beanyboy Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 I know that the pricing topic has been discussed and discussed, and beaten to death here at RWG. I never really chimed in because I thought I had nothing to add on the topic of pricing and price-fixing of reps. Frankly, I for one think my BCE ultimate is worth what I paid for it, even though some of the oldtimers on this board feel the price is too high for some of the better reps. Even a no brand watch of the same quality and construction as my BCE would have been at least $200, so I am not complaining. I just noticed, however, that Andrew and Joshua have listed the newly released Graham "oil can" watch, which looks like a very decent rep. The really odd thing about it, however, is that they have both listed the watch for USD 418. Now maybe they're connected and, for all I know, the same guy. Let me know if that's the case. But the chance of two independent dealers coming up with the same exact price for the rep defies probability Perhaps it's "retail price maintenance" and it's set by the manufacturer because they're drop shipping the watch. (That's the best explanation, but at least one dealer claims he doesn't drop ship). Perhaps it's "conscious parallelism" as was claimed back when the Sherman Antitrust Act actually meant something in the USA? However, my guess is that it's just old fashioned price-fixing...and there's nothing we can do about it except exit the rep watch collecting business. Beany Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fidestro Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 There is a reason they refer to those guys as a cartel. Anyway, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act is not worth the paper it is printed on. We have plenty of other cartels operating in the US without incident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankt Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 Rep collectors, like ALL consumers simply need to "vote with their feet"....There are better deals out there, just look around...At one time we were enamored by their wonderful customer service....But the 'horror stories" lately have been increasing rapidly....I have basically narrowed my buying to CONUS based dealers, and fellow collectors... Shop around...unless you REALLY need to have the very latest "super" reps, wait awhile...The "market" has a way of self leveling given time...By this time next year, those super hot "Big Bangs" etc. will be 30-40% cheaper.... ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pix Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 I would say, just try other dealers... there are enough around, and they will carry the same models, sooner or later. Vote with your wallet, that's the best you can do. And it's more efficient than any anti-trust thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnG Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 Anything those guys can get, Ruby can get. She is very slow but she doesn't drop ship, she is less expensive when you add in the shipping, she offers an express 6 mo. warranty, and she will replace any items seized by customs. She sends a photo of your watch before shipping which is a nice touch. There are lots of dealers - Josh and Andrew are ok but they are not the be-all end-all. There are many dealers who offer better and more personal service. Right here on RWG there is an apprentice collector who is very interesting - Eurotimez. I haven't used him yet but I like his attitude. He is more expensive than Josh or Andrew but for a reason... As has been said, it is up to the consumer to shop dealers - this is what will make them more responsive. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fidestro Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 Anything those guys can get, Ruby can get. She is very slow but she doesn't drop ship, she is less expensive when you add in the shipping, she offers an express 6 mo. warranty, and she will replace any items seized by customs. She sends a photo of your watch before shipping which is a nice touch. There are lots of dealers - Josh and Andrew are ok but they are not the be-all end-all. There are many dealers who offer better and more personal service. Right here on RWG there is an apprentice collector who is very interesting - Eurotimez. I haven't used him yet but I like his attitude. He is more expensive than Josh or Andrew but for a reason... As has been said, it is up to the consumer to shop dealers - this is what will make them more responsive. Good luck Two weeks ago I was all about buying for the cheapest price. Since then I have received a used watch, a watch that was supposed to have an ETA but did not, and an ugly non working BCE. And one of those three came from a cartel dealer. I am going to have to give Ruby a chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beanyboy Posted May 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2008 Anything those guys can get, Ruby can get. She is very slow but she doesn't drop ship, she is less expensive when you add in the shipping, she offers an express 6 mo. warranty, and she will replace any items seized by customs. She sends a photo of your watch before shipping which is a nice touch. There are lots of dealers - Josh and Andrew are ok but they are not the be-all end-all. There are many dealers who offer better and more personal service. Right here on RWG there is an apprentice collector who is very interesting - Eurotimez. I haven't used him yet but I like his attitude. He is more expensive than Josh or Andrew but for a reason... As has been said, it is up to the consumer to shop dealers - this is what will make them more responsive. Good luck I hear about Eurotimez but his website is elusive! So I kind of lost interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnG Posted May 23, 2008 Report Share Posted May 23, 2008 I hear about Eurotimez but his website is elusive! So I kind of lost interest. When I checked last week the site was partially operational - he is still very new. I think he jumped the gun a little - just my fetish for organization. I personally would have delayed my launch a month or so to focus on getting the site up and my inventory in place before selling. It is true, the site was not up for a while, hard to find, now it is still not very easy to navigate and borrows pics from other sites which I don't really care for (and wouldn't have been necessary if he had had time to photograph and build his stock... Save one (I think it was Radiohead) I have heard nothing but good things from his customers. Again, I am going to wait for a while for the kinks to get sorted then I will stick my toes in the water. But I still have a good feeling about him. In the meantime I just ordered two more watches from Ruby. She seems more responsive this time which may be a function of the fact that now I am not a brand-new customer. I am a repeat customer. I don't hesitate to tell her how happy I am with my new watch and that I am glad she was able to look at it before she sent it out because I have heard lots of stories about people getting watches with problems that should have been caught. I try to reinforce in her mind WHY I was happy with our first transaction. I am using positive reinforcement. 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.