Higher end watches, something I am unable to connect the dots on

[GON]

Regularly I walk through a nicer seven story mall.

On the first floor, the mall has over half a dozen higher end watch retailers. In these watch stores typically are three salespeople, and one security guard. I have never seen a customer ever in any of the watch stores.

I stopped in the Tag Hauer store to casually inquire about the price of their lowest end men's watch. A local I worked with is named Tag, and I thought it might be fun to give him a Tag Hauer watch. The entry level Tag Hauer watch was over $3,000 USD.

The Tag Hauer salesperson made no attempt to try and get me to purchase the watch, which I appreciated but surprised me. A check on eBay suggests a used entry level Tag Hauer can be purchased for a few hundred dollars.

I have seen Rolex stores around the world with customers. But how about these other higher end watch stores, how do they justify keeping the retail store open?

 

[Boomer]

This is why I collect Case knives!!

 

[Cropduster172]

The last company I worked for gifted me a Tag Heur, somewhat classic watch. I was at meeting outside of Lisbon in 2005 and took the train into Lisbon with another guy I worked with. There was a high end watch store selling many of brands and I spotted the identical watch...$1100 USD. I got about 12 years of occasional use before it died completely after having been repaired once before for $250.
I'd take a Casio analog quartz over a TH. It was this one:

 

[Zee09]

Great pictures Gon.
I know @KCJeep collects all kinds of high end watches. I asked why and how and he said he blows the $$$ before his wife can....geez...

 

[CharBaby]

The last company I worked for gifted me a Tag Heur, somewhat classic watch. I was at meeting outside of Lisbon in 2005 and took the train into Lisbon with another guy I worked with. There was a high end watch store selling many of brands and I spotted the identical watch...$1100 USD. I got about 12 years of occasional use before it died completely after having been repaired once before for $250.
I'd take a Casio analog quartz over a TH. It was this one:View attachment 265808

Is it a mechanical or quartz?
You can have another movement in this watch.
I’d be happy to take it off of your hands as a project piece.

 

[shortyb]

By charging you way more than online stores do. Most recent Tag acquisition was a Carrera Automatic Calibre 5 in stainless. Paid $1200 less than if I would have bought it in a brick and mortar. Genuine, certified, papers and box. Verified as a real serialized TH Carrera by Tag service center in NJ when it went in for maintenance. When I decide to pull the trigger on the blue dial Monaco ("Steve McQueen watch"), I'll be getting it online too. Quite a few B&M authorized sellers ay they have same prices as "official" online stores, but have wide latitude to set their own prices. Only brand I know that doesn't is Rolex. What you see is what you get.

 

[Cropduster172]

Is it a mechanical or quartz?
You can have another movement in this watch.
I’d be happy to take it off of your hands as a project piece.

Quartz. No, it's got some sentimental value as it's engraved on the back.

 

[CharBaby]

You will pay the most money at an Authorized Dealer(AD) which is what those stores are.
The online stores are called "Gray Market" and I do use them myself.

 

[Mechanician]

Let me introduce myself, you can call me Rolex.

What did you get for your associate Mercedes?

 

[KCJeep]

Great pictures Gon.
I know @KCJeep collects all kinds of high end watches. I asked why and how and he said he blows the $$$ before his wife can....geez...

You’d be amazed how many high end watches you can get in the trunk of a Mustang.

@GON Your observations of the stores would suggest to me the margins they are selling at must be insane.

 

[Kira]

I've thought the same thing (OP's point).
Not only the number of stand alone watch stores and their consistent emptiness, but the apparent number of watches in stock.
It seems to be the same way with shoes-zillions in shops. At least you see some people in shoe stores.

Where's the cash flow? ....How many can they sell?, is what I ask myself.

After an early doctor's appointment, I strolled into Breitling's Manhattan location, learned their entire line is made up of 'sports designed' watches and proceeded to tell the three employees and the guard about the new procedure I just had.
They were an interested audience. I can describe things well.

1) Do high end watch stores loan an air of glamour to a mall to the degree that they are offered lower rent? I doubt it.
2) Besides sales and placards advertising their timers when used at sporting events, when are their products even used?
3) I can see the appreciation of jewelry value, but adding a clockworks to the mix gives you what? It's a fragile way to display your bling.
The gears will age out and you're left with a case and maybe a bracelet.
Well designed jewelry seems to accrue value better than high end watches with the exception of queer little oddities like having been in a movie (mentioned above) or an insignificant dab of highlight paint on the face.

Also, the wildly gosh examples offered on TV and in cheap shops astounds me. Does the absence of taste and appreciation of value know no bounds?
I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that auto makers pedal the meaningless features they do. People seem to lap this stuff up.

 

[MrHorspwer]

The best analogy I can give to people who don't understand watches is guns.

You can go to Bass Pro and get a rifle or handgun and it's just that, a rifle or handgun. It's typically black, fairly utilitarian, but gets the job done.

Now start down the path of custom colors and finishes, Ceracote, exotic wood stocks, fancy trigger groups, engraving, machining, laser etching, all kinds of optics.

That's the equal to high end watches. You never see guns like that in the weekly circular. Go on Insta though and that's what gun enthusiasts share on their feed. That's what they're working toward buying. Some guys have an entire arsenal of firearms like this, just like some guys have a filled up watch box of high end timepieces. Others are just working toward getting that one piece they really want. Stores can serve both.

 

[UncleDave]

These stores are typically regional HQ stores, kept afloat by the aggregate business in the region vs their own sales.

They typically employ 1 or 2 actual watchmakers in the back doing warranty and cleaning work, and if they can move a few watches at MSRP then great.

In most cases the bulk of the business is done the rest of the reseller network.

 

[walterjay]

An expensive watch is something I don't get. Excuse me now as I am headed to Starbucks for a quick coffee.

 

[DuckRyder]

I have a TAG and a Citizen I hardly ever wear, in fact I don't think I have ever even adjusted the band on the Citizen, I think the cell phone basically killed anything but dress watches, Only wear them to things like weddings.

Back when I lived in the Islands the stores were packed on cruise ship days.

 

[walterjay]

Was on a cruise this past summer and there was a myriad of watch stores onboard. No customers though.

 

[Astro14]

You’re in a foreign country - different business model.

I suspect that they already know you’re not serious, so why waste their time on you when a real customer might come in?

Walk into a high end watch store in Geneva - the very nice salesperson will approach you, figure out what language you speak, offer you coffee and/or water, and ask how they can help.

You don’t save any money buying a Swiss watch in Switzerland- and there are some serious customs/duty concerns - but that’s the experience you’re expecting.

It’s the same in the US - a very luxury experience. Catered to. Waited on.

 

[NibbanaBanana]

This is why I collect Case knives!!

I don't really collect them, but I have a bunch that I use seasonally for different tasks in the garden. And three that I used for carving violins. Super high quality products. At the least, I use my edc multiple times a day.

I saw a video on counterfeit watches. Seemed like there were a lot and hard to impossible to tell the difference. I bough two pretty decent watches at WalMart for less than $30 total.

 

[k1xv]

Back in the day when I had to prove something to someone (or myself), I purchased some higher end mechanical watches. A couple of Breitlings, an Omega Moonwatch, a Zenith (which had the same movement as a Rolex Daytona). I still have them, but have not even looked at them in years.

My collecting moved on to railroad pocket watches, mostly Hamiltons, from the early to mid 20th century. They are actually appreciating.

For wearing, and personal use, I mostly rely on Citizen eco-drive solar and Seiko solar watches. Mostly bought on eBay. They seem to require no service, no batteries, run accurately for years on end, and are relatively cheap. Look nice too.

 

[Passport1]

That looks like a mall in Makati. Went there once when I was spending a deployment at Cubi Point. Remember they had some wonderful resturants. Singaporean was the best, I liked the noodle dishes. Re: expensive watches, I have a Tag and several other high end Swiss brands which I never wear. They stay in my gun safe. I wear either an old Seiko5, or an older Orient. At bedtime I switch to a Timex Expedition Indiglo so I can see what hour it is when I get up to p**.