Some Thoughts And Comments From T T K

[Guest TTK]

Fellow forum members.....lend me your ears for a short time....!

I'd like to thank all those who expressed good wishes during my recent illness, this illness whilst probably not much more than an inconvenience for some members, represented a very great threat to me, I developed a lower and upper respiratory infection, which because I am diabetic and have a weakened immune system, means it takes 3 to 4 times longer for me to recover, this infection meant that I was coughing constantly with clogged respiratory and sinus tracts, which give you a permanent headache racked stomachache and shortness of breath, combined with being exhausted almost 24 hours, due to the coughing which means even at night you can't get much sleep, it's extremely draining.

December and January had been very trying months for me, I am glad to say that I am on the mend now, however I'm still not fighting fit, so consequently I haven't been able to visit my suppliers in Bangkok ( a 200km journey) to pick up new supplies, but I'm hoping to do that shortly.

I know a number ( approx 7 ) of you have been waiting for a replacement item, for whatever reason, e.g. seized by customs, missing in the post or for faults, I'd like to thank you for your patience and assure you I will rectify that as soon as I have new stock.

Which brings me to the question of quality control, I've been experiencing a QC issue recently that had me sending back stock and replacing some 074 / 075 items that exhibited this issue, I will also NOT be advertising any more of the watches in question until the fault is rectified.....so anyone who is waiting for a replacement....be patient please.....same for those of you who have enquired after one.

I've also seen a few posts recently where members claim that I haven't inspected items before shipping, that is patently untrue, it serves me no good to send you an item that is going to cause me grief and engender ill will, I don't drop ship, so I can say, as I have done on so many occasions that each and every watch IS inspected by me, I don't send watches out that have STRIPPED heads nor clasps that have been BENT, I do however RECEIVE back watches that are in that condition, e.g....1x member recently complained that I had sent him a watch that didn't have an etched crown at 6.......all I can say is GET YOUR BLOODY EYES TESTED.......there is a fargin' crown at 6....you need a loupe to see it......and here's the photo below to prove it........this member was also the one who sent me back a bracelet that has stripped screws on it.....he asked me to swap out the watch with a TAG Carrera...and I agreed to do that....however when I received the watch back and examined it.....NO WAY......it will have a new movement inserted and sent back with the damaged bracelet.

Some others have complained that I haven't answered their e-mails, for that I apologise, but ask them to understand that I have been ill and that it has also been a holiday period, I was also out of circulation whilst back home in the UK.......I also ask them to consider the fact that whilst they may be corresponding with a few dealers here......I, like other dealers have to deal with hundreds of e-mails, which is difficult enough under normal circumstances, whilst you are ill and have other factors enter the equation.....such as the recent earthquake which has affected the entire Pan Asia region......the fibre optic cables which were disrupted were widespread, hitting China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong and elsewhere, with knock-on effects as far away as Australia for companies whose Internet is routed through affected areas.

I've had days where I've been unable to log on, days where I could log on, but each URL or page would take 20 mins to load, e-mails which arrived, e-mails which didn't, Skype operating badly, and all the usual [censored] that you get with a bad connection....such as waiting 10 mins for an e-mail to open up....watching that infernal hourglass spinning away.....till you get to the point where you end up saying...."ah..f**k it"......very frustrating.

I'd also like to comment on the number of people who jump into a post concerning me and say they made an inquiry with me and never received a response from me.......IT"S ALL TRUE......I never responded to them.....here are some examples why and an example that shows how to.......!

"Very interested in this watch. What is the conversion to US dollars? Please indicate shipping charges if any. Glad you got the bezel right. Also what additional inspection do you perform (if any) prior to shipping? I think you mentioned something about that in your dealer forum (Darkside). Thanx for the info."

Absolutely no info about who he is....no name....no forum names....nothing..also he's asking me to do the currency conversion for him......tell him my shipping charges ( which are already included on my advert )...tell him what I do....( which I've already posted )...........!

RESULT = DELETED

"Do you have a website? I am looking for a Superocean or a super avenger.

Thanks G*****"

Again no info other than a name....no forum name....not even which forum he's a member of.

RESULT = DELETED

"Dear Neil

Happy new year to you and your family ,!

Haven read all the great feed back on your products and service ! , I am very anxious to buy watches from you ,

Can you kindly send me the link to your photo album to brows your watches and make some decisions ?

Thank you very much

Kind regards

Medhat ,,,, well “ WADAN “ on the forums"

RESULT = REPLY

Just an indication of what gets a result and what doesn't.....if you don't have the courtesy to tell me who you are....I'll respond in kind.....by deleting your e-mail.........at which point you can go on the forum and tell everyone that TTK is an ignorant bar steward and didn't respond to your e-mail.

Which brings me to my final thoughts.

1. I will be posting some new terms and conditions shortly which will spell out the situation between seller and buyer.

PP ISSUES

2. I will not be accepting PP anymore, I recently opened some new PP accounts, each of them has been subjected to an EXTREMELY thorough verification process which goes way beyond what even my bank would ask me in order to open a new account......they include the following.

A. Verification of home address / passport / driving licence.

B. Verification of telephone number.

C. Verification of bank account.

D. Verification of credit card account.

E. Verification of website(s) where items are advertised..( if not Ebay ).

F. Verification of inventory ( e:g.....receipts / stock listing etc etc).

G. Verification of location specific postal tracking number ( e:g....if you are operating from China but with a US or UK based PP account....they want to see a Postal receipt or tracking number that reflects the country you are registered from).

H. A statement of monthly and annual turnover ...allied to an expression of what percentage of your annual income will be processed thru' PP

I for one will NOT be providing them with all this information and have subsequently decided not to use PP in future......there are many alternatives which are not subject to the same scrutiny.

I've checked with my banks...and have been informed that Iban transfers are easy to accomplish....and that I don't pay to receive money......all the buyer needs is my Iban transfer or Swift code to send the money......this is not subject to the same scrutiny that PP carries out.....the only downside is that some members banks will charge for an Iban transfer.....however the other side to that coin is that I as the seller would need to pay PP for the processing charge.......that amount could be used to provide a discount to the buyer in order to offset any bank charges.......I think it would be incumbent upon both parties to look at the costs and negotiate.......the same applies with Western Union.......charges could be easily offset.

I believe that at least one other dealer here recently has elected also not to use PP.......and I think it's only a matter of time before other dealers will also be affected by PP policies.

The 'perceived' downside for members is that they will no longer have the protection of PP......that's a fairly common and wide held belief,.....but the truth of the matter is that unless you pay by CC ...there is no real protection......if a seller has no money in his PP account nor attached bank account...PP can't and won't refund you......also...for PP members who instigate a CC chargeback.....they also can and have had their PP accounts limited.....so it really doesn't benefit members to instigate a PP complaint.....it's better to work it out with the dealer.

At present I will be offering a service as follows.

1. UK customers I am asking to pay by Nochex.....Nochex is similar to PP....but restricted to the UK.....you DO NOT NEED a Nochex account to send payments.....only to receive them.....so it's very simple for the buyer.

Link to Nochex.

NOCHEX

2. For European customers I am asking them to pay by Moneybookers.com........once again similar to PP......no questions asked.....and a very simple sign up process.....I've used it quite a number of times and so have other members who swear by it........I think Money bookers may be also be available to US customers.

Link to Moneybookers

MONEYBOOKERS

3. For US customers...I am asking that payment be negotiated in the short term....( one alternative I am considering is opening a US bank account here in Bangkok that US members can transfer to).

The usual rules apply.....choose your dealer....then choose your watch......I may not be the best dealer for you...if you're impatient and expect fire engine service.....there are plenty of good dealers here that can provide that.....I wouldn't say they are perfect....even the most popular dealers have their problems........especially when drop shipping......my main problem is that I'm a one man band......as a result I'm not the quickest on the block....nor the guy to hold your hand whilst you are patiently waiting......on the other side of that coin tho' ....is the fact that I get fewer returns from the stock that I send out......so you need to balance the situation before ordering.

There are too many other issues that I would like to comment on......but I really need to quit now.

Thanks for your ears.....sorry eyes......!

PS....for those who are waiting......please be patient....the time to start worrying is when you see the post from someone else that says...."TTK has turned up his toes"...

Edited January 14, 2007 by TTK

[jonthebhoy]

Links are missing Neil.

JTB

Edited to say..............working now.

[Usil]

Neil, thanks for the communications to the forum. Many of us like doing business with you because of what you offer.

Did this infection you picked up come from Scotland or did you have it before you took your holiday? Usually when I get a cold it turns into bronchitis and it hits me hard for quite a long time. Miderable time so I hate the cold thing because of what it can lead to. Unbelievably, I did not have a single cold last year and I can never remember that ever happening. I also always get the Flu shot.

Thanks for the IWC GST I received. It is a great looking watch. I am having a GTG in Paris on the 28th and Pugwash has a link to a Ingy that he thinks will work on my bracelet since I need the extra link for my wrist size.

Beautiful weather here in Paris as we really have not had winter yet. Best to you and hope you get back to being ship shape and bristol fasion again real soon.

Usil

Edited January 14, 2007 by Usil

[mikellem]

Welcome back Neil..

Glad to hear you are feeling better..

-MM

[Guest TTK]

Hi Mike.....I had the infection before I left for Scotland...but I think the weather exacerbated the problem...Glasgow had 44 days of rain with no letup.....and was extremely cold.....my illness got worse there......plus the plane journey didn't help.......I had terrible pain and problems with my ears because of the sinus condition......I lost my hearing for about 4 days....!

Anyway glad to hear you got the IWC ok....especially after the loss of the Panerai....( plus the gift that I included )......

[KB]

Very well put together infomative post Neil.

Welcome back and glad to hear you are on the improve

One quick question is the Iban transfer fee's lower than WU fee's?

Ken

[Guest TTK]

@ken.....it varies from bank to bank.....some US banks I believe are free....but some do charge,.....I think any member who is contemplating ordering should check with their bank....all they need to do is call their bank and ask...'how much to do an Iban or Swift transfer"..?

Just like PP ...it can take 3-5 days to accomplish......but the IMPORTANT thing is that if it gives added protection to OUR dealers.....who are most at risk.....then it has to be better for the continuation of our hobby......it's all down to trusting your dealer not to run away with your money.......thankfully we have had very few Luckky's on the boards.....!

PS.....I saw the post over at RWI regarding J&A.......I think like ALL dealers they are going to come under intense scrutiny.....I can't describe to you here...ALL of the steps I have taken to acquire a new PP account.....but believe me.....they are using an electron microscope.

The single biggest problem is this:.....IP address.......you can go in and change everything......but the crawlers they use to find cross referenced data are very efficient.....and if you haven't covered all the bases....they'll suss you.....they'll also do it by checking YOUR customers buying habits....and looking at what / who and where they buy from....!

Personally I think it's a good thing......every dealer waits with baited breath when checking his PP account...for the dreaded..."your account has been limited"........if we can get rid of the mentality that believes PP is the only option ...then we can provide our dealers with the ability to relax and concentrate on what we do best ...finding good quality items for us to consume.

Edited January 14, 2007 by TTK

[r11co]

Hi Mike.....I had the infection before I left for Scotland...but I think the weather exacerbated the problem...Glasgow had 44 days of rain with no letup.....and was extremely cold.....my illness got worse there......

Aye, and you passed it on to John ya begger Me, on the other hand, with my hardier Latin backgrounds (accustomed to living the peasant life, you see) managed to fend it off. Or maybe it is just because I am younger than your 45-55 years

Anyway, I genuinely didn't want to be hassling you about the Railmaster as I knew already you didn't have your troubles to seek (plus I have my own hassles regarding another watch and another member of this forum that I wanted resolved), but pick me up one with the same top-class lume as your own next time you make it out to BK and rest assured I'll NoChex ya!

Get well soon, and Noli nothis permittere te terere.

PS. My bank (HBOS) charges £25 for IBAN!!!!!

[KB]

Thanks for the reply Neil, I actually went off and did a little research after posting and yes it does look good (could save me a bundle in WU fee to my suppliers) but unfortunately it is not and will not be available to US members.

http://auctionfeecalculator.com/iban_transfers.html

Ken

[Guest TTK]

@ken.....it doesn't necessarily need to be an Iban or Swift transfer.....it's an individual request to your OWN bank to say ...'how can I send money to someone in the UK or Thailand"?.....your bank will tell you how to do it.....I did a Swift transfer with a US member last year...I simply told him my name ...acc no.....sort code.....and the Swift code......easy peasy.....!

[r11co]

There is no rhyme or reason to the availability or cost of these transfers, so it is definitely worth a bit of investigation by each of us to see what is available to them. My bank charges £25 flat rate for international transfer, but transfer within the EU is not classed as international and is therefor free?! Other banks don't levey a charge at all. Some, if you perform the transfer to a bank in the same group or a partnering bank, will treat the transfer as a domestic one even if the account holder is in another country.

[KB]

Yes many years ago I used to do International bank transfer but they were expensive, what I like about this Iban is where they say fee's are low or zero

Ken

[Rob1]

I use IBAN transfers to France quite often. My bank (First Direct in the UK) charges £20 per transfer. Very quick and easy, but quite expensive if you're transferring relatively small amounts of money. I've once also used an independent money broker to make a transfer as they offered a better foreign exchange rate than my bank, and charged less for the service (£14 IIRC), but there extra hassle to this as you have to set up an account with them and have cleared funds in that account before you could make the transfer. If PP are going to be even tougher with our dealers maybe we need to get used to paying for international money transfers if that is the best way to keep the dealers from being excessively scrutinised? I know that I'd rather pay a bit extra rather than have the dealers go completely underground and make purchasing high quality reps difficult or even impossible.

[gargoil]

Glad to hear your on the mend Neil and I look forward to seeing what goodies you have available this year and hope to do business with you again!!

Will

Edited January 14, 2007 by gargoil

[crystalcranium]

Welcome back Neil. The infection clearing up has also seemed to have cleared up some of your legendary crankiness! Please see if you can get it back. I don't know if I can stomach a 'kinder and gentler version " of TTK

BTW, the emails are amazing. I'm surprised thay didn't include instructions for how high you were to jump.

$25-$30 for a WU transfer for me to China. Moneybookers continues to be a major pain, an attempt to upload funds actually freezing my ATM card and account access for a day.

Would you take a personal check! (just kidding!!!)

[Murdoch]

Hey Neil, Didn't know that you had been I'll. I'm really sorry to hear that, but glad that you're feeling better ;-)

/Murdoch

[Guest TTK]

@Crys.....thank you for the kind words....( I'll revert to form and flame your ass later ).......!

I think there is an easy way round all of this....but in teh spirit of competition ...I'm going to keep it close to my chest.....all I'll say is that for UK users....Nochex works beautifully......however...I have no problems with UK members doing a direct deposit to my bank account.....in fact some UK members send money direct in a Special Delivery envelope.....overnight.....a family member then deposits it straight into my account.......!

Just remember that...for every problem...there's a solution.....

[Pugwash]

Neil, I hope you get better soon as your charm and acerbic wit has been sorely missed these past months. As soon as your Skype is stable, I'll ring you for a chat.

2. For European customers I am asking them to pay by Moneybookers.com........once again similar to PP......no questions asked.....and a very simple sign up process.....I've used it quite a number of times and so have other members who swear by it........I think Money bookers may be also be available to US customers.

I am one of these people that swears by MonkeyBonkers and swears at WU. MoneyBookers is EU-biased admittedly, which makes a change from everything else that's US-biased, but if you're loading up your account in advance, it's ridiculously cheap to get money to a dealer.

It's a little more complicated for US members, but it's worth the effort.

Thanks for the post, it should silence the peanut gallery for a day or maybe two.

[cornerstone]

Good news that you are on the mend - there must be a touch of the Robert Louis Stevenson in you

I agree that Moneybookers is the way forward. It is a total pain to set up at first, but if folk are serious about this hobby on an on-going basis, once it's set up you're good to go. It saves the dealers money, and it's a piece of piss if you have a European bank account. As Ken has said before though, if you pay by credit card, it takes that out as a cash withdrawal.

@Ken, if your overseas transfers are substantial, PM me. You can make SWIFT transfers for about AU$15 - but the recipient needs a bank account for it to go into. It also involves disclosure of personal information (passport number, etc.), I don't know if WU demand that. But the exchange rates will probably be better than WU as well as the fee.

Cheers!

[Watchmeister]

Neil-

I am so sorry to hear of your illness and glad you are on the mend. You gotta get out of the "rainy" countries.

On the US and payment I do have a couple of thoughts for what they are worth. I think wire transfer is a great option but there are some specific considerations in the U.S. First, even if you are a large customer at the very largest banks Citi, JP Morgan, etc. the banks usually do charge a minimum of $20 for each transfer. Also many US banks and their online services do not provide the ability to do international wire transfers other than doing it in person. For many folks, haing to show up in person can be more problematic than the money. It has to do with the Homeland and Money Laundering acts. These comments relate to personal rather than business accounts. So I would suggest, if possible, setting up a bank account with a US based bank or bank with US subsidiary. Further domestic funds transfer is often free at many banks here and so if it is free from your end it can actually enhance profitability.

[Guest TTK]

@kruzer....one of the things I'm consdering at this point is a US bank account.....there are quite a few in Bangkok.....however I'm not sure what the requirements are.....I'm considering also opening an HSBC account....it's a global bank.....not sure if US members could deposit to that A/C and I could facilitate from here....!

Whatever is set up....the days of PP are numbered.......I won't subject myself to the vagaries of an organisation that isn;t even a banking institution and who employ draconian measures to terrorise the customer who is feeding them finance.

[jamesg]

@ Neil

Which bank do you use in the UK? I bank with NatWest and if you use the same then instant (rather than 3-5 day) transfers are possible.

Cheers

James

p.s. Great start for Walter and Ally!!

[jkerouac]

Hang in there, Neil. Your friends and supporters on the boards outnumber the morons, troublemakers, or enemies by a vast margin. Your presence has been missed. And having dealt with periodic bronchial viruses myself I know what kind of pain they bring and toll they can take on day to day activities.

You and the other trusted dealers are our friends and allies in a complex, often hostile business climate. As has been expressed on the board many times, we want you to succeed and to profit from your efforts on our behalf.

On top of that, I always look forward to a good Neil/TTK post, whether it includes stunning photos that put the gen manufacturers to shame, your strong opinions on the world today.... or flaming someone who ought to know better.

Get better, and may you enjoy many more profitable and enjoyable years in the community.

[Guest TTK]

@jamesG....I use a couple...Natwest is one.....!

Only just caught up with the news that Walter and Ally were back.....( sleeping too much)........I presume they won......need to check it out....

PS.....watch oot fer thay mad Timms......JTB...( he's a Sassenach Timm )......and that other Italian geezer.....I think his name is Gigolo or something ....onyway....it's got a vowel on the end o' it.......!

Edited January 14, 2007 by TTK

[Guest TTK]

@Star...canny do the SA or SO......but I am about to sell some of my own...fully serviced....long term tested watches......that just don't see wrist time anymore.....since I got the Railmaster and 187.....!

Here's a wee taster.....with some more still to come...