Will this "slow down" result in longer waits

[4reRlxGuy]

Hello all:

If ADs are having greater difficulty selling the less desirable pieces (smaller ladies, 36mm 2 tone DJs, DD PM non desirable dial with diamonds, ...), will they resort to diverting the desirable pieces to the grey mkt to bundle them with the slow movers?

[Ferrari-F430]

It's hard to divert the slow movers to a market that sells them for under MSRP.. But they can certainly offer a discount in-store on a slow mover so not sure it makes sense.

[996marty]

Discounting a price always helps when trying to sell something

[csaltphoto]

Originally Posted by 4reRlxGuy

Hello all:

If ADs are having greater difficulty selling the less desirable pieces (smaller ladies, 36mm 2 tone DJs, DD PM non desirable dial with diamonds, ...), will they resort to diverting the desirable pieces to the grey mkt to bundle them with the slow movers?

Keep in mind that the "grey market" to us are "good customers" to the AD's. Willing to buy mutliple watches, undesirable and desirable both. Retail biz is all about cash-flow.

[Neil McCauley]

I doubt many grey dealers are looking to buy full PM, hard to move watches directly from ADs, unless it's at a significant discount, which isn't likely to happen.

These do eventually sell (sometimes with a discount) to normal customers. Don't forget, the majority of their customer base has no care or knowledge of the secondary market the way that a lot of full on watch-heads do. They see and they buy, especially if they think they're getting a "bargain".

Grey dealers are much more likely to want to buy them from Joe Shmoe who's desperate to get out of a watch they're underwater on. Which, incidentally, are much more common than you think. People need to get it out of their heads that grey dealers are walking around ADs picking up watches from them all the time... this is just nonsense. Most of them will be well known, and most of the time not even welcome in the store.

[Oxfordian]

Originally Posted by Neil McCauley

I doubt many grey dealers are looking to buy full PM, hard to move watches directly from ADs, unless it's at a significant discount, which isn't likely to happen.

These do eventually sell (sometimes with a discount) to normal customers. Don't forget, the majority of their customer base has no care or knowledge of the secondary market the way that a lot of full on watch-heads do. They see and they buy, especially if they think they're getting a "bargain".

Grey dealers are much more likely to want to buy them from Joe Shmoe who's desperate to get out of a watch they're underwater on. Which, incidentally, are much more common than you think. People need to get it out of their heads that grey dealers are walking around ADs picking up watches from them all the time... this is just nonsense. Most of them will be well known, and most of the time not even welcome in the store.

This sums things up nicely - It is one of the best replies to a question that is often asked.

[Harry-57]

Dealers do B2B bundle transactions all the time. It's all about keeping stock moving, maximising profits or minimising losses. I doubt that anyone can say how many Rolex units move through these channels, if any. Having skilled people who know how to sell reduces the need to throw away hot watches but every business will have a tipping point.

[BBRAYS]

Originally Posted by csaltphoto

Keep in mind that the "grey market" to us are "good customers" to the AD's. Willing to buy mutliple watches, undesirable and desirable both. Retail biz is all about cash-flow.

I agree