Scarcity of Rolex leading to a possible brand crisis.

[GMT Aviator]

I’m 50 years of age. Been wearing and collecting Rolex’s that I like to wear for years, mostly GMT’s because of my profession.

I’m old fashioned, I love my mechanical watches. My late father wore a Rolex the entire time I was alive which now resides in my collection since his passing in 2018. His 1972 DJ, and the GMT’s I saw the Apollo astronauts and Pan Am pilots wearing were the aspiring factors that made me want to one day own and wear one of those excellent, understated tool watches. A one watch to do it all. I never dreamed I would eventually have a sizeable collection of them some day, yet here I am.

To me, and others like me of my generation and older, I suspect, the Rolex brand is definitely suffering from being over hyped.

Today’s Rolex role models, (putting to one side the ambassadors for a moment), are not the Pan Am pilots of yesterday, or their fathers, or the Apollo’s astronauts that risked it all to get to the moon. They are influencers, celebrity nobody's, Intragrammers and every other social media piece of trash whose very success relies on being a part of the hype train along with their followers. In 5 to 10 years time, there will be no lasting legacy from any of these people. They will disappear along with their followers.

And before anyone shoots me down for labelling these people as trash, don’t even go there. I rent properties to a lot of these celebrity nobodies. Trust me, most of them are utter scum who don’t have two brass farthings to rub together, yet portray themselves on social media as successful, minted individuals. It’s pathetic. It should be a criminal offence to be an influencer to my eyes knowing what I know about these so called ‘social media celebrities’.

So the scarcity which is being driven by new age social media is not here to stay long term. It’s a phase and Rolex has been swept up by it. The remainers when this is all over will be those who appreciate the watches for what they are.

The sad thing, for a lot of us, is the brand is taking a massive hit on its social acceptability because of the undesirables promoting it for nothing other than personal gain, which Rolex has no control over. It hasn’t harmed their sales, but Rolex is an old fashioned company, and it is hitting their reputation and I suspect that’s where any brand crisis will eventually stem from.

[Chester01]

Originally Posted by Nav01L

But today, if we need a GShock… there is, well, the GShock. And many others like it. For that particular purpose, it is the much better tool in every respect. So isn’t it natural that a company seeking to make as much money as it can with as little effort as possible would shift its products towards another purpose where it does not have to fend off the objective superiority of modern electronics?

It’s not entirely Rolex fault and yes, I can’t blame them for the money grab. But, for me personally speaking, the hype and attention has made me uncomfortable with what the brand is coming to represent. It used to be in the 90’s when the DD and DJ were king, my good ole 16610 can slip under the radar but not now. You are correct in what your saying, I guess Rolex has evolved and maybe I have not or Rolex evolved in one way and I another. But I’m wearing my seiko’s more and more these days.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[seabreeze60]

Originally Posted by GMT Aviator

I’m 50 years of age. Been wearing and collecting Rolex’s that I like to wear for years, mostly GMT’s because of my profession.

I’m old fashioned, I love my mechanical watches. My late father wore a Rolex the entire time I was alive which now resides in my collection since his passing in 2018. His 1972 DJ, and the GMT’s I saw the Apollo astronauts and Pan Am pilots wearing were the aspiring factors that made me want to one day own and wear one of those excellent, understated tool watches. A one watch to do it all. I never dreamed I would eventually have a sizeable collection of them some day, yet here I am.

To me, and others like me of my generation and older, I suspect, the Rolex brand is definitely suffering from being over hyped.

Today’s Rolex role models, (putting to one side the ambassadors for a moment), are not the Pan Am pilots of yesterday, or their fathers, or the Apollo’s astronauts that risked it all to get to the moon. They are influencers, celebrity nobody's, Intragrammers and every other social media piece of trash whose very success relies on being a part of the hype train along with their followers. In 5 to 10 years time, there will be no lasting legacy from any of these people. They will disappear along with their followers.

And before anyone shoots me down for labelling these people as trash, don’t even go there. I rent properties to a lot of these celebrity nobodies. Trust me, most of them are utter scum who don’t have two brass farthings to rub together, yet portray themselves on social media as successful, minted individuals. It’s pathetic. It should be a criminal offence to be an influencer to my eyes knowing what I know about these so called ‘social media celebrities’.

So the scarcity which is being driven by new age social media is not here to stay long term. It’s a phase and Rolex has been swept up by it. The remainers when this is all over will be those who appreciate the watches for what they are.

The sad thing, for a lot of us, is the brand is taking a massive hit on its social acceptability because of the undesirables promoting it for nothing other than personal gain, which Rolex has no control over. It hasn’t harmed their sales, but Rolex is an old fashioned company, and it is hitting their reputation and I suspect that’s where any brand crisis will eventually stem from.

Good post! A lot of old timers see what is going on. However, should Rolex offer me an ambassador position to defend them on TRF, I will gladly accept.

[superpop]

Originally Posted by seabreeze60

Good post! A lot of old timers see what is going on. However, should Rolex offer me an ambassador position to defend them on TRF, I will gladly accept.

Agreed 100%.

[ThatOtherGuy7]

Originally Posted by seabreeze60

Good post! A lot of old timers see what is going on. However, should Rolex offer me an ambassador position to defend them on TRF, I will gladly accept.

What does it take to be an ambassador? Seems like all the ambassadors are celebrities.

[NachoNeal]

Originally Posted by Kyle3130

It will never fail. It’s a private company and the trust is bigger than you think.

Hi Kyle. How big is it? And how do you know it's bigger than what he was thinking?

[Kyle3130]

Originally Posted by NachoNeal

Hi Kyle. How big is it? And how do you know it's bigger than what he was thinking?

[KeithP]

Originally Posted by GMT Aviator

I’m 50 years of age. Been wearing and collecting Rolex’s that I like to wear for years, mostly GMT’s because of my profession.

I’m old fashioned, I love my mechanical watches. My late father wore a Rolex the entire time I was alive which now resides in my collection since his passing in 2018. His 1972 DJ, and the GMT’s I saw the Apollo astronauts and Pan Am pilots wearing were the aspiring factors that made me want to one day own and wear one of those excellent, understated tool watches. A one watch to do it all. I never dreamed I would eventually have a sizeable collection of them some day, yet here I am.

To me, and others like me of my generation and older, I suspect, the Rolex brand is definitely suffering from being over hyped.

Today’s Rolex role models, (putting to one side the ambassadors for a moment), are not the Pan Am pilots of yesterday, or their fathers, or the Apollo’s astronauts that risked it all to get to the moon. They are influencers, celebrity nobody's, Intragrammers and every other social media piece of trash whose very success relies on being a part of the hype train along with their followers. In 5 to 10 years time, there will be no lasting legacy from any of these people. They will disappear along with their followers.

And before anyone shoots me down for labelling these people as trash, don’t even go there. I rent properties to a lot of these celebrity nobodies. Trust me, most of them are utter scum who don’t have two brass farthings to rub together, yet portray themselves on social media as successful, minted individuals. It’s pathetic. It should be a criminal offence to be an influencer to my eyes knowing what I know about these so called ‘social media celebrities’.

So the scarcity which is being driven by new age social media is not here to stay long term. It’s a phase and Rolex has been swept up by it. The remainers when this is all over will be those who appreciate the watches for what they are.

The sad thing, for a lot of us, is the brand is taking a massive hit on its social acceptability because of the undesirables promoting it for nothing other than personal gain, which Rolex has no control over. It hasn’t harmed their sales, but Rolex is an old fashioned company, and it is hitting their reputation and I suspect that’s where any brand crisis will eventually stem from.

I like you. Thanks for this

[PaulChronometer]

Originally Posted by GMT Aviator

I’m 50 years of age. Been wearing and collecting Rolex’s that I like to wear for years, mostly GMT’s because of my profession.

I’m old fashioned, I love my mechanical watches. My late father wore a Rolex the entire time I was alive which now resides in my collection since his passing in 2018. His 1972 DJ, and the GMT’s I saw the Apollo astronauts and Pan Am pilots wearing were the aspiring factors that made me want to one day own and wear one of those excellent, understated tool watches. A one watch to do it all. I never dreamed I would eventually have a sizeable collection of them some day, yet here I am.

To me, and others like me of my generation and older, I suspect, the Rolex brand is definitely suffering from being over hyped.

Today’s Rolex role models, (putting to one side the ambassadors for a moment), are not the Pan Am pilots of yesterday, or their fathers, or the Apollo’s astronauts that risked it all to get to the moon. They are influencers, celebrity nobody's, Intragrammers and every other social media piece of trash whose very success relies on being a part of the hype train along with their followers. In 5 to 10 years time, there will be no lasting legacy from any of these people. They will disappear along with their followers.

And before anyone shoots me down for labelling these people as trash, don’t even go there. I rent properties to a lot of these celebrity nobodies. Trust me, most of them are utter scum who don’t have two brass farthings to rub together, yet portray themselves on social media as successful, minted individuals. It’s pathetic. It should be a criminal offence to be an influencer to my eyes knowing what I know about these so called ‘social media celebrities’.

So the scarcity which is being driven by new age social media is not here to stay long term. It’s a phase and Rolex has been swept up by it. The remainers when this is all over will be those who appreciate the watches for what they are.

The sad thing, for a lot of us, is the brand is taking a massive hit on its social acceptability because of the undesirables promoting it for nothing other than personal gain, which Rolex has no control over. It hasn’t harmed their sales, but Rolex is an old fashioned company, and it is hitting their reputation and I suspect that’s where any brand crisis will eventually stem from.

Thanks for you perspective. What's happening may be good for profits, but it does undermine the value of the brand.

[Krash]

Originally Posted by PaulChronometer

Thanks for you perspective. What's happening may be good for profits, but it does undermine the value of the brand.

Rolex has been and will remain the top watch brand on the planet. There is literally zero possibility of any other watch brand supplanting it.

Demand is sky high. They sell every watch they make. They have a huge passionate base of loyalists and enthusiasts.

These theories that the brand is in jeopardy or undermined are just silly.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Oxfordian]

Originally Posted by Krash

Rolex has been and will remain the top watch brand on the planet. There is literally zero possibility of any other watch brand supplanting it.

Demand is sky high. They sell every watch they make. They have a huge passionate base of loyalists and enthusiasts.

These theories that the brand is in jeopardy or undermined are just silly.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Totally agree, until the Rolex bubble bursts the difficulties we face getting watches today will remain for the foreseeable future as that bubble isn't going to burst anytime soon.

In the meantime, whilst we wait for our unobtainiums to arrive at the dealers we can grab the chance to look at and explore other brands to see what else is out there.

[karteo]

i am hearing that this rolex bubble will burst for years now.

it's not a bubble. it's the new normal.

if the rolex bubble will burst, it will be due to such a financial crisis that watches are the last thing will be interested in. we'll have to worry for more important things.

and when this will happen, the other brands will be rolling down the cliff

do we like this current situation. not at all. but let's not be in a denial. as long as there are enough money out there people will want to buy Rolex.

[Francist]

The situation is very similar to Hermes.
U walkin their boutique and ask for a Birkin, they’ll laugh ur ass off.
Don’t matter if it’s for yr wife’s birthday / mother’s day / whatnot.
If u want a regulat bag / other apparels they have some instock.
Hermes Birkin never burst, they only get wayyyy more stupid (even more so the crocs ones).
Rolex will follow this trend, but it’s not what they really want.
The market fixes itself.

[douglasf13]

Originally Posted by Francist

The situation is very similar to Hermes.
U walkin their boutique and ask for a Birkin, they’ll laugh ur ass off.
Don’t matter if it’s for yr wife’s birthday / mother’s day / whatnot.
If u want a regulat bag / other apparels they have some instock.
Hermes Birkin never burst, they only get wayyyy more stupid (even more so the crocs ones).
Rolex will follow this trend, but it’s not what they really want.
The market fixes itself.

That’s exactly why so some of us have an issue with where the brand is going. I still think of Rolex as the little durable machine an active person wears, not the equivalent of a woman’s designer handbag.

It’s almost like there needs to a new, subversive Rolex scene akin to the “Outlaw” scene in the Porsche community. Those cars are now worth a lot of money now, too, but it was never about that. For now, selling all my Rolexes and wearing an old Tudor is my version of that.

[101031-28]

Originally Posted by GMT Aviator

I’m 50 years of age. Been wearing and collecting Rolex’s that I like to wear for years, mostly GMT’s because of my profession.

I’m old fashioned, I love my mechanical watches. My late father wore a Rolex the entire time I was alive which now resides in my collection since his passing in 2018. His 1972 DJ, and the GMT’s I saw the Apollo astronauts and Pan Am pilots wearing were the aspiring factors that made me want to one day own and wear one of those excellent, understated tool watches. A one watch to do it all. I never dreamed I would eventually have a sizeable collection of them some day, yet here I am.

To me, and others like me of my generation and older, I suspect, the Rolex brand is definitely suffering from being over hyped.

Today’s Rolex role models, (putting to one side the ambassadors for a moment), are not the Pan Am pilots of yesterday, or their fathers, or the Apollo’s astronauts that risked it all to get to the moon. They are influencers, celebrity nobody's, Intragrammers and every other social media piece of trash whose very success relies on being a part of the hype train along with their followers. In 5 to 10 years time, there will be no lasting legacy from any of these people. They will disappear along with their followers.

And before anyone shoots me down for labelling these people as trash, don’t even go there. I rent properties to a lot of these celebrity nobodies. Trust me, most of them are utter scum who don’t have two brass farthings to rub together, yet portray themselves on social media as successful, minted individuals. It’s pathetic. It should be a criminal offence to be an influencer to my eyes knowing what I know about these so called ‘social media celebrities’.

So the scarcity which is being driven by new age social media is not here to stay long term. It’s a phase and Rolex has been swept up by it. The remainers when this is all over will be those who appreciate the watches for what they are.

The sad thing, for a lot of us, is the brand is taking a massive hit on its social acceptability because of the undesirables promoting it for nothing other than personal gain, which Rolex has no control over. It hasn’t harmed their sales, but Rolex is an old fashioned company, and it is hitting their reputation and I suspect that’s where any brand crisis will eventually stem from.

Very well put.

[DJ2020]

I believe the greater demand is fueled by a small percentage of Newer Rolex customers. Long term wears and buyers like myself that are use to walking in and seeing merchandise since the 70's and 80's know that this relatively recent feverish want for a Rolex is charged from social media and the internet mainly. They produce no more in 2018 than they do now. Maybe a little less due to covid.

But the gray market has expanded greatly, we all know they either source there inventory from flippers or directly from AD's.
Gray's has consumed most of Rolex's inventory due to this. AD's are selling out for this reason only. The number of actual watch loyal wearers is a small percentage of buyers compared to Flippers, investment buyers and Gray's.

Consumers who just want a Rolex to wear are now having to compete with the Flippers, investors and Gray's. That's here to stay I think, and for those customers this is not good for Rolex. They will seek better watches that are obtainable and cost less.

I also believe Rolex is walking a thin line here. If the herd migrates to a different brand, it will simply be the same for them. Buying a high end watch or any luxury item, It should be a luxury experience and customers treated as such. Not made to feel you have to compete for the privilege to spend YOUR money. I don't believe Rolex wants this either. It's up to Rolex to fix this. Rolex owned stores may help to control this. Rolex historically never has presented there watches as for only a chosen few, but for customers who wanted a great watch and willing to pay a premium for it. Nowadays there not the only game in town and fast approaching being way over priced for stainless models.

Again, walking a thin line. They have the largest brand recognition in the world except for Lego. I don't believe Rolex will let this go on much longer. I honestly look for Rolex to make some major changes in the next few years. I hate the way Rolex is now compared to 30 - 40 years ago. I'm not a investor, flipper or a gray and know there are quite few just like me. If the brand allows this to continue It will be detrimental to the brand.
....... time will tell.

[Alimamy]

Rolex is a worldwide company that not only makes watches but has an entire philanthropy arm and sponsorship program. I am not sure if Rolex even notices any problems at all with the current market.

[asiparks]

Originally Posted by DJ2020

I believe the greater demand is fueled by a small percentage of Newer Rolex customers. Long term wears and buyers like myself that are use to walking in and seeing merchandise since the 70's and 80's know that this relatively recent feverish want for a Rolex is charged from social media and the internet mainly. They produce no more in 2018 than they do now. Maybe a little less due to covid.

But the gray market has expanded greatly, we all know they either source there inventory from flippers or directly from AD's.
Gray's has consumed most of Rolex's inventory due to this. AD's are selling out for this reason only. The number of actual watch loyal wearers is a small percentage of buyers compared to Flippers, investment buyers and Gray's.

Consumers who just want a Rolex to wear are now having to compete with the Flippers, investors and Gray's. That's here to stay I think, and for those customers this is not good for Rolex. They will seek better watches that are obtainable and cost less.

I also believe Rolex is walking a thin line here. If the herd migrates to a different brand, it will simply be the same for them. Buying a high end watch or any luxury item, It should be a luxury experience and customers treated as such. Not made to feel you have to compete for the privilege to spend YOUR money. I don't believe Rolex wants this either. It's up to Rolex to fix this. Rolex owned stores may help to control this. Rolex historically never has presented there watches as for only a chosen few, but for customers who wanted a great watch and willing to pay a premium for it. Nowadays there not the only game in town and fast approaching being way over priced for stainless models.

Again, walking a thin line. They have the largest brand recognition in the world except for Lego. I don't believe Rolex will let this go on much longer. I honestly look for Rolex to make some major changes in the next few years. I hate the way Rolex is now compared to 30 - 40 years ago. I'm not a investor, flipper or a gray and know there are quite few just like me. If the brand allows this to continue It will be detrimental to the brand.
....... time will tell.

^^ This ^^

We don't know for sure what Rolex thinks of the current situation- they don't profit from it, their previous, albeit, ineffectual attempts to try and control the reseller market, suggest that they don't like it. Perhaps even feel that they've lost some control over it, as the current circumstance is not of Rolex's doing.
What many here see as "brand" strength may not correspond to that of Rolex management.

Hermes, other luxury brands use the power and allure of hard to get items, like Birkins, to move their revenue drivers, the items that keep their lights on, lower priced offerings like logo'd t-shirts and bottles of perfume.
Rolex doesn't have those. It doesn't make any more money from this madness, there's no benefit other than being the strongest watch "brand" .

Which it was already, prior to 2015.

However strong your brand is, if you have no plans or ability, to capitalize on it, then it's no more than a bunch of random people wandering around with a thought in their head: "I want a Rolex", You can call them "potential customers" if you want, but if they don't turn into "real customers", then that's a big "so what ?"

Sure the ADs are happy, bundling baubles or other brands slow selling watches to build "purchase history", but not sure these antics reflect positively back on Rolex.

Their "new" consumer is either a speculative hoarder, hoping to sell to someone willing to pay more than they did, or a vapid and fickle FOMO fashion chaser that will switch allegience to whatever shiny thing happens along next.

Not sure either of those align with Rolexs' brand values.

[loftycomfort]

Rolex isn’t the same as Hermes. Not even close.

For starters, an Hermes store actually has bags. Nope, you can’t buy a Birkin or Kelly on your first visit, but you buy any one of the Roulis/Picotin/Halzan/whatever to start your “journey” to eventually acquire a Birkin. Those other bags may not be highly coveted, but they’re still Hermes bags - it is still possible for a newcomer to get into the relationship game.

Not so with today’s Rolex. These days, I have more eyeballs than a typical Rolex AD has watches on display. bUt ThEY hAvE wAtChEs iN ThE sAfE. Maybe they do, or maybe they don’t. That is irrelevant to anyone who is new and has no spending history yet. A spend history cannot be started when there are no watches on display to be bought - first world problem and catch-22 rolled into one haha.

Oh, and this: Hermes stores don’t backdoor Bikins to grey.

BTW, I think a better term is "lurking crisis", because this whole madness situation can eventually come back to haunt Rolex even if they are selling out every watch they can make right now.

[jaySL350]

Originally Posted by GMT Aviator

I’m 50 years of age. Been wearing and collecting Rolex’s that I like to wear for years, mostly GMT’s because of my profession.

I’m old fashioned, I love my mechanical watches. My late father wore a Rolex the entire time I was alive which now resides in my collection since his passing in 2018. His 1972 DJ, and the GMT’s I saw the Apollo astronauts and Pan Am pilots wearing were the aspiring factors that made me want to one day own and wear one of those excellent, understated tool watches. A one watch to do it all. I never dreamed I would eventually have a sizeable collection of them some day, yet here I am.

To me, and others like me of my generation and older, I suspect, the Rolex brand is definitely suffering from being over hyped.

Today’s Rolex role models, (putting to one side the ambassadors for a moment), are not the Pan Am pilots of yesterday, or their fathers, or the Apollo’s astronauts that risked it all to get to the moon. They are influencers, celebrity nobody's, Intragrammers and every other social media piece of trash whose very success relies on being a part of the hype train along with their followers. In 5 to 10 years time, there will be no lasting legacy from any of these people. They will disappear along with their followers.

And before anyone shoots me down for labelling these people as trash, don’t even go there. I rent properties to a lot of these celebrity nobodies. Trust me, most of them are utter scum who don’t have two brass farthings to rub together, yet portray themselves on social media as successful, minted individuals. It’s pathetic. It should be a criminal offence to be an influencer to my eyes knowing what I know about these so called ‘social media celebrities’.

So the scarcity which is being driven by new age social media is not here to stay long term. It’s a phase and Rolex has been swept up by it. The remainers when this is all over will be those who appreciate the watches for what they are.

The sad thing, for a lot of us, is the brand is taking a massive hit on its social acceptability because of the undesirables promoting it for nothing other than personal gain, which Rolex has no control over. It hasn’t harmed their sales, but Rolex is an old fashioned company, and it is hitting their reputation and I suspect that’s where any brand crisis will eventually stem from.

Nice post Mike and agree ,,,
Im 57 and live in a part of NE London that seems to attract the above and people from those God awful reality shows,,,
Hire a big place for the day then put it online for clicks lol,
Things is ,,as quickly as they move into the area ,there out just as quick,,,,
That’s not a bad thing,,seeing Barbie dolls in ball gowns at 9am when I nip to the chemist to get a box of rennies is just too much,,,

[Filo25]

Originally Posted by asiparks

^^ This ^^

We don't know for sure what Rolex thinks of the current situation- they don't profit from it, their previous, albeit, ineffectual attempts to try and control the reseller market, suggest that they don't like it. Perhaps even feel that they've lost some control over it, as the current circumstance is not of Rolex's doing.
What many here see as "brand" strength may not correspond to that of Rolex management.

Hermes, other luxury brands use the power and allure of hard to get items, like Birkins, to move their revenue drivers, the items that keep their lights on, lower priced offerings like logo'd t-shirts and bottles of perfume.
Rolex doesn't have those. It doesn't make any more money from this madness, there's no benefit other than being the strongest watch "brand" .

Which it was already, prior to 2015.

However strong your brand is, if you have no plans or ability, to capitalize on it, then it's no more than a bunch of random people wandering around with a thought in their head: "I want a Rolex", You can call them "potential customers" if you want, but if they don't turn into "real customers", then that's a big "so what ?"

Sure the ADs are happy, bundling baubles or other brands slow selling watches to build "purchase history", but not sure these antics reflect positively back on Rolex.

Their "new" consumer is either a speculative hoarder, hoping to sell to someone willing to pay more than they did, or a vapid and fickle FOMO fashion chaser that will switch allegience to whatever shiny thing happens along next.

Not sure either of those align with Rolexs' brand values.

The situation in the US does sound extreme at present, at least in the UK you still have some kind of chance to "build a relationship" with an AD, by purchasing lower demand Rolex watches.

Yes you may have to wait a while and you are likely restricted in what you can buy but the option still exists, I am admittedly starting to wonder how much longer that will be the case for.

Can only hope that some increases to production start to feed through in the near future and take some of the heat out of the grey market, which may cool some of the investment purchasing, but of course even that depends on where any increased production is targeted.

Nice post Mike and agree ,,,
Im 57 and live in a part of NE London that seems to attract the above and people from those God awful reality shows,,,
Hire a big place for the day then put it online for clicks lol,
Things is ,,as quickly as they move into the area ,there out just as quick,,,,
That’s not a bad thing,,seeing Barbie dolls in ball gowns at 9am when I nip to the chemist to get a box of rennies is just too much,,,

As a fellow NE London resident Jay, that does unfortunately sound a bit too horribly familiar!

[vh2k]

Originally Posted by DJ2020

The number of actual watch loyal wearers is a small percentage of buyers compared to Flippers, investment buyers and Gray's.

Sorry, but this has been debunked countless times.

[DJ2020]

Originally Posted by vh2k

Sorry, but this has been debunked countless times.

At Present, there is none to be purchased at the AD's, They are available at Gray's. Normal long term Rolex buyers that will tolerate the games or purchase from a gray, is a small percentage today in the Present climate. I'll stand by that for now,

[vh2k]

Originally Posted by DJ2020

At Present, there is none to be purchased at the AD's, They are available at Gray's. Normal long term Rolex buyers that will tolerate the games or purchase from a gray, is a small percentage today in the Present climate. I'll stand by that for now,

The fact that ADs are sold out and secondary resellers have a few thousand new/unworn watches doesn't prove that Rolex customers are "a small percentage of buyers" (your words).

Every single month, Rolex ships watches with a wholesale value of $400 million and an MSRP value of over $700 million. You really think grey dealers are absorbing a large percentage of $700 million of Rolex watches every single month?

Do you realize how absurd that sounds? Who are these dealers stockpiling hundreds of millions of dollars in watches every month? Do they have magic working capital? Do they have a massive underground bunker full of billions of $$$ of watches. How come all these watches (app. 80,000 per month) aren't listed for sale anywhere? Are they saving them for a rainy day?

[JRell]

There are smart, educated, people with means on this board. Don’t be shortsighted and inpatient. Covid reduced production! It is going to come back! Wait until the ADs get more inventory from Rolex when their production is up. It will happen and these crazy prices will drop.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/instore...right-now/amp/

[bob sims]

Originally Posted by loftycomfort

BTW, I think a better term is "lurking crisis", because this whole madness situation can eventually come back to haunt Rolex even if they are selling out every watch they can make right now.

Not a chance.

[bob sims]

Originally Posted by karteo

i am hearing that this rolex bubble will burst for years now.

it's not a bubble. it's the new normal.

if the rolex bubble will burst, it will be due to such a financial crisis that watches are the last thing will be interested in. we'll have to worry for more important things.

and when this will happen, the other brands will be rolling down the cliff

do we like this current situation. not at all. but let's not be in a denial. as long as there are enough money out there people will want to buy Rolex.

Very well put. These people thinking they are ever going to buy a new Panda under $30k are as delusional as anyone on the planet.

[DJ2020]

Originally Posted by vh2k

The fact that ADs are sold out and secondary resellers have a few thousand new/unworn watches doesn't prove that Rolex customers are "a small percentage of buyers" (your words).

Every single month, Rolex ships watches with a wholesale value of $400 million and an MSRP value of over $700 million. You really think grey dealers are absorbing a large percentage of $700 million of Rolex watches every single month?

Do you realize how absurd that sounds? Who are these dealers stockpiling hundreds of millions of dollars in watches every month? Do they have magic working capital? Do they have a massive underground bunker full of billions of $$$ of watches. How come all these watches (app. 80,000 per month) aren't listed for sale anywhere? Are they saving them for a rainy day?

Rolex customers who are NOT willing to play games are the small percentage. Majority of current buyers ARE playing the game, flipping or being sold to Gray's. And yes I think they ARE buying that much, IF that much is actually being shipped at present during the pandemic era.

The cases are empty!

[vh2k]

Originally Posted by DJ2020

yes I think they ARE buying that much, IF that much is actually being shipped at present during the pandemic era.

ZERO empirical evidence of this. Sure, Watchfinder and Watchbox have the working capital to purchase millions of $$$ of watches every month… but we are talking $700 million per month.

Who are these dealers? And where are the watches? Why don’t they have thousands of new unworn Rolex watches listed for sale?

[doboy007]

Originally Posted by vh2k

ZERO empirical evidence of this. Sure, Watchfinder and Watchbox have the working capital to purchase millions of $$$ of watches every month… but we are talking $700 million per month.

Who are these dealers? And where are the watches? Why don’t they have thousands of new unworn Rolex watches listed for sale?

All you need is 700 greys (all over the world) spending $1 million per month and you have $700/mo. Haha