andreww Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 In the past week we have seen some very interesting behavior amongst some of the bigger dealers. Josh and Andrew debuted the Ver.1 Skyland to mixed reviews, but were clearly making a killing on this long awaited rep. Then, unexpectedly, Angus posts a message that he has a different Skyland coming soon, and buyers should hold off. He posts no pictures until the following day, when we finally see Ver.2, coincidentally priced at about $10 cheaper than Ver.1. The watch is still incomplete, has a glaring error, and is minus the Pro II bracelet. Now J&A have posted the Ver.2 (oddly there are no pics on the site, just a photobucket link) at about $20 cheaper than Angus' price. One does not have to be a fool to see that there is some unrest between our Asian dealers, and possibly between the rep makers as well. IMO this has resulted in some fair pricing for us, but what will this mean for the long term? Your thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadtorrent Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Hopefully, as the market place SHOULD dictate, this should help settle the products and pricing to a point that the market demands...namely an acceptable match between quality and price point. With the HBBs...it appears enough people are willing to pay an ultra-premium for an out of the box item to make production viable. With the trend towards great out of the box new reps like the Skyland, I hope the vendors are recognizing that for a watch like this that is considered a "general consumer" watch vs. a $1000 uber-rep, that proper pricing will help generate more profit for them...but only if accompanied by a certain level of quality. We will never get a true 1:1...not with cheap rep manufacturing...but at least we can expect reliable movements, and no glaring flaws. The market SHOULD dictate, and hopefully this is the start of the adjustments we've all been hoping for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted July 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Thats true, but this doesn't seem to be about pricing. It seems that Angus is purposely trying to sabotage J&As sales efforts. Price decreases are simply a retaliation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blade007 Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 It seems that Angus is purposely trying to sabotage J&As sales efforts. Price decreases are simply a retaliation. surely thats good for us buyers right? I think in stock market, the term for such behavior is "bears" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mars08 Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 A price war is of little benefit if it the dealers have to reduce quality in other areas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajoesmith Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 It has resulted in the price of $268 with SS bracelet for an asian 7750 watch, a good price IMO, the price that asian chronos should be! Bout time! $400 and up is too expensive as recent prices have been heading. I may get this one myself..... but the rehaut may the the deal killer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodwc Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Strange how another( earlier ) post about dealers can spark off another in a different direction. However, the recent events point to a clamouring for sales, irrespective of faults , this should clearly show that the market here is worth consideration for the dealers. If the rep sales (as has been quoted on numerous occasions ) is only worth less than 1% , why would the dealers bother. I think some people have got this wrong. As far as "the market should dictate" , ........what..........prices?............quality? ... It certainly hasn`t happened yet, ( yes , things are improving. ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted July 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Its good... for now. But, one of two things can happen. One side loses the war and goes away, or the two sides come to an agreement and the cartel grows. Both scenarios aren't good for the buyer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodwc Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Its good... for now. But, one of two things can happen. One side loses the war and goes away, or the two sides come to an agreement and the cartel grows. Both scenarios aren't good for the buyer. Havn`t you answered your own original question here ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmt Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Thats true, but this doesn't seem to be about pricing. It seems that Angus is purposely trying to sabotage J&As sales efforts. Price decreases are simply a retaliation. Maybe that's just business. Not good business on Angus' part, but folks will always try whatever they think will work. I don't know if Angus is trying to sabotage as much as he is trying to steal market share. [quote (andreww @ Jul 18 2008, 11:37 PM) Its good... for now. But, one of two things can happen. One side loses the war and goes away, or the two sides come to an agreement and the cartel grows. Both scenarios aren't good for the buyer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajoesmith Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Strange how another( earlier ) post about dealers can spark off another in a different direction. However, the recent events point to a clamouring for sales, irrespective of faults , this should clearly show that the market here is worth consideration for the dealers. If the rep sales (as has been quoted on numerous occasions ) is only worth less than 1% , why would the dealers bother. I think some people have got this wrong. As far as "the market should dictate" , ........what..........prices?............quality? ... It certainly hasn`t happened yet, ( yes , things are improving. ) Yeah i agree the 1% is nowhere near the actual figure. Why is it that all the noobs and people who dont know these forums buy from global replicas and the like? Truth is them dont know about josh or andrew. These forums supply much more the their business than we care to think thats why the price has been reduced on the new skyland! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodwc Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Maybe that's just business. Not good business on Angus' part, but folks will always try whatever they think will work. I don't know if Angus is trying to sabotage as much as he is trying to steal market share. Trying to steal market share ? ........where here ? As I have said , this RWG market is only , "supposedly worth 1 %" Why would they bother ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodwc Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Yeah i agree the 1% is nowhere near the actual figure. Why is it that all the noobs and people who dont know these forums buy from global replicas and the like? Truth is them dont know about josh or andrew. These forums supply much more the their business than we care to think thats why the price has been reduced on the new skyland! Forget about the new Skyland , this has been coming long before that even went into production, but I fully agree that RWG supplies tons more than a paultry 1% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
client9 Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 I suggest we start taxing the members of this board to help start a relief fund for our poor overworked dealers so that they can continue to sell us watches for over $400. I'd hate to see prices go down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajoesmith Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Forget about the new Skyland , this has been coming long before that even went into production, but I fully agree that RWG supplies tons more than a paultry 1% Lets not forget there are 3 main forums out there RWG, RGeek and RWI these 3 keep them in business! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodwc Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Lets not forget there are 3 main forums out there RWG, RGeek and RWI these 3 keep them in business! Exactly........ Why on earth would they bother if the content of their business was only.............lets be generous........ 5% ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted July 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 I've always believed that these boards probably account for 80-90% of their sales. Google "replica watch" and see how long it will take to find our dealers. Its a good set up here, watch enthusiasts who can spot quality, not an endless stream of "tire kickers". I think these guys are making extremely good money simply selling to us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnG Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 I've always believed that these boards probably account for 80-90% of their sales. Google "replica watch" and see how long it will take to find our dealers. Its a good set up here, watch enthusiasts who can spot quality, not an endless stream of "tire kickers". I think these guys are making extremely good money simply selling to us. This could well be true. When it comes to what percentage of the market the forums members represent, the only thing we know for sure is that we know NOTHING. There is no international body that is gathering statistics on the high end replica watch market and the breakdown of its customers by association with replica discussion forums. Citing market share percentages for which there is no basis WHATSOEVER is not the stupidest thing I have seen on the forums, but it comes pretty close. All this kind of talk is the rankest type of speculation... which is all fine and good as long as people recognize that and don't start (as they often do) pretending their numbers are authoritative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abat Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 If these boards represent a low proportion of their business where does the rest come from? I've always wondered this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted July 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 If these boards represent a low proportion of their business where does the rest come from? I've always wondered this. iOffer seems to sell a lot of reps, as well as certain websites not affiliated with us. I imagine that a lot get sold in Chinese markets as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geo1nah2a Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Anyone know if the quoted 1% is in volume or in quantity sold? If these boards represent a low proportion of their business where does the rest come from? I've always wondered this. I would guess the other alternative channels would be eshops for people who have no idea of forum communities, Non-english fora/eshops, 'canal street's all over the world, Off-line sellers, and some shady shops/scammers selling them as genuine/stolen/preowned. I am sure the mix of quality/price differs among the above mentioned channels. I don't underestimate the power of the internet, but if it takes a day to unload 5 perfectly pictured and nicely marketed newbmariners (ttk's firesales in mind, since he is the only one quoting available pieces), then can You imagine how many where sold in Canal Street? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doc savage Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 You guys are funny sometimes. Merchants have been cutting margins to increase volume since the dawn of human civilization; now one knockoff-hawker cuts his bloated retail price by $10 and it's "sabotage"? And if they aren't even from the same manufacturer, why should they have the same price tag? Every peddler of goods on the planet is trying to find the price point at which he makes the most profit, whether by selling more or charging more. Hooray for competition, and bring on some more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gran Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 In the past week we have seen some very interesting behavior amongst some of the bigger dealers. Josh and Andrew debuted the Ver.1 Skyland to mixed reviews, but were clearly making a killing on this long awaited rep. Then, unexpectedly, Angus posts a message that he has a different Skyland coming soon, and buyers should hold off. He posts no pictures until the following day, when we finally see Ver.2, coincidentally priced at about $10 cheaper than Ver.1. The watch is still incomplete, has a glaring error, and is minus the Pro II bracelet. Now J&A have posted the Ver.2 (oddly there are no pics on the site, just a photobucket link) at about $20 cheaper than Angus' price. One does not have to be a fool to see that there is some unrest between our Asian dealers, and possibly between the rep makers as well. IMO this has resulted in some fair pricing for us, but what will this mean for the long term? Your thoughts? I do not think we can read much into this andreww. replicas tend to have errors and dealers are not saints its all about the money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertk Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 a lot of speculation without the facts. Simply put, one dealer tried to steal the thunder and the others said "no way". Over the years we've seen this before. It's only temporary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnG Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 You guys are funny sometimes. Merchants have been cutting margins to increase volume since the dawn of human civilization; now one knockoff-hawker cuts his bloated retail price by $10 and it's "sabotage"? And if they aren't even from the same manufacturer, why should they have the same price tag? Every peddler of goods on the planet is trying to find the price point at which he makes the most profit, whether by selling more or charging more. Hooray for competition, and bring on some more. I agree strongly. I don't know where people get the idea that commerce is anything other than a Darwinian affair. When dealers become too friendly with each other - THAT is when the consumer should start worrying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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