Visit to Wempe - NYC

[jeff g]

Just returned from a trip to NYC.

Went to Wempe. Heaven.

I looked around for quite awhile, and saw some unreal watches needless to say.

What I DID NOT see was interesting to me. 'Waiting lists' for a couple of my favorites...

Firstly, the 45mm Black dial Breitling Heritage

They had one and only one, on display..a smaller sized (39mm) with a blue dial.

The gen ss bracelet is unreal.

Sales guy said the wait was easily one year.

Secondly, they had no IWC Pilot Chronos. I was dying to compare it to my rep. No luck.

Waiting period on that model he was unable to determine.

And the biggest disappointment was the fact that they had no PP Nautilus models at all.

Plenty of Nautica's, if I wanted to try one on.

When I asked to see the PP brochure to show him the 5717, he went for one and came back with another guy to explain that for all intents and purposes the 5717 was currently 'unavailable'.

I am dying to see the gen Nautilus in the flesh. I am wearing the MBK Nauitlus Jumbo

as a daily beater, and to hold a genuine Nautilus in my hand would be...well you know.

I wonder where Brad Pitt found his?

But not to worry, they had quite a few other models to lust over.

I tried on a black dialed AP Royal Oak (39mm), and I must say that the current MBK Jumbo of that model is PRETTY DAMN nice.

I could spend hours in that shop.

I had a similar experience in Las Vegas 6 months ago. A lot of our current rep offerings seem to be unavailable in the genuine's for the most part, in may of the high end shops.

I am stoked to be able to wear my rep MBK APRO and PP Nautilus jumbo models that I currently own.

The black Heritage is definitely my next purchase. A classic to be sure.

Shop responsibly.

[slai]

What really surprised me about Wempe in NYC is the number of watches they have on display when they're closed. I've never seen so many high value watches in the window in the middle of the night.

[Guest Carl]

I think that the real point here is that the whole rep market does not seem to be actually hurting some of the gen manufacturers who don't seem to be able to keep up with demand for their extremely rare and high priced offerings.

Carl

[rek001]

Well the latest Goldman Sachs bonuses beat last years.

[Watchmeister]

But not Bear Stearns, etc. I actually manage to stop by Wempe reasonably frequently and I would guess that more watches are going to Europeans buying their own goods cheaper over here than in Europe. It is pretty tough to pass on a 50% increase when your currency appreciates (or ours depreciates) like that.

[anton]

Wempe, aside from Kenjo, are the only AD's I've been to where I don't feel pressured to purchase anything.

Whenever I walk into Wempe, it's like I am having a conversation with an old friend. Like I am talking to one of you guys. Last time I went, I was greeted by a salesman who happened to be a watchsmith and artisan in his spare time. We talked nothing but how beautiful some watches are and how their designs are blatantly ripped off by other manufactures. Needless to say, he despised the HBB; as he viewed it as an obvious copy of a ROO.

Although he was localized in a JLC area, he wore a gen Rolex 116520 with 116509 hands. For some odd reason, I was in awe over that much more so than anything.