When will Rolex Stop this?

[GST15]

I am just taking my dollars to other brands at this point. I still love Rolex, but there are other great watches. If my AD calls, and it is something I want, I will still buy.
It is a blessing of sorts. Encourages us to look at what else is out there.

[HogwldFLTR]

Really, this is an insane thread. Don't buy watches that are over priced and stop complaining that they're priced that way. Buy what you can and take it as it comes instead of whining about what doesn't work. Do what does work.

[Harry-57]

Originally Posted by C0d

Anyways, those who think this is fair game and they want to play, hey more power to you.

Those who think this isn't they are already refusing to go the Rolex way so good for them.

I'm waiting on one model. I have no idea when it will turn up at my AD. Past that I'm happily fishing in other ponds. The more people who give Rolex the elbow, the better it will be for those still waiting and wanting.

But the thing is the demand. It's insane. Nobody is driving that except the people who are pushing, shoving and paying well over MSRP. If I was in the business of selling watches I'd be a fool not to want a piece of it - while it lasts.

[Onikage]

More whining. I'm lucky. I have a 16710. All this scrambling about over the new ones is most humorous to me.

[zengineer]

Somehow, despite all this, they've not yet even come close to making a fool out of me.

Sent from my Motorola Bag Phone

[slus]

Originally Posted by Masteryacht

Just adjust your behavior. I have. I’m put off by it and therefore not looking to buy, not calling my AD anymore, not going by my AD, etc. Its just too much of a headache. Things will change and I will be interested in buying again or they won’t. I’m fine either way. Worst case scenario is I keep my money in my pocket instead of giving it to Rolex. I just don’t view that as a bad thing.

Exactly. I still stop in and BS with the ADs when I'm on vacation just to see if they want to talk watches, sometimes it works out better than that, sometimes they blow me off, but whatever.

I fail to see how forking over my hard earned money for a luxury good that I absolutely do not need is such a high honor that I need to grovel just for the chance to do it. Then we get into buying grey market without trying it on for ridiculous prices, or even worse bundling garbage I don't want in with the purchase. No way, not the Rolex experience I want. You'll see me with a truckload of Omegas before I walk out with a 2 tone lady Datejust with diamonds just to get a hyped SS Rolex.

[copperjohn]

Originally Posted by Masteryacht

Just adjust your behavior. I have. I’m put off by it and therefore not looking to buy, not calling my AD anymore, not going by my AD, etc. Its just too much of a headache. Things will change and I will be interested in buying again or they won’t. I’m fine either way. Worst case scenario is I keep my money in my pocket instead of giving it to Rolex. I just don’t view that as a bad thing.

Rolex is neither the only watch I have, nor the only watch I wear. But I really really want a Pepsi. I don’t $18,000 want one, I ‘MSRP’ want one. With all the stuff I currently have, I can wait. There may be a reasonable number above MSRP that I would entertain, but right now most are at 18k plus so I’m not holding my breath.

[polaris72]

Originally Posted by Jocke

This is one of the reasons why I have not looking at Rolex for the last 10 years. There are a lot of other brands that treat you as a valued customer.

Must agree here. Supply and demand applies to secondary market. ADs selling through back door is not called an honest business.

[copperjohn]

Originally Posted by slus

Exactly. I still stop in and BS with the ADs when I'm on vacation just to see if they want to talk watches, sometimes it works out better than that, sometimes they blow me off, but whatever.

I fail to see how forking over my hard earned money for a luxury good that I absolutely do not need is such a high honor that I need to grovel just for the chance to do it. Then we get into buying grey market without trying it on for ridiculous prices, or even worse bundling garbage I don't want in with the purchase. No way, not the Rolex experience I want. You'll see me with a truckload of Omegas before I walk out with a 2 tone lady Datejust with diamonds just to get a hyped SS Rolex.

There is an Omega boutique right next door to my AD. They get good business, and STILL have almost everything in stock. Two different business models. Unfortunately they don’t have anything I currently want (though I might give up on the Pepsi and just get a blue Aqua Terra).

PS: I won’t get an AT instead of the BLRO. I don’t know why I said that..Lol.

[THC]

Or... switch models and you may find a great deal on a different Rolex

[Rado63]

Originally Posted by C0d

ADs make a fool out of all of us. They feed us lies and some of us actually believe them. Perhaps some of them are still genuine and run honest businesses but most of them are just milking the cash cow the best they can.
If you know the right people and can bring them the cash you can have anything.... They are required toremove stickers right?!?

Attachment 1185164

What exactly do you believe Rolex should stop? Stickers are actually the property of the owner. Some clients spend hundreds of thousands of dollars at the AD.

[samuel019]

Guys I hate to say it but I honestly don’t ever see this ending.

How??? Why??

Rolex is gonna keep churning out a million or whatever watches a year.
There gonna get sent to same AD’s.
Those same AD’s are gonna keep doing the same behavior.
People are gonna keep b****ing and moaning.
Others are gonna say bump it and go grey, give up, or look elsewhere at different makes.

I’ve “only” been fortunate by going to same AD for 8 years where I buy more then watches. My only advice is find one that you like. Bite the bullet and buy other jewelry. Stay in contact and hope for the best. Complaining will not change a thing.

My entire signature line? Been some AD. Some Grey. All have been great experiences and just the state of the world when it comes to Rolex.

But thinking it’s gonna change some day....... Yeah no.

[JSolution]

I love grey and think all the ones I have purchased grey are worth the money, although there’s some I don’t think are.

Simple to buy transaction suits me a lot better than waiting years, I’m impatient.

[nucleon]

Let's think about this. Rolex supposedly is run by a charitable foundation and is not in the business of making money for the sake of making money. So they say, anyway.

They sell their watches exclusively to the AD's, yes? So they make what they make when the AD sells one. If that same watch is then sold for double by a flipper, Rolex doesn't make one more cent. They do make more when the AD's sell the "less desirable" models as a ramp-up to selling the "more desirable" models although those would probably sell anyway. So ROLEX's motivation is probably relatively aligned with this particular facet of AD sales practices.

IF (big IF) they wanted to stop flippers and choke the gray market, that could be done. Every Rolex has a serial number, and I would assume that Rolex keeps a record of every watch and every serial number, and the AD to which it was sent. (Correct me if I'm wrong...) All they have to do is create a registry for the owners and provide some incentive to register one's watch AND the place it was purchased. The incentive might simply be to allow the original warranty to continue without question, even if the watch was purchased gray. In this manner, they would be able to quickly figure out which AD's were selling in large part to flippers.

Now please understand...I have no problem with the grays themselves. I bought my JC from a reputable place and I am thrilled with it (and the premium was "only" $1K over retail). My real discomfort is with the AD's themselves who are feeding the flippers.

[77T]

Originally Posted by C0d

Perhaps some of them are still genuine and run honest businesses but most of them are just milking the cash cow the best they can.

IMHO you have it backwards.

The vast majority are genuine and run honest businesses; few of them are just milking the cash cow.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[UmichNJ]

Originally Posted by C0d

ADs make a fool out of all of us. They feed us lies and some of us actually believe them. Perhaps some of them are still genuine and run honest businesses but most of them are just milking the cash cow the best they can.
If you know the right people and can bring them the cash you can have anything.... They are required toremove stickers right?!?

Attachment 1185164

I’m really pleased with my AD. They work hard to allocate watches to loyal customers that will actually wear them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dtwer]

Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

[jlovda]

Originally Posted by C0d

And perhaps offer a different hour hand, the current one is

Regarding Tudor...... I agree. The "snowflake" white box is a big turnoff.

[teck21]

Originally Posted by C0d

1

The fact that everyone talks about it proves that there is more to it than the simple "supply and demand" drum.

That doesn’t prove a thing. And yes, it is still a simple supply and demand issue.

Too many people chasing too few watches. Price goes up. It really is that simple.

Everything you all conspiracy types like to think a causal factor are merely manifestations of the current demand/supply situation, not the cause.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[teck21]

Originally Posted by UmichNJ

I’m really pleased with my AD. They work hard to allocate watches to loyal customers that will actually wear them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well said. This is probably far more common an occurrence than many on the forum like to admit.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Stan Cooper]

Originally Posted by Onikage

More whining. I'm lucky. I have a 16710. All this scrambling about over the new ones is most humorous to me.

Exactly.

[Ftech1]

Originally Posted by Masteryacht

Just adjust your behavior. I have. I’m put off by it and therefore not looking to buy, not calling my AD anymore, not going by my AD, etc. Its just too much of a headache. Things will change and I will be interested in buying again or they won’t. I’m fine either way. Worst case scenario is I keep my money in my pocket instead of giving it to Rolex. I just don’t view that as a bad thing.

Couldn't have said it better.

[juve]

Originally Posted by aayates

i agree; that hour hand is the worst part of that watch.

+1

[TDOR]

The glory of Rolex lies in it,s rarity and scarcity not the piece itself, so you should expect ADs to try and exploit it the best way they could.

[Kevin of Larchmont]

Why would Rolex stop this, they’ve spent a century creating it. Why wouldn’t AD’s leverage a very limited resource? What would happen if every Joe who had a whim to buy a Rolex could walk in and pick from full cases? I’ll tell you what, people would start gravitating towards the watches that they couldn’t have. Rolex is a wonderful watch but it’s not the quality or the style that drives the demand that drives the price, it’s the scarcity. For every post here talking about the robust and reliable nature of the movement there are fifty complaining that buyers can’t get what they want. Rolex will never put a stop to it, they’ve engineered the marketplace to be exactly like they want it.

[Mendota]

Originally Posted by Kevin of Larchmont

What would happen if every Joe who had a whim to buy a Rolex could walk in and pick from full cases?

Literally from day 1 up until only 3 years ago we could do exactly that. We could walk into any AD, at any time, and try on any watch we wanted. The Rolex cases were full of every model. It was no big deal and there was no sense of urgency. If you wanted a sub or a GMT, you could think about it and buy it whenever you wanted. Usually at a discount. The sales people were just normal people and you could chat about watches whenever you wanted to stop in. Now, only 3 years later, it's a complete circus.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

[Combine man]

People can only be asking these prices because they know people will be crazy enough to pay them,long term this will damage the brand and discourage new purchasers from buying Rolex.
I also find it amazing that this sort of thing is nearly the accepted norm in the Rolex buying process,how desperate does one have to be to pay loads over mrrp for an item thats wanted,not needed,the old expression more money than sense springs to mind!

[Doc Savage]

Originally Posted by copperjohn

There is an Omega boutique right next door to my AD. They get good business, and STILL have almost everything in stock. Two different business models. Unfortunately they don’t have anything I currently want (though I might give up on the Pepsi and just get a blue Aqua Terra).



PS: I won’t get an AT instead of the BLRO. I don’t know why I said that..Lol.

You really should. They are fantastic watches with a lot more variety than the Crown, imo.

[teck21]

Originally Posted by Combine man

People can only be asking these prices because they know people will be crazy enough to pay them,long term this will damage the brand and discourage new purchasers from buying Rolex.!

You make the mistake of assuming most or all new Rolex buyers are in the ‘i deserve a sub at MSRP when I walk into an AD’ club.

For every one such potential customer, there is at least one other one who is happy to buy grey or ‘play the AD game’.

As long as Rolex does not increase production to match demand while keeping MSRP down, the phenomenon you describe in fact strengthens the brand rather than diminish it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sub Capt.]

Originally Posted by UmichNJ

I’m really pleased with my AD. They work hard to allocate watches to loyal customers that will actually wear them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I feel the same way. Very happy with mine