

[aldyrifqi]

What is the different between boutique and AD? and how to differentiate them? i went to the AP store in front of timesquare causeway bay the SA very nice and want to invite me to show AP House

[melhk]

Originally Posted by aldyrifqi

What is the different between boutique and AD? and how to differentiate them? i went to the AP store in front of timesquare causeway bay the SA very nice and want to invite me to show AP House

Great, it's indeed a boutique in Causeway Bay and yes they are great. ADs are basically retailers (think Chow Tai Fook, King Fook and the like), they sell AP watches but they sell many other brands too (PP, Rolex and co) and AP doesn't have much say about their operations (which in HK are pretty shady).

By dealing with the boutique, you basically deal directly with the brand which feels much more personal and with - almost - no bullshit. With patience, you will get your watch.

[h.to]

Definitely deal with an AP boutique and not one of their Authorised Dealers.

I think IFC, Harbour City and CWB are direct boutique stores.

My experience with AP Hong Kong has been quite good compared to other brands such as PP and Rolex (basically a joke in HK, I don't even bother with them anymore)

[Fenrira]

Originally Posted by h.to

Definitely deal with an AP boutique and not one of their Authorised Dealers.

I think IFC, Harbour City and CWB are direct boutique stores.

My experience with AP Hong Kong has been quite good compared to other brands such as PP and Rolex (basically a joke in HK, I don't even bother with them anymore)

Out of curiosity, what would you say makes the Rolex and Patek experience in HK bad? I’ve never bought either of those in HK before.

[melhk]

Originally Posted by Fenrira

Out of curiosity, what would you say makes the Rolex and Patek experience in HK bad? I’ve never bought either of those in HK before.

Rolex and PP* operates exclusively though authorized dealers (no directly own boutique) so in HK you basically deal with retailers such as Emperor Watch, King Fook, Chow Tai Fook and the like.

These retailers are plain and simple terrible, the tons of sales people in each of their location are totally clueless, have no incentive to sell you anything and have 0 decisioning power on allocation. They are low pay worker that are poorly trained and selling paper towels instead watches would make no difference for them (not blaming them). In addition, you have a large amount of mainland Chineses flowing into the city** to buy jewelry and such or VVIP Hong Kong client with way way more money to spend than you.

Also, these retailers all have direct relationship with grey dealers which, in exchange of them buying a large amount of their inventory (low moving pieces and large quantity of Rado, Longines, Tissot, Frank Muller and co) get the 'hot pieces' (my grey dealers showed me, and he used to work for them). When you go to a grey dealer in Hong Kong, some will literally ask you the watch you want and they will walk across the street to pick it up at the AD (one even offered me to go with him after I pay).

All that to say, don't expect much for ADs here in Hong Kong.

(* excluding the 3 PP salons in Europe)
(** outside of COVID period)

[Fenrira]

Originally Posted by melhk

Also, these retailers all have direct relationship with grey dealers which, in exchange of them buying a large amount of their inventory (low moving pieces and large quantity of Rado, Longines, Tissot, Frank Muller and co) get the 'hot pieces' (my grey dealers showed me, and he used to work for them). When you go to a grey dealer in Hong Kong, some will literally ask you the watch you want and they will walk across the street to pick it up at the AD (one even offered me to go with him after I pay).

Wow, that was quite an eye-opening read. I’m surprised Rolex and Patek turn a blind eye to this.

[h.to]

Pretty much just from personal experience. I was searching for a Rolex Batgirl in early 2020, always met with the same "not in stock, leave your name on a scrap of paper and never get back to you" attitude. The watches were always available and sitting at countless grey dealers for "market price". I was introduced to a "middle-man" who took a small fee to introduce me to a Rolex AD that had 2 in "the back room" and available "at market value". The Rolex AD charged me two transactions, one for the msrp and one for the balance to market value. This was obviously dubious practice but I wanted the watch and bought it anyway. It has since appreciated 15% in market value but this leaves a really bad reputation to me.

I moved on to AP, bought my first, then waitlisted on a more sought after piece. They come through and I've made 3 purchases from the AP team since. AP seems to care about customer relations rather than Rolex' approach.

Originally Posted by Fenrira

Out of curiosity, what would you say makes the Rolex and Patek experience in HK bad? I’ve never bought either of those in HK before.

[aldyrifqi]

Thx for all your reply, i bought one rolex in PAcific place just small daydate for my wife, yeah the SA was verybad, they let me write my next whislist after purchased but already 7 months they never reach me back

[supernova]

Originally Posted by aldyrifqi

Thx for all your reply, i bought one rolex in PAcific place just small daydate for my wife, yeah the SA was verybad, they let me write my next whislist after purchased but already 7 months they never reach me back

What watch did you give for your wish list? If it was a steel sports like a GMT or green Sub, I don’t expect you will be contacted any time soon unfortunately.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[HK Islandboy]

Originally Posted by JF100

AP hong kong are complete douche bags. I aksed them when was the last time they saw Gold RO pass through their doors and their reply was 'I can't remember, years ago'. They barely have any idea of the models their brand stocks and they treat you like you should bow down and kiss their feet for the chance to spend 50k on a watch. Utter madness. Not a good sales service AT all.

That has not been my experience at all. I have found the staff in the
boutiques to be helpful and to be knowledgeable about the brand and I have received warm welcomes whether I go to IFC or Harbour City (both of which I have made purchases from) or CWB (where I have only browsed).

[aldyrifqi]

Wondering if anyone(you guys) have tried to give gifts to SA? Is it appropriate?
Its jut because the SA is very nice to me

[VogelPhoenix]

Originally Posted by aldyrifqi

Wondering if anyone(you guys) have tried to give gifts to SA? Is it appropriate?
Its jut because the SA is very nice to me

Let's not import thread ideas from the main forum...

[watchloversg]

Originally Posted by aldyrifqi

Wondering if anyone(you guys) have tried to give gifts to SA? Is it appropriate?
Its jut because the SA is very nice to me

you are aware AP SAs sometimes frequent these threads and know you're a creative producer right? Best to delete

[aldyrifqi]

Originally Posted by watchloversg

you are aware AP SAs sometimes frequent these threads? Best to delete

sorry about that, i dont mean anything bad im just asked question. hope admin can solve this

[aldyrifqi]

i went to AP boutique last week it was fun people are super warm. they told me all the history the watch details, and it was my first time in real to try the code 11.59, surprisingly a lot of amazing details on the watch.
but the problem is the 11.59 is hard to match daily with my casual outfit. maybe i will get it for 2nd watch after if i can get royal oak #fingercross

[watchloversg]

Originally Posted by aldyrifqi

i went to AP boutique last week it was fun people are super warm. they told me all the history the watch details, and it was my first time in real to try the code 11.59, surprisingly a lot of amazing details on the watch.
but the problem is the 11.59 is hard to match daily with my casual outfit. maybe i will get it for 2nd watch after if i can get royal oak #fingercross

Have you seen the code in Kevlar strap? That’d be an amazing casual watch

[aldyrifqi]

Originally Posted by watchloversg

Have you seen the code in Kevlar strap? That’d be an amazing casual watch

I didnt realize they have that. Just notice when i exit the store they have it in front window with the kevlar strap. Maybe will try in next visit 🤞🏻 The craziest thing about code 11.59 is the bidirectional glass curve and they have octagon shape in the middle of the watch

[youthagainsttt]

In Hong Kong the worst AP is on queen's Road, the service is pretty poor but in the others it's actually not bad.

[mazai]

Originally Posted by youthagainsttt

In Hong Kong the worst AP is on queen's Road, the service is pretty poor but in the others it's actually not bad.

The one on queens rd (on the corner opposite M&S? ) that is not AP boutique, its an AD.

[mazai]

Just wondering , do you all offer your interest to more than one SA from different AP boutiques, or just stick to the one SA?

And has anyone from Hong Kong bought and received their watch the AP SA recently?

[aldyrifqi]

Originally Posted by mazai

Just wondering , do you all offer your interest to more than one SA from different AP boutiques, or just stick to the one SA?

And has anyone from Hong Kong bought and received their watch the AP SA recently?

I always stick with one SA as my experience for a long time with HERMES. I think its better, but if you feel not comfortable, helpful, or not appreciate you can just find other SA

[h.to]

I stick with one SA. My first purchase was debatable between two SA. Both were very good in terms of service. In the end it came down to which location had the watch I wanted in stock.