Sympathy for ADs

[grimps]

I’m not sure they’re selling as much as they did previously though , My AD told me that they sold 7 White gold Daytona Oysterflex last year , this year they’re only getting 3 .
If this is replicated on all models then how will they survive ?

[Howlerbro]

Originally Posted by SpeedyTuomas

I feel more bad for a guy who walks in and is ready to pay list price for three (3) watches (you have no idea what he was intending to do with them) and there are no watches in stock. He could however buy ten Datejusts and that would be fine?

As a person who owns and has owned quite a few watches, I think that the whole SS-thing going on at ADs is perverse..

I'm guessing you own or have an interest in an SS piece too? At least I only like these classic (in my eyes) models.

Yes, I own a BLNR and have long been interested in the Black SS SkyD. In all the conversations I've had locally and during travels I haven't been asked to bundle that purchase with any PM pieces (yet). If I was I'm sure my sympathy would wane a bit. As others have pointed out here, this is more about salespeople vs. the AD owners and Rolex itself.

[V25V]

Gimme a break......

[jlovda]

Originally Posted by SlideRacker

ADs will only sell to local clients and I know all the ADs in my area. There are only a few I’m working with in different capacities. I’ve already gotten a Sub from one but anything else requires some silly bundle so not likely I’ll be working with them again. Others I’ve been in contact with and we developed some rapport. Maybe they’ll come through. Maybe they won’t. As far as all other ADs I know there’s less than a snowball’s chance in hell I’ll ever buy anything there. So when I visit an AD it’s mostly just for amusement to see the look on their face and what their story will be. I then show them pics of my collection and let them know I don’t need any of their watches. I’m in Europe right now and only if an AD happens to be nearby I’ll stick my head in the door just for laughs. I don’t care how many times per day they get asked the same questions. I will never buy a DJ or DD and there’s no point in talking about them.

Most people carry pictures of their kids/grandkids. WIS' carry pictures of their collection. LOL

[Jona]

My AD sells diamonds and custom made jewelry in gold and platinum. I suspect that's where they make the majority of their profit.

Also, as a "preferred customer" I worry that they may feel I have enough and sell to another person. Having bought a black 116500 from them I feel that they won't sell me a white one, wanting to foster a relationship with an additional person. It's a tough market for all right now.

[TimingIsEverything]

No sympathy whatsoever for ADs. This is the business they're in. If they don't like the idea of someone offering $10-20K for a watch, then they should terminate their contract with Rolex and re-think the idea of being in the timepiece business.

Also, most Rolex ADs are absolutely STACKED with cash. No need to feel sorry. Remember, they obtain these pieces for roughly 60% off the Rolex MSRP and then are given additional incentives if they pay for the supply Rolex sends them within a 30-day period.

Flipper or not, in my opinion it is NOT the ADs business whether you wear the watch for 30 years or throw it down the storm drain on the way out of their store. You purchased a good, it's your business what you do with it.

[AK797]

Most ADs can spot a customer walking in with the invisible - I'm here to make some money today - sign on their head, must be so tiresome when they are the 90%.

[shaunylw]

Originally Posted by zaydans

I visited my local AD recently and asked if they could source an oyster bracelet for my GMT. They took the details of the watch and my contact info and said they’d call me back. Three weeks pass and no call back at all so I call RSC NY and they have one in stock. Make a special trip there the next day and hey presto the bracelet is now mine. If they can’t even do something simple like that why should I give them my business?

Unfortunately, they don’t need your business right now. Their customer service can be terrible, they have enough of a customer base. Its unfortunate.


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[ajw45]

Rolex and the ADs have brought that kind of behavior upon themselves. I went into a VC boutique looking for a new overseas, the guy behind the counter apologizes that they don't have the specific model I'm looking for in stock, it's a hot model (of course), shows me some alternatives and says I can leave a deposit and they will order me one, might take a few months, but not a problem. He even makes a point to say they don't play any games with lists and stock under the table, the want to sell watches so place an order and I will get a watch. At the Journe boutique they said they weren't taking deposits for the blues anymore cause they have a 5 year long list as it is and apologized that that was the case and even recommended I go preowned, then we hung out and I found my next watch. Walk into a Rolex AD and they laugh, no list, no idea when they are receiving what, no apologies. Rolex ADs aren't even trying anymore while they print money. You get what you give.

[MinMay]

Nah he was a flipper. No sad feelings.

[imperio]

We all know that the customer is the enemy

[SlideRacker]

An AD in Barcelona today told me they only sell to locals and I should get on a waitlist in the US. I took no offense and appreciated the candor.

[shortsqueeze]

Originally Posted by SlideRacker

An AD in Barcelona today told me they only sell to locals and I should get on a waitlist in the US. I took no offense and appreciated the candor.

I personally think this is exactly how it should be. Local selling doesn't prevent, but helps to mitigate flipping. This AD is doing their part and in a small way helps us all.

[whuang29]

Originally Posted by grimps

I posted a story of how I obtained a steel Sub at an airport recently .



I was wearing a Pepsi so this must have indicated to the salesman that I wasn't flipping all hot models , we started chatting about my Pepsi and he asked what other models I had , I showed him some photos and chatted about the shortage in many of the professional models that I and and we joked about how many times a day people come and ask for them .

In the time I was speaking to him two people came up and asked for Sky dwellers and Daytonas and all the usual suspects , one of the guy's was quite annoyed when the salesman said it was unlikely that they'll see any soon.



After the guy left the salesman said that he had a steel Sub under the counter but he has to be very careful who he sells professional models to , he then offered it to me and I bought it.



Moral of the story is that these days the AD can play God with these watches, taking the time to chat to them and even let them know you're a serious collector or just a guy really interested in one specific watch will vastly improve your chances of getting lucky.They are now under specific instructions not to sell to flippers and if you was in their position would you sell one to an arsehole that hasn't showed you any respect ?

This was pretty much how I got close to my AD. I had a bad experience with them at first but then another SA took care of us. I visit them whenever I am in the area to talk. On weekends, I see at least 3 different groups of people who would come in ask for stainless steel watches and then leave immediately when they didn’t like the answer to received.


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[Marcjvr]

Originally Posted by shortsqueeze

I personally think this is exactly how it should be. Local selling doesn't prevent, but helps to mitigate flipping. This AD is doing their part and in a small way helps us all.

So if there are 20 DateJusts sitting in the case and an out-of-Towner wants to buy one of them, the AD must stick to “sorry those are for locals only”...you can’t have it both ways

[shortsqueeze]

Originally Posted by TimingIsEverything

Flipper or not, in my opinion it is NOT the ADs business whether you wear the watch for 30 years or throw it down the storm drain on the way out of their store. You purchased a good, it's your business what you do with it.

It is their business if it's a hard-to-find piece with only so many to go around to their best customers. It is much more about trust and less about a simple transaction and conveyance of ownership.

For me, it's a fine line. Once the transaction is complete, it's all on good faith. Did the AD do their homework, do they know their customer, are they local, etc. This holding the warranty card business is complete hogwash in my opinion.

[shortsqueeze]

Originally Posted by Marcjvr

So if there are 20 DateJusts sitting in the case and an out-of-Towner wants to buy one of them, the AD must stick to “sorry those are for locals only”...you can’t have it both ways

Yes, exactly. And by locals I would extend the definition to include those who have some sort of connection to the shop. Avoid the "hit and runs."

[SlideRacker]

I think they were referring to the SS models only but I didn’t ask because I didn’t really care. They won’t sell me a SS so f**** em.

[imperio]

Originally Posted by whuang29

On weekends, I see at least 3 different groups of people who would come in ask for stainless steel watches and then leave immediately when they didn’t like the answer to received.

Genuinely curious as to what you think the 3 different groups of people should do or not do.
Should they:
- stick around for a chat or ask to try on other watches?
- not even ask about SS watches in the first place?

[blankapdx]

Originally Posted by Marcjvr

Struggling to see the “problem” here. A customer walks in, ask for a product that the AD sells, AD says “sorry we don’t have it”. Customer walks out.

Where’s the part where we should feel sorry the AD? I’m not being difficult I just honestly don’t see a problem. That’s their job, to deal with customers. The next customer may walk in and buy 10 datejusts for his best friends because he can. Is the AD entitled to only deal with big spenders and/or people who don’t seek hot models?!?!?

Would the AD rather stand around doing nothing? Should ADs not be subjected to the horror of people walking in and asking about hot models...

THIS

[Marcusm]

Originally Posted by Howlerbro

I walked into an AD this morning shortly after they opened, not expecting much inventory and just wanting to kill some time between business meetings. I was the only one in the store and the woman I spoke with was super nice - we spent the majority of our time just talking about the brand and pieces in general. I did let her know what I was interested in towards the end but it wasn't a focal point of our conversation.

About halfway thru a guy with his two kids walks in and made a beeline for the professional case - within 60 seconds, no kidding, he had asked (i) what stainless steel models they had, (ii) which lists he could get on and (iii) pulled up a Sea Dweller, Sub and GMT on his phone and asked about a special order of each. After hearing unsatisfactory answers to each question, he just left. As cruddy as some of the AD experiences are out there, watching this whole thing made me feel pretty bad for them - this sort of stuff must happen numerous times a day. I feel like Rolex, rightfully so, encourages their sales staff to turn the watch buying experience into something really special for their clients but when a fair percentage of those that walk in don't care about that I imagine it can be pretty draining.

It’s a shop selling commoditised items with little personalisation. A customer should be able to deal with efficiency (but not rudeness) if that’s what they want. Artificial stock management processes introduce inefficiencies which increases costs for end users.

[SpeedyTuomas]

Originally Posted by AK797

Most ADs can spot a customer walking in with the invisible - I'm here to make some money today - sign on their head, must be so tiresome when they are the 90%.

How on earth could they know what the customer will do with their watch? If someone walks in and ask for a Datejust it's fine but if he asks for a Sub or a Daytona he is surely looking to resell it - what? I mean most of the people on these forums are after SS models and are not (at least nearly all) planning to sell it.

[whuang29]

Originally Posted by imperio

Genuinely curious as to what you think the 3 different groups of people should do or not do.
Should they:
- stick around for a chat or ask to try on other watches?
- not even ask about SS watches in the first place?

I don’t think I would know what they should or shouldn’t do. Just sharing what I saw and what I did


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[richard371]

Ads are selling as many watches as always. Rolex supply has not dropped it’s the demand that’s out the roof. Yes ads could sell even more if Rolex made more but they are by no means hurting. If anything they are leveraging this to sell more PM pieces with bundles. The market favors Rolex, Ads, and Greys. Only people suffering are us common folks that want an SS. It’s a sellers world now not a buyers unless your very special.

[quadraaa]

I am not sure that SAs are happy to chat watches...at least, most of them. Some definitely do, but I find it perfectly OK to just come in and politely ask for a watch you are after, rather then taking their time chatting or checking other watches which you are not going to buy anyway.

If the SA is wearing an interesting watch and there are no other customers waiting for them I can make a compliment and strike a conversation depending on their reaction (as I would do with people I meet in other places), but it is perfectly fine not to do that, it doesn't make you appear rude or something.

[jsausley]

Originally Posted by Solo118

I feel bad for the salespeople needing to turn down dozens of people per day. If the goods were in stock, they would be making a nice commission. I just wonder if grey dealers deal with an actual salesperson, or if they cut a deal with the manager/owner.

If the goods were in stock, none of those people walking in would be walking in. The reason they're walking in is because of the demand. If demand was lower, supply would be higher and therefore there'd be no reason to buy a Rolex (for the average person).

[Calatrava r]

People read all about these watches here and everywhere and want to buy them. Nothing wrong with that. Hard to buy something if you cannot even walk into the store, lest you offend the sales person by asking for the watches you lust for. Was not that long ago anybody could buy a Rolex from a Rolex dealer if they had the funds. Now its similar to getting a dinner reservation at a hot restaurant in a big city where you are a newbie, ie, a nobody who is not well connected.

[Harry-57]

Originally Posted by watchfan1845

I would love to be able to chill and actually try on some interesting models... I'm envious.

I would like to try on some interesting models too. Although, they did let me have a go on a Sky Dweller when I last visited and offered it to me. I also tried on a 48mm Navitimer GMT and was surprised that it didn't wear like a dinner plate. Another one to add to the "maybe one day" list.

We talk Rolex, other brands, watches, Baselworld, politics, local matters and anything else which comes to mind. They make awfully good coffee. It doesn't do to rush it. And it never hurts to build a relationship, even if only by millimetres, and occasionally with money. They sell other things too. It all counts.

[Gravity]

When greys are posting pics like this....

[Dan S]

You mean to say that this person walked into a Rolex AD and asked to buy a Rolex watch? And then he left when they didn't have it?

Unbelievable ... the nerve of some people! Salespeople should definitely not have to put up with that kind of crap.