How can I pull off wearing a High End Timepiece ?

[maulermacall@hotmail.com]

To pull off wearing a high end timepiece:

Slick your hair into a nice side parting, wear spectacles (just use frames if not a glass wearer). Have a small jumper draped around over your shoulders. Wear some nice slacks, complimented by a set of loafers minus socks. Stand upright, chest out, shoulders back and walk with a skip in your step. Complete the look with a golfers cap cocked at a jaunty angle (this is opitional as it will spoil your side parting)

Ask strangers if they want to know the time so to draw attention to your chosen timepiece, failing that start conversations up with people you meet about watches and draw them into passing comments on your watch. Try this with girls if your single, you may even get a date.

Follow these steps and please let me know how you get on.

[rkdk]

I'm amazed that there are people out there who would actually ask a complete stranger (or even a friend) if his watch was real! Until coming across this forum, the thought never even crossed my mind. However, just in case, I've come up with the perfect answer, "I hope so!" *grin*

Lol. I have an even better reply.

"No, its an optical illusion"

Dumb questions require dumb answers:-)

[scoobs1971]

As others already said, about 90% of the world population really don't care about watches at all and most of the times they won't even notice the watch on your wrist.

9% chooses a watch from a fashion perspective (D&G, Fossil, Armani and the likes), from a technical perspective (hi-tech Quartz watches with lots of functionality) or chooses heavily advertised watch brands from a social status/business perspective (Rolex, Omega, Breitling, TAG).

These people only judge watches for the looks or image they project and they tend to know little about the history of the watch/brand or the technical details - let alone know all the flaws of our reps....

Leaves us with 1% of WIS of which half are among us .

So unless you wear a golden Rolex with diamonds I think you can pull off wearing about just every rep there is.

Only when I'm meeting clients I choose to wear mid-level gens reflecting my lifestyle/income, because I don't want them to think that they pay me too much.....

[TeeJay]

Much like one day in London, a long time ago, I turned up to work on my kitted out Ducati 748 with carbon fibre bits all over it and one of my co-workers said "Oh wow, that's one of them Ducatis! Aren't they more than

[flex]

I wear a Rolex Explorer II to work, about once a week i take my DW daytona out. Noone ever comments on eithe watch. ( i work in consulting firm specialise in M&A - most sr. ppl wear AP, PP or alike or my level would be like daytona, IWC, Sub LV, Pam)

one monday i wear the Graham from josh to office, in the pantry. the secratries gave really good comment "wow nice watch"

that was a big suprise to me. i never hear anything like that even when i wear my bro 's gen rolex black daytona. the world is weird.

on a related note, there is this guy in office about twenty yrs old. he wears a daytona paul newman chinese rep. everyone talks abt him and his watch, when he is not around - everyone seems to dislike him (for other reasons too). poor guy. hope he is not reading this thread.

[perry563]

I have 40-50 watches split between rep and gen. I can count on 2-3 fingers over 7 years where anyone has ever asked me about a watch I was wearing. I am sure many notice but very few take that step to ask me about a watch they admire that is on my wrist. If you are like me a professional and dress the part you can wear aloost anything and its given a pass. If you dig ditches and wear a 8000 Rolex GMT its not going to fly. You would be better off buying yourself something like a tag aquaracer, omega planet ocean or Breitling steel fish. All great reps you can buy as a gen for a few thousand.

[Pugwash]

Depending on the size of the canvas, and the place of purchase, anywhere between about

[freddy333]

I think alot more people are checking out wrists than you may be aware of. Just because no one says anything does not mean they are not looking.

A case in point - Last night, after returning home from my motorcycle adventure, I went to 1 of my favorite local Chinese restaurants for dinner with my 1601 under cuff.

As I was sipping my tea, I noticed that several people around the restaurant, including my waiter & another waiter at another location in the room, were all staring intently at my wrist as my cuff was intermittently riding up to expose my watch. No one ever said anything, but this happened several times until it became unavoidably obvious that the diminutive (by today's standards) steel DJ on my wrist was attracting alot of attention from around the room. Now this was probably the 1st time I have worn this particular watch to this restaurant, but I have dined there many times & never sensed any interest in my watches before. But because my sleeve cuffs are usually buttoned closed, the only way you would see my watch is if you were looking at my wrist & there is only 1 reason I can think of for people to be looking at another person's wrist -- to check out their watch.

[TeeJay]

See, everyone can probably answer one of the examples I gave, but they'll be stumped on the others.

Indeed I could probably have a guess at the massage table, as they're probably the same price range as the tables used in tattoo studios, so I'd say about

[slai]

there is only 1 reason I can think of for people to be looking at another person's wrist -- to check out their watch.

Unfortunately, the wrist isn't too far from crotch level if standing or walking. I'm sure I've been mistaken for checking out someone's package instead of their watch on many occasions.

[bTrizzy]

I have a different case compared to the majority here. I get asked and complimented all the time on the two reps I own (DSN Fiddy and EVO v2).

[TeeJay]

I have a different case compared to the majority here. I get asked and complimented all the time on the two reps I own (DSN Fiddy and EVO v2).

How do you handle the situations?

[RVD]

For a Rolex, I think you need to somewhat act the part because there are so many fakes. Yes, I know there are many exceptions and you shouldn't simply judge a book by its cover but seeing a Rolex on your busboy is going to be a little more suspicious than seeing it on a guy wearing a suit stepping out of his porsche 911.

Most of my friends own at least one gen Rolex. No, it's not because they are all rich...but in my culture a watch is usually a gift that you get when you get married from your wife's family. Since Rolex is well known, 99% of the time, they get a Rolex. Most of the time it's a datejust but thesedays many people get Submariners. These high end reps are virtually identical to the gens (other than the pearl). I know that we like to nitpick about crown height, crown size, laser etch, slight difference in spacing/font of the dial or date wheel but this stuff is never known even by the guys who wear a gen every day and then wear one of my reps.

I have always been a "sensitive skin" guy so I don't like anything touching my skin. So I tend to wear loose t-shirts, loose pants, loose socks, etc. I also rarely use any kind of soap on my skin, cologne, deodorant, etc. I'm blessed to be Asian and rather hairless so I never have an odor problem or anything like that. I don't even wear a wedding ring. So when I got married, I told my wife's family not to get me the watch.

However, I have always liked watches. But since I rarely wear them except for special occasions, I don't feel it's worth it to buy a high end watch. In fact, I will likely lose it because on the days that I do wear it, I'm constantly taking it off and putting it down wherever.

But I do have a few rep Submariners, some Panerais, Cartiers, etc. I've never actually been questioned about them because everyone around me assumes that they are real. I've always driven nice cars (currently a BMW 750Li but MBZ before that, etc.) and when they do see my watch and make any kind of remark, I always just brush it off like it's nothing.

One guy at work a few days ago saw my latest Submariner and said how nice it looked. He even said that he knows it's not a fake because the hand sweeps.

When I wear my Panerais, most people don't even know what it is. Sometimes they talk about how big the watch it but that's about it. I did have a few friends ask "Is that like an expensive brand or something?" and I say "nah". I do like wearing the Panerais because when I do come across someone who knows watches, they usually get very excited.

If you don't want people to question your high end timepiece, don't wear a Rolex or Breitling, wear a Panerai or AP or any other less known brand. I used to say that about Patek but it's getting well known now.

RVD.

[lanikai]

Weariing a High end rep on your wrist can have it's down side also..

I was wearing .. my Zig modded 1680 Sub.. and went to the same filling station that I go to for minor pit stops.... I needed a new battery and favour the Interstate line of batteries..

The owner of the garage used to charge me a little above his cost ... Well I usually,.. if I'm wearing a Rolex rep that looks really good .. I take it off.. (for obvious reasons) .. but this time I forgot about it... and when I was talking to the owner of the station He glanced down at my wrist (in notable fashion ) ... I tend to "talk " with my hands a lot.. somewhat of a bad habit and has nothing to do with my timepiece .. I think I got it from all the time I spent with my training partners back in the day.. they're of Italian ancestry from NY ...

Anyway back on point ... as soon as he gave the 1680 a "look" I knew what was coming next... and I could of kicked myself for forgetting to put on a steelfish or my PO... yup .. he charged me "FULL RETAIL" for the battery.. and now has the seed planted in his mind that I can afford to pay alot more than he used to charge me..

Needless to say I found another place to do quick simple work ...

The Moral of the story:... At times the High end rep that looks too good may get you the attitude and the expectations of ... "If you have to ask how much it is then you can't afford it"...

Or worse you will look so tight that you squeak when you walk... when you give someone a hard time over prices, after all you could afford that Rolex on your wrist ..... I don't know about you .. but I am a person that is used to paying wholesale for a lot of items..

Be care full what you ask for in these reps.. you just may get the whole ball of wax

[JohnCraig]

I have been wearing a gen TT Yachtmaster daily on and off for 6 years. I wear it with a nice suit; I wear it with jeans and flowered shirt; I wear it with torn old shorts and a tee shirt. I climb out of my 911 or my daughter's beat up Jeep. I do the same with a Tag, Omega, Frank Mueller etc.

A guy in First Class on Continental flashes on my (gen) Omega and and shows me a rep submariner and bets me that he got a better deal than I did. Probably true.

A close friend of mine died and left his son 4 truly high end gens; everybody who sees them and even takes the time to examine them is sure that they are reps because the "kid" is only 29 and works for a living. He loves those watches and wears then daily and laughs at people when they judge him - and can't tell that they are looking at a gen.

I've had several compliments on the SFSO that I just got; no one will ever guess that it's a rep

If you're into watches, you notice and filter through your own beliefs. No one knows, no one cares if your watch is a gen or a rep. It's decoration and utility, have fun with it.

JW

[TeeJay]

Weariing a High end rep on your wrist can have it's down side also..

I was wearing .. my Zig modded 1680 Sub.. and went to the same filling station that I go to for minor pit stops.... I needed a new battery and favour the Interstate line of batteries..

The owner of the garage used to charge me a little above his cost ... Well I usually,.. if I'm wearing a Rolex rep that looks really good .. I take it off.. (for obvious reasons) .. but this time I forgot about it... and when I was talking to the owner of the station He glanced down at my wrist (in notable fashion ) ... I tend to "talk " with my hands a lot.. somewhat of a bad habit and has nothing to do with my timepiece .. I think I got it from all the time I spent with my training partners back in the day.. they're of Italian ancestry from NY ...

Anyway back on point ... as soon as he gave the 1680 a "look" I knew what was coming next... and I could of kicked myself for forgetting to put on a steelfish or my PO... yup .. he charged me "FULL RETAIL" for the battery.. and now has the seed planted in his mind that I can afford to pay alot more than he used to charge me..

Needless to say I found another place to do quick simple work ...

The Moral of the story:... At times the High end rep that looks too good may get you the attitude and the expectations of ... "If you have to ask how much it is then you can't afford it"...

Or worse you will look so tight that you squeak when you walk... when you give someone a hard time over prices, after all you could afford that Rolex on your wrist ..... I don't know about you .. but I am a person that is used to paying wholesale for a lot of items..

Be care full what you ask for in these reps.. you just may get the whole ball of wax

I guess if you work in that industry, getting goods at wholesale prices must be convenient, and, from the boards, I've come to realize that in the US, the 'ticket price', isn't necessarily the only price a seller will take for something.

Personally, I've always been of the opinion that "It costs what it costs (on the ticket)" and that if customers are given discounts too often, they come to expect it, and, I've always felt that in business, a seller should not feel obliged to offer discounts, which sometimes, some customers can give the impression of expecting.

It could just have been that his sales were a little low that week, and he couldn't afford to give you the wholesale price, equally, if he gave you 'a look', he might even have been offended that he'd given you discount for so long, if you could indeed afford to pay the full retail price, as he might have felt that there had been some kind of omission of the facts on your part. I don't know the guy though, so I can only speculate... Something else I've noticed, and, again, this could be a UK/US difference, is that the more well off people (old money families etc) are often the ones who will ask for (and seriously expect) a discount on a purchase, even if they are not a regular client, even though they are actually in the position to pay the full price... Then again, I guess if you don't ask, you don't get...

I guess it all just depends how one looks at things, and which side of the Pond one is on

[lanikai]

I guess if you work in that industry, getting goods at wholesale prices must be convenient, and, from the boards, I've come to realize that in the US, the 'ticket price', isn't necessarily the only price a seller will take for something.

Personally, I've always been of the opinion that "It costs what it costs (on the ticket)" and that if customers are given discounts too often, they come to expect it, and, I've always felt that in business, a seller should not feel obliged to offer discounts, which sometimes, some customers can give the impression of expecting.

It could just have been that his sales were a little low that week, and he couldn't afford to give you the wholesale price, equally, if he gave you 'a look', he might even have been offended that he'd given you discount for so long, if you could indeed afford to pay the full retail price, as he might have felt that there had been some kind of omission of the facts on your part. I don't know the guy though, so I can only speculate... Something else I've noticed, and, again, this could be a UK/US difference, is that the more well off people (old money families etc) are often the ones who will ask for (and seriously expect) a discount on a purchase, even if they are not a regular client, even though they are actually in the position to pay the full price... Then again, I guess if you don't ask, you don't get...

I guess it all just depends how one looks at things, and which side of the Pond one is on

\Yup.. we're on the expensive (over priced side)

[RLudlowe]

If anyone asks about a watch I'm wearing I just say "It belonged to my Sister's ex, he left it in a suit he left behind when he ran off with his secretary"

That way, I'm off the hook as to where it came from, how much it costs or whether it's gen or not -

plus it's a fun story and makes girls giggle that he lost his watch.

[bTrizzy]

How do you handle the situations?

"Thanks, but it's only a fake."

"Wow, that's really nice, where can I get one?"

"I don't know, I got it from a friend."

That's the usual conversation about my watches. Unless I get the opportunity to wear one of my dad's gens