Counterfeit Watches
- Thread starter NibbanaBanana
- Start date
CleanSump
Site Donor 2026
$200 for a fake Rolex is a ripoff. I paid $6 for one in Hong Kong.
There you go......
There are those who take the same cruises over and over again. Those who purchased the watches previously do say they are good watches. I hear you can get them down to $100.00 if you bargain. The thing is the Turks take negotiation up to a whole different level.
Thanks for the responses. So grey market could make the real thing sell for less than the manufacturer's listed price. (Not sure I completely understand how that works exactly.)
But it sounds like if you want the real McCoy, pay up at the manufacturer's website.
But it sounds like if you want the real McCoy, pay up at the manufacturer's website.
No, gray market is the exact same product.
Some company will make a product, often in one place - and then sell it for whatever the market will bear in each country. So a low income country in Asia might get the same watch at a official dealer there for the equivalent of half, or much less, vs here. So someone buys that watch in that country, and exports it here, and is able to sell it still at a lower price and still make a handsome profit. However as mentioned, the warranty won't exist.
Can work the other way as well. If you want a designer shirt in Latin America, expect to pay more for it than you would here.
This happens all the time, in almost every industry. Retail pricing is market pricing - ie whatever the locals will pay.
I've worn a Omega Speedmaster Professional since 1971, it was a wedding present from my wife. At the time they were about $375. Since then have owned several iterations of various brands like Rolex, Breitling, IWC and at one time went through a Seiko phase. Trust me, watches are an addiction. I still wear a Speedmaster, the "Moonwatch" as I once worked for a NASA subcontractor, and fully realizing that a manually wound chronograph isn't everyone's cup of tea, especially the price. While in my Seiko phase, I was lucky to have purchased a Seiko Alpinist. It is still made and, IMHO, a perfect choice if you want a sturdy, attractive, self winding tool watch. I think they are currently $6-700? Just make sure you get it from a trusted reputable dealer, they are also counterfeited. Take a look, wish I had kept mine.
Places like Joma Shop are reputable. Gray market, but no fakes. I've bought watches from them before. Buying from a dealer is going to cost a fair bit more money. Watches typically work or they don't, and even a mechanical, if it makes it a year, which the gray market stores warranty, then it's going to run for a normal life span.
Yes, that exactly how it works, you're getting the same product, or it could be a regional variation of that product.
Seiko is quite famous for their JDM versions, but only Japanese citizens get the full warranty, international buyers get one year. But the savings could be substantial. I was in Japan recently and just out of curiosity went to a Grand Seiko store. They had a very beautiful, white dial model that went for roughly $8.5k there and I wouldn't pay tax on it, where that same model in US is around $11k.
No, you can buy from an authorized dealer like Teddy with full confidence. You will get the same watch and full U.S. warranty as you would direct from the manufacturer.
The manufacturer's site is selling at full MSRP. They won't sell for less than their dealers. In most cases, the dealer is free to set their own retail price.
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Very true, this one was pretty obviously a fake.
Well, they must not sell any on the manufacturer's site then. What's the point of even listing them at that price I wonder?
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
My son did when he was maybe 12 - we were going home at 35,000’ when it quit working … at least his Hard Rock shirts were reliable
They likely do not sell many off there site. The primary reason for listing them there is to establish the highest price anyone should pay. It establishes the top line on the market.
Car OEM's do this with MSRP. Of course dealers have figured to add "market adjustment" to raise the price, but that only works if everyone in an area colludes. So by having many dealers and lots of supply, in theory eventually one of them will sell at or below the MSRP.
Its all marketing. The price of something establishes an opinion / impression. Your opinion is a $1000 watch is better than a $100 watch, while technically it may or may not be any better at keeping time.
I better go check to see if my Swatch is fake. I would hate to have spent $15 on a non sanctioned time piece.
I never got into the watch thing much. I bought a beautiful Seiko Kinetic when I was very young, and sold it to pay for sales tax on my first new truck. Yep - I didn't know I needed to pay sales tax. Since then, the most expensive watch I've owned is an Apple watch, which gets beaten to death nearly daily. I'm not someone who can have nice things...
I never got into the watch thing much. I bought a beautiful Seiko Kinetic when I was very young, and sold it to pay for sales tax on my first new truck. Yep - I didn't know I needed to pay sales tax. Since then, the most expensive watch I've owned is an Apple watch, which gets beaten to death nearly daily. I'm not someone who can have nice things...
Almost all of the parts are made in China.
If a luxury brand wants to make good money, they purchase parts and usually assemble the products in China. There is a huge manufacturing base for these products.
As for the fakes, if your product is not being counterfeited then you are not doing it right. You have to be good enough for someone to take time to counterfeit it. And the fake products can be as cheap as a Bolex watch with quartz movement to a Rolex watch that is virtually undistinguishable from the real thing. A Bolex can be $10 and an excellent fake can be $2,500 and up.
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