Bad Experience: Should you wear gray market Rolex into the AD?

[jimcameron]

Since AD's are frequently the source for Grey's, I wouldn't worry about it.

[xekret]

Originally Posted by SN13

What about the 2nd hand market?

If you buy a used watch from a member here you can't wear it into the AD?

LOOOL

As long as its not a current, in demand model.

[yukosaturno]

Ad's are usually terrible, buying brand new, today, makes absolutely no sense.

[Me4u2night]

Originally Posted by daOnlyBG

"Where did you buy the GMT from?"

"Elsewhere."

"...but where?"

"I'd rather not say, as the grey-market dealer shops here."

See the expression on their faces.

This is great! I'm going to say this as ADs always ask me where i got my GMT.

[Bort]

Originally Posted by mystro

they are one step from working at burger king and the fact rolex is streamlining their dealerships and there is little for them to sell should have them nervous and insecure.

They are there to service customers with a retail sale so the fact that they can’t even do that makes them insignificant to you. You wised up and flexed your luxury buying muscle by buying your watch around them. Great move. Next time just tell them “their inventory inadequacies don’t match your lifestyle.”

+1
Good move by walking out without making a purchase for your girlfriend.
I wouldn't have tolerated their fake snobbery either.

[Me4u2night]

Originally Posted by envuks

Just to see their faces you should have dropped “Im sorry, I really thought you’d be ok with me sharing this since the warranty card is stamped Wempe, NYC”


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[173rdabn]

They've become a pack of self important piss ants.

[Token74]

Originally Posted by 173rdabn

They've become a pack of self important piss ants.

Should get on well with a lot of the folk on here then.


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[Madman37]

Originally Posted by Fleetlord

I agree with you and used to do the same in my travels....

But, what I sensed coming...and even wrote a post about it a number of years ago, was that Rolex was too available for the luxury image that the brand was promoting along with the changes that were forming in the lux market.

Rolex was everywhere. Cases full of watches. Dealers in many malls. Watches available through grey market at 15% or higher discounts NIB with stickers. They were ubiquitous.

But a lot has changed since then. As monies started to flow through the digital economy and sources not even imagined a decade earlier, high price alone wasn't enough to build the exclusivity that lux buyers demanded. So brands that adjusted their distribution and possibly production strategy are over the moon right now. Those that haven't are simply ignored by the market.

Lol that is the post that makes me laugh the most in this whole forum. I remember you complaining about how Rolex was to easy and you didn’t want them because it was to easy I think i have the link somewhere. Here it is https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=342567

[Bluesy]

I could not care less about what they say at my ad. I ask them for the watch I want. If they can deliver I buy from them. If they can not I buy it elsewhere. And of course I sometimes wear watches I have bought elsewhere when I visit them.

[Loxotime]

“Building a relationship with and AD” is a coercive way to make you buy what you don’t want and they don’t sell in order to get what you want. It’s the most aggressive marketing strategy that I’ve ever seen, this would not last and definitely is hurting the brand and the market. Do yourself a favor, don’t go to that store ever again.

[Tavli3]

Originally Posted by Madman37

Lol that is the post that makes me laugh the most in this whole forum. I remember you complaining about how Rolex was to easy and you didn’t want them because it was to easy I think i have the link somewhere. Here it is https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=342567

Wow enjoyed reading that thread. How times have changed! IWC scarce and hard to get watches!! Too many SS Rolexes available!! Boring to go to an AD!

Well at least that hasn’t changed. Empty cases are also boring to look at.


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[Dudman]

AD: "where did you get that BLNR?"
Me: " let me get your name and number on my list and I tell you in about 10 months"

[vh2k]

Originally Posted by Loxotime

“Building a relationship with and AD” is a coercive way to make you buy what you don’t want and they don’t sell in order to get what you want. It’s the most aggressive marketing strategy that I’ve ever seen, this would not last and definitely is hurting the brand and the market. Do yourself a favor, don’t go to that store ever again.

Nobody is ever forced to buy a watch he doesn't want. No AD has EVER asked or even hinted I should consider purchasing a watch in which I'm not interested. Never happened. EVER!

The AD wants a customer who will consolidate his purchases with one AD. So, you'll buy a BLNR today, and a Datejust after that, and a YM after that, and a SD43 after that, and a Day-Date after that. They don't want you to split your purchases... and they don't want to poach a customer who already has shown a tendency to purchase from another AD.

Why would WEMPE give someone a BLNR when that customer is likely to go back to their first AD or grey to buy more expensive pieces?

That is what an AD means by building a relationship.

[teck21]

Originally Posted by VogelPhoenix

Not much to prove - in Taiwan I have been offered several otherwise unavailable models for MSRP + cash deals at an AD. The SA consulted a handwritten set of notes with the required premium for various models. Declined politely.

They’re not allowed to do that so there’s nothing libellous about naming the AD.


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[Fleetlord]

Originally Posted by Madman37

Lol that is the post that makes me laugh the most in this whole forum. I remember you complaining about how Rolex was to easy and you didn’t want them because it was to easy I think i have the link somewhere. Here it is https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=342567

Almost 7yrs ago. I knew it couldn’t go on like that. There was a total glut of product and luxury isn’t about ubiquity.

I took a beating back then...lol.

[jhew]

it's your $$$ and you decide where and what to spend. Period.

[justin81]

Screw them

[RFC]

Walk into that AD store with an Omega to buy Rolex. You might have walked out with your SS Rolex or at least you might have been treated with respect.

[rolexjackson]

Originally Posted by Dsh8432

Last week I finally broke down from playing the AD game and purchased a BLNR GMT from DavidSW. As you'd expect, it has become my daily wear. Usually when I go into an AD, I wear my Bluesy Sub I purchased new at an AD. Yesterday was different, however. I left my house with my girlfriend for a walk with no intention of other shopping, but decided to pop into an AD to have her try on a few of the smaller OP watches. I was wearing my new BLNR and the salesperson immediately complimented the watch and asked when I got it. I just told them it was a gift for myself that I had received last week. They then asked "from where?" while starting to seem rude and accusatory. I told them, very politely, that after a 2 year hunt from AD's, I decided I couldn't live without the piece, so I purchased it on the secondary market. The vibe immediately changed from casual to feeling like I had stolen the watch. They explained that "some AD screwed up big time" and that they troll Chrono24 searching for flippers from this store to blacklist them. I can't speak for this AD in particular, but flipping is obviously not universally frowned upon, otherwise the grays dealers wouldn't be flooded with this inventory. They went on to say that what I failed to do was establish a buying relationship with that AD, which is where I started to get a little more annoyed. Obviously at this point, I wouldn't buy a thing from this AD, so I entertained their criticism. I explained that I, in fact, did have a relationship with this AD and had purchased a $15k Sub (which is a lot for me) from them and in the wake of that purchase was laughed off about getting myself in a position to purchase a BLNR. To which the salesperson said "Well one watch like that definitely isn't enough to establish a relationship". I brought up the point that this market puts true collectors like myself in a bad position because we have the money for one watch we truly want every so often, but aren't financially equipped to buy our way to a retail GMT. Especially when the terms of "establishing a relationship" are very vague. Their response and facial expression implied that maybe the brand really wasn't for me. At that point my girlfriend passed back the OP's she was trying on and we left.

Anywho, I was hoping to get the communities input on this. Did I do something wrong, was the salesperson out of line? I think I speak for everyone when I say it's a sad market out there for the true collector. I travel for a living and have probably been to 100 AD's minimum. I have never been treated like this.

total jerks enjoy your new watch!

[sgwatchguy]

Screw ‘em as has been said. There are great AD’s and there are shit ones; these guys are the latter.

I would have played it slightly differently. Since you travel a lot, next time you should say that you have a great AD in xxxx city as you travel a lot. That AD came through for you and shipped you the watch. You’re now looking to shift your business local because you’re traveling a lot less, and if they’re happy to have your business then you’d keep that in that view. Starting with the OP your partner was interested in. My 2c.

[Kowaco]

Somehow I can’t imagine ever having that conversation

[YoyoGift8]

Originally Posted by jhew

it's your $$$ and you decide where and what to spend. Period.

This!

[GGGMT]

Originally Posted by Dsh8432

Last week I finally broke down from playing the AD game and purchased a BLNR GMT from DavidSW. As you'd expect, it has become my daily wear. Usually when I go into an AD, I wear my Bluesy Sub I purchased new at an AD. Yesterday was different, however. I left my house with my girlfriend for a walk with no intention of other shopping, but decided to pop into an AD to have her try on a few of the smaller OP watches. I was wearing my new BLNR and the salesperson immediately complimented the watch and asked when I got it. I just told them it was a gift for myself that I had received last week. They then asked "from where?" while starting to seem rude and accusatory. I told them, very politely, that after a 2 year hunt from AD's, I decided I couldn't live without the piece, so I purchased it on the secondary market. The vibe immediately changed from casual to feeling like I had stolen the watch. They explained that "some AD screwed up big time" and that they troll Chrono24 searching for flippers from this store to blacklist them. I can't speak for this AD in particular, but flipping is obviously not universally frowned upon, otherwise the grays dealers wouldn't be flooded with this inventory. They went on to say that what I failed to do was establish a buying relationship with that AD, which is where I started to get a little more annoyed. Obviously at this point, I wouldn't buy a thing from this AD, so I entertained their criticism. I explained that I, in fact, did have a relationship with this AD and had purchased a $15k Sub (which is a lot for me) from them and in the wake of that purchase was laughed off about getting myself in a position to purchase a BLNR. To which the salesperson said "Well one watch like that definitely isn't enough to establish a relationship". I brought up the point that this market puts true collectors like myself in a bad position because we have the money for one watch we truly want every so often, but aren't financially equipped to buy our way to a retail GMT. Especially when the terms of "establishing a relationship" are very vague. Their response and facial expression implied that maybe the brand really wasn't for me. At that point my girlfriend passed back the OP's she was trying on and we left.

Anywho, I was hoping to get the communities input on this. Did I do something wrong, was the salesperson out of line? I think I speak for everyone when I say it's a sad market out there for the true collector. I travel for a living and have probably been to 100 AD's minimum. I have never been treated like this.

Anyone got the cliff notes version in this?


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[GGGMT]

Originally Posted by Sleepy996

Love DavidSW and congrats on the new BLNR.

DavidSW is more reliable than an ad


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