RobbieG Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 This happened a while back and I considered not posting it in the interest of annonymity and all, but I did decide to post it after all as I feel it is always good to tell great stories of above and beyond customer service. Besides, I make no attempt to hide my identity anyway. I never really got that actually. Yeah, I hang out on a rep forum. So what? I don't care who knows it really. I'm proud to be a member here as it is really just a great watch forum, not a rep watch forum IMO... Anyway, I was looking at one of my UN's a while back with a loupe and discovered a tiny cosmetic flaw. Really nothing much to notice at all. The next time I was at the AD I bought it from I showed it to the manager, not looking for anything to be done about it - really just a matter of conversation. But he is totally insulted by it and begs me to wait while he calls his guy at the company. The company asks him to urge me to send the watch in at once so they can correct the problem. I figure why not as I have plenty of other watches to wear. So I give it up and go about my day. Not three days later, my cell rings and it isn't the AD but someone at UN. Get this: he again apoligizes profusely for the flaw and informs me that when the watch hit the bench and the original problem was corrected another minor cosmetic flaw was discovered in the final quality control check this time around. This time in the movement. He also explained that the way they handle things is each movement gets matched up with a case and they don't like to mix and match them as it keeps future identification difficult. Pretty common on high end watches of course. Anyway, he says that it got passed to the master watchmaker and he didn't feel he could get it perfect so they were sending me an entire new watch gratis and would prefer to just keep mine in house for training so this doesn't happen again - if I agreed of course. Sure, new watch? Twist my arm. But keep in mind I had the original watch for almost a year! He informs me he is sending it out today with the highest priority and again apologizes and says it is just completely unacceptable and they have no excuse for such fumbling and dreadful quality control. The next morning sure enough, a brand new watch arrives by express carrier complete with all new warranty card reflecting the new serial number. I am still kicking myself though. I should have asked him to just send back the original watch untouched and instead offer me a UN Chronometer free of charge as an apology. Somehow I doubt that would fly though. Hey, a guy can dream can't he? Anyway, I just thought I would share that so people might have a better idea why I am such a fierce champion of the brand sometimes. They are like part of a small tribe. The last of the independent watchmakers where the owner is in the store and decisions aren't made with stockholders in mind, but rather based on the pride of some people trying to attain the highest level of excellence in horology. Somehow I doubt that would have happened if it were an Omega or Breitling. Hopefully I'm wrong about that, but probably not. It wasn't the gesture as much as it was the sincere personal effort that went into the discovery that makes me so proud to own the watch to this day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadtorrent Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 That really makes UN feel like a Mom and Pop shop...really personalizing the experience. Good stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobbieG Posted February 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 Exactly Toad. That was the phrase that came to mind for me as well... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbreene Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 I knew nothing of this brand until I saw the pictures you posted of the GMT you have. It was love at first sight, and to hear this story makes me want one even more. So many times it seems as though a companies first reaction is just to blame the consumer and make them prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they are not at fault. Thanks for sharing your story it restores a faith. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobbieG Posted February 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 Yeah it comes down to a matter or pride for them. The reason it works is because they are kind of taking the cutomer out of the equation in a sense. It doesn't really matter who has the watch, how old it is, or what the circumstance is. Just knowing that a certain part wasn't finished right bothers them. They just don't want the embarrasment of ever having something shoddy (in their eyes - it really was minor - and as for the movement issue that was even more minor) out in the world. Horology at the highest level is really all about the details of course. I'm sure Patek or Vacheron or Lange would have done the same thing for any watch, but I dont know about calling me in person. That was a nice touch. It is also nice to know a watch that isn't from their high complications line gets the same attention to the finest details. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExtraExtra Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 Somehow I doubt that would have happened if it were an Omega or Breitling. You would be surprised When a minor adjustment to the chrono seconds hand was needed to the Navitimer World, the case back was accidentally scratched. Guess what happened? Yes, a brand new world complete with boxes and a bagful of swag. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b16a2 Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 That's a great story Robbie. I get the impression that this is the kind of service one could expect of the high end manufacturers, i.e UN, AL&S, Patek etc... whereas you take a Rolex, Omega or Breitling back and they'll charge for the privilege of waiting another 3 months before they fix the FLAW on the old one! This might be a somewhat sceptical view, but that is great service nonetheless! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shundi Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 UN certainly seems to go above and beyond! I've had varying experiences with gens... Rolex fixes the flaw and sends it back, Omega either fixes the flaw or offers a new watch, IWC fixes the flaw quickly... depends on your experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobbieG Posted February 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 Yeah, fixing flaws is pretty standard of course. I was refering to the personalized service being above and beyond as well as them looking for and finding something even more minor that I didn't bring their attention to. Those two items are what I thought made the story special - alonng with the four day turnaround time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phaedo Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 That is great service, especially with the age of the watch. Makes me wish I liked the lines they have more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shundi Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Yeah, fixing flaws is pretty standard of course. I was refering to the personalized service being above and beyond as well as them looking for and finding something even more minor that I didn't bring their attention to. Those two items are what I thought made the story special - alonng with the four day turnaround time... Of course... In an industry like this the quality and, above all, the consistency of service is extremely important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loman88 Posted March 2, 2009 Report Share Posted March 2, 2009 Thats customer service for you. I had a totally opposite experience with my Zenith. I sent it in for 3 things, speck of dust on dial, rough winding and the black wearing off the sharp edges of the bezel. It took them over 2 months to get it back to me! And, get a load of this, they only fixed two of the problems and said the third problem wasn't a warranty issue. I only wore it less than half a dozen times! How crappy is the pvd coating on this??? I love the watch but as for customer service and the quality of the coating, they suck royally! I'm happy to hear that if I ever had a problem with my UN, that they would take care of me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobbieG Posted March 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2009 Yeah, in fairness though PVD does that around lugs. Traditional PVD really sucks. Thankfully there are new alternatives to getting a black watch liek the Blacksteel process, rubber coatings, ceramics, etc. that are more durable. So you have a UN then I assume? We need pics man, post em' up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loman88 Posted March 4, 2009 Report Share Posted March 4, 2009 Yeah Robbie, I have a UN as well. I see you're a fellow UN lover. It's a black face MMD. Prob one of my favorites. The quality of the watch is amazing and the lume is out of this world. The best lume out of any of my watches, gen or rep. The only one that comes close to it would be my Pam 000 and an old Omega Seamaster. I don't have any pic's of any of my watches but I'll try and take some and post them in the next few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewe Posted March 4, 2009 Report Share Posted March 4, 2009 Yeah Robbie, I have a UN as well. I see you're a fellow UN lover. It's a black face MMD. Prob one of my favorites. The quality of the watch is amazing and the lume is out of this world. The best lume out of any of my watches, gen or rep. The only one that comes close to it would be my Pam 000 and an old Omega Seamaster. I don't have any pic's of any of my watches but I'll try and take some and post them in the next few days. I think the Maxi Marine Diver is about the most beautiful dive watch in existence and to hear about such customer service is extraordinary. Of course, you could say that for the price you should get this kind of treatment but we know in the real world it doesn't always happen that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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