rblippy Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Does a forum or method exist to communicate with the factories to provide feedback to each?? I think it would be great to let them know what customers like and dont like. If they care. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ztech Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Well, if we could communicate directly with the factories our dealers might loose their job. So... I doubt that we'll ever be able to communicate with the factories directly, but it would be nice if our dealers passed the information from us along to the factories. Whether this is the case or not is left to be determined. The majority of us on this forum agree with your idea though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Such feedback would rely on the factories caring what the end-users think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugwash Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 We are not the customers of the factories: They don't care what we think. Ask a distributor to talk to the factories as they are their customers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
POTR Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Sounds like a job for Dr. Gaunzhoolittle... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pix Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 (...) If they care. They don't I remember my story with the "chinese MBK" Nautilus. I was unhappy, really, with the finish of the bracelet. Mentionned that to my favorite dealer. Who reported this to the factory... Answer (not the exact words, but sounds like that) : "this is the best we are doing, these are reps, if you disturb us for such things in the future we won't sell to you anymore, if your customer is not happy, he can go and buy the real thing..." I guess they were right. I guess they really don't care... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elprimerozen Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pix Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Needless to mention that this was not a cheap rep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KB Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 My own supplier states that if a customer need to take a loupe or a measuring tape to their products then they shouldn't be buying replica in the first place. And they have some of the best products made in china. Ken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pix Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Sure. In my case the bracelet was badly finished. Did not need a loupe : common sense was enough And I was not the one pretending "this is an MBK rep"... Add the fact that this Nautilus had a socalled Swiss ETA 2824 whose rotor winded only in one direction (not normal for a Swiss 2824), you'll understand that it's not a question of whining because 2 microns are missing from the case... But I agree, nothing is perfect in this world : factory owners included... I was more shocked by the threat of banning the dealer than by the other remarks. However, when you reach a certain level of price, I would tend to say that some issues should not happen : they don't happen on cheap Casios, why on expensive reps ? I'm not talking of replication accuracy, but really of severe lacks in some jobs (all of us have at least one example). That's surely naive, but that's how I am... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KB Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 @Pix sorry in no way was my comment aimed at you, I think you were quite correct in complaining. I also think your dealer should have replaced or refunded regardless of what the factory said, at the end of the day he was the one who sold it to you. Ken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 The factories can obviously afford that attitude... and frankly it doesn't surprise me. Well, as long as people are buying "super reps" for $400 and more... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadtorrent Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 The factories can obviously afford that attitude... and frankly it doesn't surprise me. Well, as long as people are buying "super reps" for $400 and more... That's why I like my $400 "super reps" to go on sale at $275 (Silix 2006 Cousteau Diver)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DemonSlayer Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 The factories can obviously afford that attitude... and frankly it doesn't surprise me. Well, as long as people are buying "super reps" for $400 and more... Someone's pockets are getting filled up with those kind of prices... I'm not suprised at that response Pix, factories are concerned with selling in volume, not necessarily making the highest quality product so that the consumers will be satisfied. In fact it's the opposite in some cases, "how can we make them the cheapest with the ability to sell?" We only have ourselves to blame, people are obviously keeping the factories in business by buying their watches. I think that if this stopped or slowed down, the factories might be inclined to think about maximizing the quality of their watches rather than maximizing their bank accounts at the expense of quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 But then again, the quality of reps have increased DRAMATICALLY in the last 2 years. There have been some bad and disappointing reps, but there have been many which are almost indistinguishable from the gen... which was completely unheard of 2 years ago. The higher prices are almost justified when the end result is that good. Reps like Aquaracer, SFSO, BCE and SMP Chrono come to mind... IMHO: Anything that goes over 400$ should be boycotted. You have to draw the limit somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archibald Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 IMHO: Anything that goes over 400$ should be boycotted. You have to draw the limit somewhere. I doubt we could pull it off--we're addicts, after all--but I've alwas wondered what an actual organized boycott by forum members for a particular watch would do. My guess is that they sell enough outside of the forums, that a RWG/Geek/RWI boycott would probably just make them carry inventory a little longer than they otherwise would and not a lot more. Sure would be interesting to find out, though.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 Archie, I didn't mean that we should arrange any kind of "organized" boycotts. It's just that everyone has their limit, and my limit is definitely somewhere between $350 and $400. Swiss 7750-based watches, frankens and real gold watches are different of course. I'm talking about those $700 and $900 Hublots and such. That's just insane! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archibald Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 Archie, I didn't mean that we should arrange any kind of "organized" boycotts. I know, buddy....but personally, if I thought we could do it, I think it would be worth trying if only to find out how much juice we as a group actually have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 Paul was always saying that we only represent what... 10% of his complete sales. I seriously doubt that number... now that we have three fairly large forums with thousands of members. But maybe he's right. Speaking of mr. HotShot, I hope he's still happy with his Porche (sic). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMK000 Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 ... will be unfair to ask to do at least a minimal QC on their watches ?? I am fed up of getting defective watches Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pix Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 That's why it's important to find a dealer who does that for you... I know it's naive, but there are some. Of course this QC is limited, as the dealer won't open the rep for you for instance. And also I learnt that what is a detail for them is often a key point for us (pearl, bezel etc...) @Ken : no worry, I did not take your remark for me personnaly. And it was not yours, it was a manufacturer's one, which I'm not surprised with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capice Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 I think some dealers mind, others don't. The factories don't mind, they will only listen to their customers(our dealers) when they buy mass quantities , I think then a dealer can force some influence. On the other hand, I have heard of prices for movements which are incredibly low as $ 25 for 500 pieces for nonbranded watches, as a masterwatchmaker here told me. My respect for watches, the technique ect and the people who assemble them, has grown since I'm on the boards, in some cases the prices go beyond the quality but overall I agree with By-Tor that there are some very good reps out there on fair prices. For the rest the price is set by the demand, popular watches will cost more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 Something else worth baring in mind, is that gen items can still have flaws in them (watches, electronic goods etc) I remember seeing a photo of a gen Seiko with condensation under the crystal. So much for gen QC and waterproofing on that instance A while back, I saw an SMP in a jewellers (I forget if it was a 2531.80 or a 2220.80), but, it had a scratch on the bezel insert, and a raised line on the insert, as large as someone putting a hair under clingfilm (which, on the scale of a watch, is pretty noticeable) The watch didn't stay in the window for long, it was either removed or sold, but, either way, it was another example of a gen factory dropping the ball. To be honest, companies can't have much faith in their products, or they wouldn't offer warranty on them... If the product's going to last, it will last, it shouldn't need the safety net of a warranty (although I know they're just covering themselves) So bearing all that in mind, sure, rep factories might send out a duff watch on occasion, but, then again, so do the gen factories I've received more watches which were fine, than ones with a manufacturing flaw, so although the odds are still good, as with anything, it's pretty much just the luck of the draw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sssurfer Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 I know, buddy....but personally, if I thought we could do it, I think it would be worth trying if only to find out how much juice we as a group actually have. I think somewhat between 1 and 5%. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narikaa Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 I think somewhat between 1 and 5%. Strange I would have thought nowhere near as much as that. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.