The fact there is supply grey market means rolex makes enough watches. The problem isn't supply, the problem is where the supply ends up. The issue is 100% with the ADs
Exactly. And Rolex could kill that off easily - buy up some near new watches from greys, trace them back to the AD (non-Bucherer of course) and either pull their license or severely limit their allocation. Make sure the word got out to the watch press. You’d immediately see more Ave Joe watch geeks getting the call.
@@MS-sy8ls it's a balancing act, need to knock the teeth out of a few ad's to drive the price down to a much smaller markup over MSRP... Low enough that normal buyers won't be tempted into being flippers. Then Rolex can maintain control of the experience and all but theost robust greys will disappear.
I’ve been on a waiting list for a Rolex for well over a year now, and now don’t know if I’ll bother even if they ever have one available. I already went and got a Breitling, was treated like a king and even given a free VIP night out at a Rugby match. I’ve went off Rolex , and they are no longer what I thought they were.
@@cleverusernamecl5532 at this very moment, the Dutch watch forum is brimming with sales adverts for Rolex watches that don't seem to be moving anywhere, if I look at the lead times and price drops. Careful how, supply and demand can go up in smoke in a heartbeat if the market loses faith or interest in a brand.
@@SkywalkerPaulhowever, they can now sell over the internet (Bucherer are also an online trader) direct to end users, meaning they can keep the waiting list, stop AD’s forcing customers from buy rival products to creat “a relationship” and stopping the grey market dealers buying up all new stock to sell at profit (2% of all Rolex watches produced this year are already on Chrono24 for sale above MSRP). It’s the online sales where Rolex will clean up as the wait list will be more like the Premium/Luxury Car Market, first come, first serve but also long wait lists for exclusivity purposes
So Rolex need to open more than 1.500 Bucherer store😂. Because globally there are 1.816 AD vs 56 bucherer boutiques! How could this happen? Maybe it will, in 20 years maybe….
I think it’s worth mentioning as well, this is just as beneficial to Tudor. You come in for a Rolex, and they can point you at a Tudor and an Omega, and make the Tudor look like good value.
Apple did this some 20 years ago for exactly the same reason. They had no control of what product multi brand retailers were pushing and no control of the expertise at the point of sale which led to the creation of the Apple Store.
With one major difference. Supply always met demand. I didn’t have to wait 3 years to purchase my iMac or have to go to “Kev’s Komputers” to buy one for 50pct more.
That's why you go grey. They offer better service and you're guaranteed the watch that you want. And you don't have to be put on the AD's stupid waiting list.
@@cpcxgsr I got a brand new Submariner about a month ago from a low level gray dealer, with 0 tax involved. Great transaction, and he paid me well for a JLC in a trade. All in, I was about 3K over MSRP without having to get on a list or buy things I didn't want.
Just a thought, but if Rolex is keeping that 40-50% markup as profit in their retail store, wouldn't it be prudent for brands like Omega, Breitling, and other to open more boutique stores in smaller markets? The other thing is that if Omega is 7 or 8% of total watch sales, what does that mean for Swatch group? Wouldn't it be better to compare Rolex to Swatch Group vs. just to Omega.
They already have their own boutiques but they don’t have the demand like Rolex does. Rolex has a dominating market demand. These other brands you name trade below retail which heavily hurts their boutiques and keeping those doors open, which is why they have to save costs and go through multi brand retailers like Bucherer, watches of Switzerland, etc Rolex does not have this problem. Their boutiques sell at full retail with full demand. They have zero need for multi brand retailers besides additional revenue.
@Yorkiepoocharlie Yes, that is a bit of an assumption. But keep in mind, brands like Omega can only go up. Whereas Rolex can only go down. Don’t mean to turn this into a Rolex vs. Omega debate. Goodness knows there enough of that. It will be interesting to see how things play out.
@@GooglyEyes73 As mentioned above, Omega does have boutiques but I would buy from my AD with better discount rather than boutiques with less or none at all. So unless they withdraw from ADs and spent massive money to open a lot of boutiques and face the problems and risk of operating retail stores. Not to mention as part of Swatch Group and the highest earning brands within, how will the ADs react to this? Getting other brands but not Omega.
If Bucherer own their stores, that means Rolex now owns those as well and could transform them into Rolex and Tudor boutiques without the need to sell other brands. They would be basically buying properties and rebranding them without having to invest on opening new Rolex boutiques around the world.
Bucherer sells and makes a lot of money on other (non Rolex, Tudor) brands as well. It would not be smart to give up the revenue and margin associated with that. If Rolex is smart, they will stick to manufacturing and let Bucherer continue their wildly successful run based on many years of retail experience.
@@darrenmarks1 with the purchase of Bucherer, Rolex can eventually turn them into whatever they want them to be - exclusively Rolex products, or a combination of Rolex and other brands with the majority of space devoted to their own products. They don’t need to sell other brands at Bucherer if they don’t want to, and this wouldn’t matter to other watch stores. The other watch stores would still happily carry Rolex products If given the opportunity because Rolex watches sell wherever they can be obtained.
It is a huge move as Rolex is now officially entering the B2C market instead of just B2B, after being a pure manufacturer for a century. It means that Rolex will have the full control client experience and behaviour, stock control and distribution, as well as brand exposure and retail network, unlocking huge opportunity for Rolex to reposition themselves. Having boutiques will help Rolex step up the game if they plan to become a top-tier brand, as AD will not just open a store for you as a showroom and only serve your VIPs. I wouldnt be surprised if Rolex purchases more brands like Breitling and Panerai to fill their mid-tier market share when Rolex enters the ultra-luxury market. Tbh Rolex wouldnt care whether ppl would buy a seamaster as an alternative or if they can make a tiny little profit from selling other brands in Buchcerer, as they know they will dominate the market for the next 20 years
Purchasing Breitling is a possibility as Tudor is already working with them by using their chronographs movement and Tudor supplying movement as well to Breitling. Panerai is unlikely though as they are already owned by the Richemont Group.
@@lettuce1305 Well, I mean Breitling is part of Swatch group anyways, so I don't think that really matters does it? In the end business is business, and if they can profit on other people's or companies' interest, they will do so, no matter which brand or company they're under.
@@gwb914 no Breitling isn't, it's owned by a PE fund which is far more likely to sell as that may be their exit startegy anyway than say the Richemont group.
@@rodrigoh.1645 haha yeah that's the first I heard of it unless the Swatch group made a hidden acquisition. Anyways Bretiling is currently owned by a Private Equity firm and therefore far more likely to sell down the road.
I went to a rolex ad and they practically laughed in my face when i asked if they had an explorer one. I was so angry, i walked out and got an Omega Aqua Terra.
This - together with the new Rolex Factory(s) - is going to be a major blow to the secondary market. Not only watches of switzerland, smaller dealers / flippers as well. Good for collectors and "normal" buyers, bad for investors. I think I like the move.
@@samuelburton5576 I agree with you. But I don't think Rolex will "under produce" to keep their scarcity low and their demand high. But I am sure they will scale back distribution to their ADs and keep their same business model, MAKE THE CONSUMER WAIT. Just to hype up the brand and to make their fanboys/girls think that owning a Rolex is a privilege and not a right. I am sure if you have some clout, you can walk into any AD and pick out the rare Rolex models that you would like. But in the real world, 90% of us are regular joes. We don't have that type of skin in the game.
I think it's about finding a little more middle ground. The factorys are being built, so they want to up their numbers obviously. And I think that's fine. There is still a difference between "flooding the market" and "having to wait two years for a simple steel model."@@samuelburton5576
Hey! What was it that you said at 2:38 of the video about a waitlist? It sounded like you said "Niggering at the fact" or "sniggering at the fact"? Was that a mistake or did I mishear what you you were trying to say? Thanks!
I wonder will some of the other manufacturers, eg Omega, remove their concessions from Bucherer as a result of this? Or is Bucherer too valuable to them even if Rolex is making money on the back of an Omega sale?
why should they remove their concessions? It worked well the last decades being in a Bucherer Boutique next to other brands. So, If you have the money for a Rolex, you'll buy the Omega for your sons birthday...
@@mobilebeatsbecause for the pass decade and any before that, Bucherer wasn’t OWNED by the competition. The OTHERS could pull there products and not do business, raise the cost of their goods and play the rolex game back on rolex… you know, make enough to sell enough to not have enough. In other words, the other watchmakers put Bucherer on a wait list while making sure their boutiques and ADs have the goods to sell.
WOSG shares have been tanking since early 2022, down from a high of €16.80 a share to €6.50 or so… the market isn’t believing their model as retailers! Richemont group also easing in the last 6 months.. as luxury brands feel some of the economic pressure.
“The lack of supply” then how exactly are the grey dealers , chrono24 and so on getting the supply? There’s plenty of Rolex , just selling to the flippers
That money making will only happen if the other brands don't pull out of Bucherer, of course. I'd be nervous about providing my biggest competitor with sensitive release and pricing information before handing them a large chunk of margin. Wouldn't surprise me if Bucherer turns into a monobrand store where you finally still can't buy a Rolex.
The other brands would be silly to pull out. People walk into Bucherer looking for Rolex and that gives the other brands an opportunity. Nobody is walking into a Ulysse Nardin or even IWC boutique anymore. It’s the salespeople that bring those other brands business. If anything the brands should be running to Bucherer to push their products while ppl wait on the rolex they want.
@@LLCoolNay630 the other brands would be bat shit stupid to stay… the other brands don’t and didn’t have the problems that the golden child rolex had and has with its ADs. The others have their own store fronts and ADs to sell their goods, and don’t forget their on line stores. Ironic and funny, an organization that has a history of being founded on not to have ever made anything but market their name buys up a retailer to push its own goods. Very rolex. The competing watchmakers would be smart to stop leasing retail space in Bucherer, pull and stop selling to Bucherer and open their own shops and boutique across the street, same block, next block, next to Bucherer. Just think if IWC, Jeager LeCoultre, Blancpain, Omega, Cartier, Vacheron Constantin, Patek Philippe, Montres Breguet and other watchmakers did that. What would rolex have to sell you in their Bucherer stores? Nothing. Nothing, they can’t seem to have the goods to sell you anything right now. All they would have is a name to market to you, Bucherer. Hey, something that they excell at.
The picture at 0:55 is exactly where I buy all my watches and also it‘s just a 10 minutes walk from where I live in Lucerne. One of the most beautiful cities in the world for sure.
I think it’s a epic move for Rolex but for many of us who maybe are venturing into buying their first Rolex they still have to to deal with arrogant AD’s and jumping through hoops. I guess we will just have to see how this plays out and hopefully things will become easier for potential buyers and not harder.
All I know is that when I stop by the Tourneau/Bucherer store to see where I am on the waitlist, they shrug and steer me straight to the certified pre-owned models...it's getting old.
I've never phrased it like that, but I've made it clear I'm not paying anyone above retail. They usually walk back towards the Rolex display and pretend to check the list on their tablet. I've bought two Rolexes, a Tudor, and an Omega from this AD, and they know I wear them or give them to my adult kids who wear them, but I'm still two years plus waiting on a specific sports model. I've increased my spend at another AD, in just the last few months, and that salesman calls me to remind me she's on the lookout for my watch. My bet's on her. @@GM-ii8gs
It’s an interesting move really, especially keeping in mind Bucherer had recently gotten into pre-owned market. Which means now Rolex has control over new sales as well as pre-owned.
Amazing how Rolex keep all their 'business' secret until they announce it. No hints, no leaks, just bang ! Its done! They must be some operators at the top end of this company. Respect.
They can keep there business a secret because rolex is a trust, there is no shareholder / stock or publicly traded funds. They don’t have to answer to any shareholders. No fiduciary responsibility to anyone, not even the customers they drain. Only to the on going operation of the trust itself.
Just purchased certified Rolex watch from Bucherer. Probably the only AD in Germany selling real Rolex watches. The rest, especially internet stores sell fakes.
It seems to me that a huge downturn in the market both at retail and secondary, has forced the hand of Rolex. The long awaited birds having finally come home to roost and all luxury watch brands should be a little worried but especially Rolex who have, through their slippery AD's, got away with treating customers with disdain for far too long.
What huge downturn? Rolex, even with recession breaking out in many countries, is selling every sport watch they make - could raise the price of the Batman and Sub (and Daytonas) $2k, make 3 times as many, still sell them all. At MSRP. Greys - at least the under capitalized ones - are certainly starting to hurt. There will be some consolidation in the grey world- won’t affect Rolex one bit.
While I do think this will make acquiring a Rolex at list prices easier, and reduce the problem of grey market flipping, Rolex will still limit production of its most coveted models. Rolex knows how to play the game of supply and demand better than most, and to think that it will suddenly become easy to acquire a panda Daytona is a ridiculous notion. This is the same game that Hermes plays with its Birkin bags, like it's so hard to make a leather bag in large quantities. Anyway, it's still a great move by Rolex, since people that like mechanical watches often like other brands as well as Rolex. Why not make some money on the side with other brands while your customers also buy or wait to buy the Rolex they want. I also think Rolex has become somewhat tired of all the bad mouthing about the brand on social media. Hopefully this move into retail will remedy some of the issues watch buyers have been dealing with lately.
Great video, really insightful. I think we can all speak to unpleasant experiences at AD's. Walked into Betteridge and the mere act of setting foot in the Rolex section prompted the associate to belt out, "These are for display only." Not even a "Let me know if I can help." Primarily for this reason, I'm fine with not owning a Rolex.
Very true. I’m always treated well at the AD I visit, stop in every few months to talk watches, remind them I’m still interested. I have to wonder how many people crying about bad treatment are successful in their field, making very good money, and just used to being catered too and never heard ‘sorry, you’ll have to wait. And no guarantees or timelines.’
A smart business move by Rolex, but now I love Omega even more. My local boutique takes excellent care of me. I can get what I want, I'm getting a master chronometer at a competitive price, and I get royal treatment to boot.
A couple of years ago I bought a Cameron Deep Sea from a friend (new, mint in box). After a week I realised what I was wearing wasn’t a watch it was statement about aspiration that said something so unpleasant about me I sold it back to him at a small loss. It’s a nasty brand selling average steel watches that will, one day, get a comeuppance.
Morality and luxury goods: uneasy bedfellows. Rolex is at the extreme end. Hermes handbags, same thing: massively overpriced. No watch, made from an assembly of springs and gears, is worth more than £1000. It's a scam, and we are willing victims, in moments of moral weakness. If I had the disposable funds, I'd buy the ALS Zeitwerk - not a Rolex - and donate an equal amount to charity.
There's another unpleasant aspect to Rolex: whenever I have been wearing Rolex in recent years there have been occasions (after dark and/or in certain places) where it has made me feel really UNSAFE. It's a truly horrible feeling to be walking back to your car, or taking a shortcut through the park, etc - and feel like you are constantly looking over your shoulder for muggers! You don't get this with a Patek or Lange strap watch (I speak from experience!) Vanishingly few people recognise one of those - and those who do are not the menacing category of person. But you can almost physically feel everyone and his dog noticing, say, a GMT BLNR. It's not a nice feeling.
In center of Stockholm Omega opened a Omega brand store. Made al the AD's put there Omega watches on sale. Almost nobody sales omega in the center area anymore. So, is it maybe a trend among established brands? Will we see a new bunch of luxury watch stores in all big citys all over the world? Hmm...
Rolex now will control even more who gets to buy a Rolex. Me being a Joe schmo, the possibility of ever owning a new Rolex...bucket list...is even more of a pipe dream. Rolex has the ability to price fix and completely control the retail market. They really don't need authorized dealers now. They can just open new retail stores and wipe out authorized dealers. Win for Rolex...not a win for buyers whose dream is just to own a Rolex. Feeling Ferrari vibes coming from this acquisition.
@@ryhcky Ah yes, putting "biggest watch brand" & "exclusive" into the same idea is some proper mental gymnastics. Grey market prices very much suggest that there's some serious artificial scarcity going on, and only a few extremely desirable SKUs are actually exclusive and rare these days. A car analogy would be something like Mercedes trying to present itself as a Ferrari. Rolex just isn't that luxurious or exclusive compared to actual high horology brands, but they're sure trying to price themselves as equal to the high horology brands. The 1908 is comically bad value, for example.
@@viciokas1993 Again , never saying I agree but that again is why they are the “biggest” brand. Not because they sell the most watches but because of the demand for them. If they were sitting in every store available the name would not be as popular for most people that don’t know anything about watches. Rolex’s craftsmanship is top tier as well just because it doesn’t have anything crazy or have an insane price tag doesn’t make it a mercedes. Artificial scarcity was never the debate.
You should hope Rolex does ‘price fix’ - I sure do! If Rolex raised the price of every popular sport model $2k tonight (and maybe 4 for Daytonas) it would destroy the grey market. But there are still more than enough true watch lovers to buy them all up. I’d pay Rolex $2k more - won’t give the greys a dime. I doubt I’m alone.
The whole game of waiting to purchase a simple Tudor turned me right off getting into watches. I’ve had my name on 4-5 waiting lists for months now. The whole marketing strategy is frustrating for someone new to this watch world. I’m sure I’m not the only one who says screw it. Spend my $ on something else.
Just an AD shout out to Goldsmiths in Nottingham my brother got 2 sports models in a year at the height of the hype market, he isn’t a millionaire footballer but had just fought off cancer for the Second time, so some ADs do have a heart and its not all just about the money. Cheers
I believe they will withdraw Rolex from WOS, MP & Goldsmiths and offer to buy certain boutiques from them to soften the blow. This will be mirrored in other countries and Europe. One thing for sure - Rolex know exactly what they are up to - and nobody can second guess them !
Let's get back to 2000 where you can walk in unannounced and buy a Submariner, like I did. Rolex stopped production during Covid, prices went through the roof. Now Rolex is finishing up on there new expanded production facility. And China is not buying as much as before. Thus lets hope demand and supply can be like the decades and decades before the wait list for a Sub.
Yes I remember walking into Bond Street 1997. Trying on different Rolex then walked out with a gmt master £1900. Brand new. Travel the world with me. Unfortunately due to work and costs in 2008 had to sell to. Stay in my house. But it helped me out but I wish it would go back to what it was then give the ordinary working man and woman a chance to. Buy at a reasonable price
I was in Zurich and Lucerne a few months back and the Bucherer stores were horribly overpriced. Literally €1000’s EUR markup on the actual store next door. IMO avoid Burcherer. Tbf my explorer 1 is the last Rolex I ever need also. So I’m probably done with Rolex unless a decent vintage GMT or explorer 2 comes up at a reasonable price. Agree with this video the buying experience is not good. the hype around Rolex is overrated even as someone who has owned several. Good video Adrian!🎉 Just remember the world of watches is totally daft and irrational!
I was in Zurich at the beginning of the year as well, and can't say I've noticed the same. The prices at the Bucherer store there were on par with retail pricing. Same with their London stores, as I live here and have bought few watches from them. They are definitely not a brand/retailer to do sales or discounts, as I have never seen them have one, so if something was discounted in other stores, I can see where the discrepancy in pricing might come from. But I have never seen a new watch above its retail price there. Pre-owned Rolexes is different story...
If I'm running Swatch Group, I'm looking hard at exiting Bucherer and doubling down on Watches Of Switzerland as a preferred distribution partner and potential investment opportunity.
Very nice to see a video again Adrian. 😊 On topic, I think this is very smart from Rolex. Now they have full control, have full return and can give a far better buyer experience.
I believe this has very little to do with improving their self customer experience (the frustration they provoque with way they manage their stocks availability says it all), and everything to do with gaining more power over their competition. Will they entirely decide what is advertised, seen and sold of other brands in these stores? I mean, will Rolex have full control of what happens inside these stores or will there be agreements in place with other brands? It would be good to hear other top swiss brands thoughts on this, we are all missing that part.
Interesting speculation for me is what they do with Bucherer watch brand. Its an opportunity to keep moving up market while positioning Bucherer as the JLC, Panerai, Omega competitor. They could also use it to experiment with movements the way Montblanc does with Minerva movements.
Havent even thought of that. Is the watchbrand a seperate entity or was it included in the purchase? Id love to see some freaky Tudor models with a Bucherer peripheral movement!!
@Kyle97x having recently handled a few JLC's for the first time, I can confirm that they are amazing watches closer in quality to Patek and Vacheron than they are to Rolex and Omega. Marketing makes such a difference, and no one has done that as effectively as Rolex.
Rolex have acquired only the retail business, not the watch company. Carl F. Bucherer, the watch company remains part of Bucherer AG and have nothing to do with Rolex or this deal.
It’s been an absolute horrid experience trying to buy from Rolex ADs. The worst is I can buy a self described “new” 2023 version from a Greymarket dealer, which is walking distance from the AD. So I am still on the “waiting list”, for the same watch. Yet, I can’t give an alternate for (so definitely no multiple options). They would not even sell me a Tudor. So I am honestly happy about this move, I hope Rolex runs them out of town.
Won’t even sell you a Tudor? Which one? There are short waits for the new and most popular ones but to refuse makes me think you were a little too arrogant. I had 0 history: got the BB Pro 3 months after it was announced, P39 in 5, BB GMT Opaline in 3.
That is what I hate. I am on the wait list and was told by the AD that it might be 3 years before I can get it. I see the same item on sale as used on multiple sites. But its $8,000 more. Yeah, absolute BS. Don't even get me started on the scumbag AD (I'm naming names: CD Peacock of Oak Brook) that discriminates. They wouldn't even take any of my info. They claim not to have a wait list but when I asked how I would be able to purchase a Rolex, they said I would have to wait in line behind other people. How? They refused to explain how that worked. As I walked out, some guys (that better fit the country club look) walked in talking about the notification they received about a shipment of the Rolex model I had just asked about.
I've been a long-time follower of your channel Adrian. I just noticed that there's something you could do to fix the subtitles for your videos. At times the subtitles show up with a lot of text flashed for a fraction of a second without adhering to the timeline. I have had this issue on my channel and was very stressful for me to write the subtitles. However these days I use an Opensource tool called Whisper AI - which is available for free to download. Once the video is ready to be uploaded to youtube, I drag and drop the video in WhisperAI tool and it generates subtitles in seconds. Then I do minor edits to the text and export the srt file. Hope you could use it on your future videos. Keep up the good work. Greetings from Zurich, Switzerland 🇨🇭❤
Let’s not forget it has to pass anti competition regulators, which may not be as simple as it may appear. Although Bucherer will be run completely separately to Rolex the same as Tudor is, the “other brands” may have something to say about Rolex Ultimately having a profitable interest in their sales.
surely if there was Zero reason it would not be passed to regulators@@-Jason-L ? Although Rolex may be "hands off" of the control of Bucherer it will still be responsible for selling competitors brands which must bring up some questions, Just my simple opinion.🤣
@@thatwatchguylondon I have little doubt many competing brands will likely pull their brand away from them. But then again, how many competitors do they actually have for sports watches in their price range?
Epic move by Rolex to buy turnkey business enabling them to showcase their brand. No downside for them. Looking forward to walking into Rolex/Bucherer and enjoying the buying experience.
@@thedaveaftertomorrow Rolex is going to funnel more of their watches to Bucherer stores to get all those juicy margins and make up the overheads with volume. And bye bye to all the other brands that are direct competitors to either Rolex or Tudor, Omega is already out of the Bucherer website. More to follow for sure.
That root beer + NATO combination is too beautiful!! Also, I love Bucherer - got almost all my new watches from them. The staff are very friendly and knowledgeable, and often recommend and pull out watches across brands for me to try/compare. I hope they will keep it this way even with Rolex as owner.
Are you serious? The modifications made to that watch are just plain hideous. They completely messed up the innate beauty it had. You know how Rolex watches are all about those legendary bracelets, right? It's like getting a Ferrari and slapping on some bargain bin lids and a spoiler that's big enough for a whole neighborhood. It's just not the way things are done. And the same goes for brands like AP or Cartier. EOT.
Not sure that that Omega, Grand Seiko and the other brands will continue to supply their stock to a competitors owned store (Bukherer) under that operating model. They will most likely look for new independant AD's or perhaps other avenues. Sure it will improve the AD exeperience and may limit the supply to other Rolex AD's.
I think it's bigger than that for a few reasons: 1) For sure some brands might exclude Bucherer from their distribution network because well - it's not great for a brand to be something that is sold only when the real stuff is not available. 2) I'm not sure if that will fix the customer experience unless we're talking decade or so, so there must be something else. What is it? 3) money is the answer, but not just money from selling pre-owned certified watches or other brands like Omega or IWC or whatever. Where are the real BIG money? Where's that sweet creamy margin hiding? Correct, in high horology watches. Imagine a high end complicated perpetual calendar platinum Rolex? What could be the price? 100k? 200k? Even 2% margin on it could be 4k, times more than the slice you earn selling simple Oyster Perpetual, in absolute numbers of course, but you get it. Now throw in any sort of formal or informal customer loyalty program so that a few can buy it at certain condition and boom - certified pre-owned price tag is 500k. And if sold - every buck is going back to Rolex. Grey market? Mostly eliminated as you can return the watch back after 3 years and get another "piece-unique". Now optimise the Supply Chain network and squeeze a buck or a few from logistics, ensure supply chain management is mentally healthy and sober and control your cash flow distribution - you're set. The final ladder is completed - Tudor for some as a test environment of peoples estimations, likes and dislikes, Rolex sports as a regular daily watch still in high demand for certain pieces like Daytonas etc to keep the flow and pants on, and a more margin-friendly whole new segment that will explode with brands recognition, high end high horology bespoke/taylor-made/piece-unique/not-for-everyone crazy pieces with crazy complications rivalling Pateks/Vacherons etc. We all wondered "Why Cellini is still here? Why not killing it?" Well here is the possible answer why! Throw in a new factory or “maison” and voi-la! Of course that might be the most stupid explanation of what's next, but hey... why not to dream a bit P.S. to be honest I would be in a cue to get a highly finished Cellini with a display case back and all these kinds of perlage’s and anglage’s. It’s not a bad watch, with history and heritage, just not the one we’re used to see from a sports oriented brand, think it get changed and we suddenly rush for it as it was many times earlier🤷🏻♂️
My experience with rolex was different. Lovely sales person, stayed in touch over a few years, came to see him a few times. Then asked about a green 36mm OP, and got the call 6 months later... no purchase history sometimes they do try their best to help (p.s. i decided i didn't want the OP, but that's not the point)
They’ll do exactly the same as the crooked other AD’s and sell to who they deem “worthy” I stuck my fingers up to Rolex several years ago and I’d love to see other watch brands do the same to Bucherer. Omega, IWC, Grand Seiko etc, take your stock and redistribute to other retail outlets
Went into WoS, gave my details to register my interest in a black 36mm Oyster Perpetual, popped in 5 months later & it turned out they hadn’t put me on the waitlist - 5 months wasted… Assistant (a different one) apologised & then made sure I was on the list: had a follow up confirmation via email & popped in a number of times since. That was over a year and a half ago. I’ve bought Tudor & Cartier from WoS too, it’s a joke.
Doubt this is true Adrian. My local (former AD) was selling Rolex watches since 1960 and in my experience was very good at it. The issue came when there were not any watches to sell which soured the customer experience. Rolex then removed their AD status (at the end of 2022) which in the end was a blessed relief.
Any thoughts on if other brands move away from Bucherer and then move those or even more to WOS? I'd like to think WOS would then come back bigger than ever
I was an AD for some other brands (now retired) and always posed the question to my reps about gray market dealers such as Joma shop and the like and they never gave a straight answer as to controling the supply but always got a kick out of the smug purchaser that tried on a watch at my store then showed it off to me as how they got such a great deal until they broke it only to find out the manufacturer wouldn't repair it because of non authorised dealer purchace it was especially more satisfying when it had a manufacture movement and they were shit out of luck. As far a Rolex not sure what will happen to the brands they sell at Bucherer are going to respond hopefully they will drop them as AD's and stick it to the Crown, I've never been a fan as there are more interesting offerings but if they float your boat fine
Hi @Adrain, there are plenty of coverage online and on youtube on Rolex's take-over of all of Bucherer 100+ stores. What I am curious to know what are your expert take on what this might mean to the Carl F. Bucherer brand (of watches). Do you think they will still remain independent with Rolex take-over? will they see movement from the Rolex-Tudor fam, ie Kenissi ? Just wondered why no one talks about this. And where Carl F. Bucherer might be headed after this BIG news. They have some really nice timepieces, with the Heritage Tourbillion Double Peripheral being one of my favourites..
Adrian, there are many ways that Rolex can play this acquisition of Bucherer. The competition can remove their products out of Bucherer due to sharing competitive information with Rolex. Rolex built its AD network over decades, and I cant imagine tearing it down to have mono boutiques. The ADs could feel threatened and remove Rolex, but the ADs would be shooting themselves. All in all, we will have to wait and see what Rolex is planning in the next 13 months and longer.
Hi Adrian I thought since all of your videos are about luxury watches, how about reviewing two watches like the Casio G-Shock GA-2100 and the Casio G-Shock GA-B2100, like spice things up a little bit, hope you like the idea, plus both watches are really affordable, good looking, you can really push your watch creative style to the maximum by adjusting straps, bezels, even paint the watch face marks on the GA-2100, like with Casio G-Shock they really properly let the watch enthusiasts do their thing etc, even those both G-Shocks ain't luxury or no where close to it, I feel it would be two great watches to review on your channel.
Excellent video Adrian. Also lets not forget the CPO side. CPO seem to be offering a higher rate to buy back a rolex. So not just they are making money from selling rival products, they would also be taking business away from the grey market and setting the baseline price for pre owned. Why would I sell my hulk to a grey dealer when rolex are offering me more and a potential to start of a long term relationship…
Prices are not going down. Bought a 2020 S/S no date last week 2k above current retail. Ive been fogged off by AD from Bahrain to Gibralter. Did the slog around West end. AD ignored me so bought from a great dealer in Mayfair. If you want a watch you buy it.
I know value is important but what about percentage of units (watches sold). Would Rolex still have this predominance? I do not think so. I really would like to see which companies are the major seller per quantity of units. I think the market share would be very different.
I am more curious about how the other brands will respond. I am sure the WoS stock price will recover but I can see the larger rival brands treating Bucherer as Rolex will treat other retailers - they can't pull out of the chain which will pull customers in for the Rolex name but then not offer the actual watch, but I can see limits on what is stocked, only AT and SM300 from Omega, no GS exclusives, etc.
@@philipp5389 I dont think they can afford to, or it would be smart. Given the reputation of Rolex, they stores will be full of people wanting a luxury watch, pulled in by the Rolex name, but with no Rolex to buy and their pockets full of cash. But I also think they wont want to actively support Bucherer, and so wont put their headline timepieces available there. They might be smart about it - alternatives to Submariners can be stocked there, but rivals to Datejusts are not.....
Nice video. For me the interesting question is what will the other brands who sell via bucherer do next?. Will they stay and accept that a sale makes Rolex richer, or do they withdraw their watches and speed up their own AD network.
Is the elephant in the room that isn't mentioned in the video? Bucherer were the main route for the pre-owned certified programme. So that means Rolex can sell used watches, totally inhouse via this programme. I get what Adrian is saying regarding Omega, it seems like Rolex is the only brand without a boutique and owning Bucherer means they would get the AD's cut from sales. So you have Tudor/Rolex and Certified Preowned and have it as basically boutiques in all but name. It basically means they are a used/grey market Rolex supplier, with the added bonus of people paying the extra for the rolex cert, plus getting 100% of retail from new Rolex sales. I don't think they give two hoots about flogging Omega to be honest. They can feed the boutiques product at a higher rate too.
With the Rolex watches on the grey market - were they purchased in the UK or are they purchased abroad? If they are from dealers abroad will they have had UK duty and taxes paid on them? I ask as we all know that insurance companies will get out of paying anything if they can and if they were to find out that a watch that was imported did not have the due taxes paid they would worm out of paying. Another concern would be if the original purchases claimed the watch was stolen after selling it and you only find out ten years down the line after sending it to Rolex for a service. What provenance other than the box and tags does the seller provide? Would the original sales receipt form part of the provenance or would that be some breach of current data protection laws? I really want to get a Rolex but there are so many hurdles……
Precious metal references as well as some two tones are already bellow MSRP on the grey market. This time next year we will be able to buy almost anything on the grey market at retail while the AD will still try to play games ..
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
The fact there is supply grey market means rolex makes enough watches. The problem isn't supply, the problem is where the supply ends up. The issue is 100% with the ADs
Exactly. And Rolex could kill that off easily - buy up some near new watches from greys, trace them back to the AD (non-Bucherer of course) and either pull their license or severely limit their allocation. Make sure the word got out to the watch press. You’d immediately see more Ave Joe watch geeks getting the call.
Yes but Rolex don’t want to do this. They could EASILY stop it but it keeps their watches in demand
@@MS-sy8ls it's a balancing act, need to knock the teeth out of a few ad's to drive the price down to a much smaller markup over MSRP... Low enough that normal buyers won't be tempted into being flippers. Then Rolex can maintain control of the experience and all but theost robust greys will disappear.
Yeah 800k - 1M Rolex produced watch year is plenty to supply the world of people willing to spend 5-10k a watch.
if they actually traced it, there would be a lot of registered rolex watches that are not being worn but further being flipped..
I’ve been on a waiting list for a Rolex for well over a year now, and now don’t know if I’ll bother even if they ever have one available. I already went and got a Breitling, was treated like a king and even given a free VIP night out at a Rugby match. I’ve went off Rolex , and they are no longer what I thought they were.
I second that. Guys at Breitling boutique in London know how to treat customers
Go to sell that turd and lose 30%, enjoy your Rugby match!
Breitling is amazing! Same here, im so over rlx i wouldn't wear that pos if i get it for free….
@@cleverusernamecl5532 at this very moment, the Dutch watch forum is brimming with sales adverts for Rolex watches that don't seem to be moving anywhere, if I look at the lead times and price drops. Careful how, supply and demand can go up in smoke in a heartbeat if the market loses faith or interest in a brand.
@@cleverusernamecl5532 I guess you are another new money no class Rolex simp
Amazing video mate! Glad to see you back!!
Thanks brother. Hope you're well mate.
This is lovely.
Scissor sisters
Damn, homie didn't even pin you Nico.
Lets hope Rolex and Bucherer open more stores globally and get rid of these backdoor dealing AD's.
Fingers crossed. Nothing more frustrating than watching Rolex AD staff carrying a load of watches out the door to sell on the gray market.
Rolex lives from artificial scarcity. That's their marketing schtick. Increasing availability will devalue the brand.
@@SkywalkerPaulhowever, they can now sell over the internet (Bucherer are also an online trader) direct to end users, meaning they can keep the waiting list, stop AD’s forcing customers from buy rival products to creat “a relationship” and stopping the grey market dealers buying up all new stock to sell at profit (2% of all Rolex watches produced this year are already on Chrono24 for sale above MSRP).
It’s the online sales where Rolex will clean up as the wait list will be more like the Premium/Luxury Car Market, first come, first serve but also long wait lists for exclusivity purposes
So Rolex need to open more than 1.500 Bucherer store😂. Because globally there are 1.816 AD vs 56 bucherer boutiques! How could this happen? Maybe it will, in 20 years maybe….
I don’t think need to open any stores, they literally just bought about 100 physical locations lmao
The way they treat their customers so gratifying to see Watches of Switzerland getting their comeuppance
I think that until I can walk into a shop and buy a Rolex at retail... without dealing with the current BS... I don't care what they do.
I think it’s worth mentioning as well, this is just as beneficial to Tudor. You come in for a Rolex, and they can point you at a Tudor and an Omega, and make the Tudor look like good value.
Tudor doesn't look like good value next to Omega. But Longines does.
Tudor is absolute rubbish. They belong next to guess and MK watches. Not worth owning.
Bit harsh, don't you think?
Apple did this some 20 years ago for exactly the same reason. They had no control of what product multi brand retailers were pushing and no control of the expertise at the point of sale which led to the creation of the Apple Store.
They bought a watch retailer?
With one major difference. Supply always met demand. I didn’t have to wait 3 years to purchase my iMac or have to go to “Kev’s Komputers” to buy one for 50pct more.
I think he's confused as to what Rolex actually did. I never heard of Apple buying a retailer lol @@roycedot
If you don't understand MrOliver's point you need to head back to school@@roycedot
Similar to Tesla’s retail model as well. No car dealerships. 100% control and a bigger markup.
I’d love to save up and buy a Rolex but can’t bear the thought of my hard earned savings being an inconvenience for them…
That's why you go grey. They offer better service and you're guaranteed the watch that you want. And you don't have to be put on the AD's stupid waiting list.
100% agree. My money can soo walk elsewhere.
I think you mean ADs. This isn't a Rolex corporate problem.
@@cpcxgsr I got a brand new Submariner about a month ago from a low level gray dealer, with 0 tax involved. Great transaction, and he paid me well for a JLC in a trade. All in, I was about 3K over MSRP without having to get on a list or buy things I didn't want.
@@cpcxgsr you can't buy from an AD BECAUSE of the grays. They are the problem, not the solution.
Just a thought, but if Rolex is keeping that 40-50% markup as profit in their retail store, wouldn't it be prudent for brands like Omega, Breitling, and other to open more boutique stores in smaller markets? The other thing is that if Omega is 7 or 8% of total watch sales, what does that mean for Swatch group? Wouldn't it be better to compare Rolex to Swatch Group vs. just to Omega.
Rolex has more market share than Swatch or Richemont group in terms of dollar value in sales not number of watches sold.
@@donaldneo4317 Wow! That is insane.
They already have their own boutiques but they don’t have the demand like Rolex does. Rolex has a dominating market demand.
These other brands you name trade below retail which heavily hurts their boutiques and keeping those doors open, which is why they have to save costs and go through multi brand retailers like Bucherer, watches of Switzerland, etc
Rolex does not have this problem. Their boutiques sell at full retail with full demand. They have zero need for multi brand retailers besides additional revenue.
@Yorkiepoocharlie Yes, that is a bit of an assumption. But keep in mind, brands like Omega can only go up. Whereas Rolex can only go down. Don’t mean to turn this into a Rolex vs. Omega debate. Goodness knows there enough of that. It will be interesting to see how things play out.
@@GooglyEyes73 As mentioned above, Omega does have boutiques but I would buy from my AD with better discount rather than boutiques with less or none at all. So unless they withdraw from ADs and spent massive money to open a lot of boutiques and face the problems and risk of operating retail stores. Not to mention as part of Swatch Group and the highest earning brands within, how will the ADs react to this? Getting other brands but not Omega.
If Bucherer own their stores, that means Rolex now owns those as well and could transform them into Rolex and Tudor boutiques without the need to sell other brands. They would be basically buying properties and rebranding them without having to invest on opening new Rolex boutiques around the world.
Bucherer sells and makes a lot of money on other (non Rolex, Tudor) brands as well. It would not be smart to give up the revenue and margin associated with that. If Rolex is smart, they will stick to manufacturing and let Bucherer continue their wildly successful run based on many years of retail experience.
@@tangopaparomeo338 you make a valid point. But I'm still wondering what is Rolex's end game.
What's would be the point of opening more boutique if you not gonna make and sell more?
@@darrenmarks1 with the purchase of Bucherer, Rolex can eventually turn them into whatever they want them to be - exclusively Rolex products, or a combination of Rolex and other brands with the majority of space devoted to their own products. They don’t need to sell other brands at Bucherer if they don’t want to, and this wouldn’t matter to other watch stores. The other watch stores would still happily carry Rolex products
If given the opportunity because Rolex watches sell wherever they can be obtained.
Valuable information in this, great video - thank you!
Thanks a lot mate. Really enjoy your videos!
It is a huge move as Rolex is now officially entering the B2C market instead of just B2B, after being a pure manufacturer for a century. It means that Rolex will have the full control client experience and behaviour, stock control and distribution, as well as brand exposure and retail network, unlocking huge opportunity for Rolex to reposition themselves. Having boutiques will help Rolex step up the game if they plan to become a top-tier brand, as AD will not just open a store for you as a showroom and only serve your VIPs. I wouldnt be surprised if Rolex purchases more brands like Breitling and Panerai to fill their mid-tier market share when Rolex enters the ultra-luxury market. Tbh Rolex wouldnt care whether ppl would buy a seamaster as an alternative or if they can make a tiny little profit from selling other brands in Buchcerer, as they know they will dominate the market for the next 20 years
Purchasing Breitling is a possibility as Tudor is already working with them by using their chronographs movement and Tudor supplying movement as well to Breitling. Panerai is unlikely though as they are already owned by the Richemont Group.
@@lettuce1305 Well, I mean Breitling is part of Swatch group anyways, so I don't think that really matters does it? In the end business is business, and if they can profit on other people's or companies' interest, they will do so, no matter which brand or company they're under.
@@gwb914Breitling part of Swatch Group??? Hahahaha oh boy that's a new one
@@gwb914 no Breitling isn't, it's owned by a PE fund which is far more likely to sell as that may be their exit startegy anyway than say the Richemont group.
@@rodrigoh.1645 haha yeah that's the first I heard of it unless the Swatch group made a hidden acquisition. Anyways Bretiling is currently owned by a Private Equity firm and therefore far more likely to sell down the road.
I went to a rolex ad and they practically laughed in my face when i asked if they had an explorer one. I was so angry, i walked out and got an Omega Aqua Terra.
This - together with the new Rolex Factory(s) - is going to be a major blow to the secondary market. Not only watches of switzerland, smaller dealers / flippers as well. Good for collectors and "normal" buyers, bad for investors. I think I like the move.
“Major Blow” 😂
Rolex I believe will not over produce their watches just to make everyone happy. Luxury is about exclusivity not mass production
@@samuelburton5576so why are they building more factories? Sure - they won’t triple #s - but you don’t blow over a billion to make 5% more.
@@samuelburton5576 I agree with you. But I don't think Rolex will "under produce" to keep their scarcity low and their demand high. But I am sure they will scale back distribution to their ADs and keep their same business model, MAKE THE CONSUMER WAIT. Just to hype up the brand and to make their fanboys/girls think that owning a Rolex is a privilege and not a right. I am sure if you have some clout, you can walk into any AD and pick out the rare Rolex models that you would like. But in the real world, 90% of us are regular joes. We don't have that type of skin in the game.
I think it's about finding a little more middle ground. The factorys are being built, so they want to up their numbers obviously.
And I think that's fine. There is still a difference between "flooding the market" and "having to wait two years for a simple steel model."@@samuelburton5576
Hey! What was it that you said at 2:38 of the video about a waitlist? It sounded like you said "Niggering at the fact" or "sniggering at the fact"? Was that a mistake or did I mishear what you you were trying to say? Thanks!
I wonder will some of the other manufacturers, eg Omega, remove their concessions from Bucherer as a result of this? Or is Bucherer too valuable to them even if Rolex is making money on the back of an Omega sale?
why should they remove their concessions? It worked well the last decades being in a Bucherer Boutique next to other brands. So, If you have the money for a Rolex, you'll buy the Omega for your sons birthday...
@@mobilebeatsbecause the sales people will take customers to Tudor 1st?
I know a Bucherer store where they will not be able to sell Omega anymore as they (Omega) have opened their own boutique across the street
@@mobilebeatsbecause for the pass decade and any before that, Bucherer wasn’t OWNED by the competition. The OTHERS could pull there products and not do business, raise the cost of their goods and play the rolex game back on rolex… you know, make enough to sell enough to not have enough. In other words, the other watchmakers put Bucherer on a wait list while making sure their boutiques and ADs have the goods to sell.
WOSG shares have been tanking since early 2022, down from a high of €16.80 a share to €6.50 or so… the market isn’t believing their model as retailers! Richemont group also easing in the last 6 months.. as luxury brands feel some of the economic pressure.
I am all for improving customer experience when buying a Rolex or Tudor. I went to an AD last weekend and what a shitty experience…
“The lack of supply” then how exactly are the grey dealers , chrono24 and so on getting the supply? There’s plenty of Rolex , just selling to the flippers
That money making will only happen if the other brands don't pull out of Bucherer, of course.
I'd be nervous about providing my biggest competitor with sensitive release and pricing information before handing them a large chunk of margin.
Wouldn't surprise me if Bucherer turns into a monobrand store where you finally still can't buy a Rolex.
That’s what I see happening, the other brands pulling out or raising the cost of their product.
The other brands would be silly to pull out. People walk into Bucherer looking for Rolex and that gives the other brands an opportunity. Nobody is walking into a Ulysse Nardin or even IWC boutique anymore. It’s the salespeople that bring those other brands business. If anything the brands should be running to Bucherer to push their products while ppl wait on the rolex they want.
@@LLCoolNay630 the other brands would be bat shit stupid to stay… the other brands don’t and didn’t have the problems that the golden child rolex had and has with its ADs. The others have their own store fronts and ADs to sell their goods, and don’t forget their on line stores.
Ironic and funny, an organization that has a history of being founded on not to have ever made anything but market their name buys up a retailer to push its own goods. Very rolex.
The competing watchmakers would be smart to stop leasing retail space in Bucherer, pull and stop selling to Bucherer and open their own shops and boutique across the street, same block, next block, next to Bucherer. Just think if IWC, Jeager LeCoultre, Blancpain, Omega, Cartier, Vacheron Constantin, Patek Philippe, Montres Breguet and other watchmakers did that. What would rolex have to sell you in their Bucherer stores? Nothing. Nothing, they can’t seem to have the goods to sell you anything right now. All they would have is a name to market to you, Bucherer. Hey, something that they excell at.
The picture at 0:55 is exactly where I buy all my watches and also it‘s just a 10 minutes walk from where I live in Lucerne. One of the most beautiful cities in the world for sure.
I'm interested to see how the bigger brands involved react to the move from Rolex
Really missed your videos, great to have content from you again!
Thanks a lot mate 🙌🏻
I think it’s a epic move for Rolex but for many of us who maybe are venturing into buying their first Rolex they still have to to deal with arrogant AD’s and jumping through hoops. I guess we will just have to see how this plays out and hopefully things will become easier for potential buyers and not harder.
All I know is that when I stop by the Tourneau/Bucherer store to see where I am on the waitlist, they shrug and steer me straight to the certified pre-owned models...it's getting old.
two years old.
Out of interest, what do they say to: "I can buy new unworn grey for less than your used CPO"...
I've never phrased it like that, but I've made it clear I'm not paying anyone above retail. They usually walk back towards the Rolex display and pretend to check the list on their tablet.
I've bought two Rolexes, a Tudor, and an Omega from this AD, and they know I wear them or give them to my adult kids who wear them, but I'm still two years plus waiting on a specific sports model.
I've increased my spend at another AD, in just the last few months, and that salesman calls me to remind me she's on the lookout for my watch. My bet's on her. @@GM-ii8gs
It’s an interesting move really, especially keeping in mind Bucherer had recently gotten into pre-owned market. Which means now Rolex has control over new sales as well as pre-owned.
My AD has had a preowned Rolex case for a decade. Rolex already knows and controls that too.
There is a section of your video called "Why did Watches of Switzerland share prices drop" and yet you didn't answer the question. Very confusing.
Amazing how Rolex keep all their 'business' secret until they announce it. No hints, no leaks, just bang ! Its done! They must be some operators at the top end of this company. Respect.
They can keep there business a secret because rolex is a trust, there is no shareholder / stock or publicly traded funds. They don’t have to answer to any shareholders. No fiduciary responsibility to anyone, not even the customers they drain. Only to the on going operation of the trust itself.
Confidential agreements, no one wants to lose their job
Yes Adrian. Great to see you back! When did you get the root beer? I completely missed that. Looks awesome on your strap.
Thanks a lot mate. I think I got it about 18 months ago.
Just purchased certified Rolex watch from Bucherer. Probably the only AD in Germany selling real Rolex watches. The rest, especially internet stores sell fakes.
Great video Adrian… Nice to have you back! Cheers!!
Maybe The Swatch Group will stop selling their watches in Bucherer stores and focus on other AD:s. But nice to have you back Adrian 😃.
This is the best summary of the situation and its implications I have seen.
It seems to me that a huge downturn in the market both at retail and secondary, has forced the hand of Rolex. The long awaited birds having finally come home to roost and all luxury watch brands should be a little worried but especially Rolex who have, through their slippery AD's, got away with treating customers with disdain for far too long.
I think they'll be OK dude
Did you not listen to a thing Adrian said ffs?
Rolex have nothing to worry about lol.
Omega……. Not so much 😂
@@Hrom937 They certainly need to do better than "OK" with the investments that they're making.
Omega movement 9920 is the nail in the coffin. I am waiting for an Explorer II. If another 6 months pass without news, I am going Omega or IWC.
What huge downturn? Rolex, even with recession breaking out in many countries, is selling every sport watch they make - could raise the price of the Batman and Sub (and Daytonas) $2k, make 3 times as many, still sell them all. At MSRP. Greys - at least the under capitalized ones - are certainly starting to hurt. There will be some consolidation in the grey world- won’t affect Rolex one bit.
Welcome back, mate!!
Thanks mate.
While I do think this will make acquiring a Rolex at list prices easier, and reduce the problem of grey market flipping, Rolex will still limit production of its most coveted models. Rolex knows how to play the game of supply and demand better than most, and to think that it will suddenly become easy to acquire a panda Daytona is a ridiculous notion. This is the same game that Hermes plays with its Birkin bags, like it's so hard to make a leather bag in large quantities. Anyway, it's still a great move by Rolex, since people that like mechanical watches often like other brands as well as Rolex. Why not make some money on the side with other brands while your customers also buy or wait to buy the Rolex they want. I also think Rolex has become somewhat tired of all the bad mouthing about the brand on social media. Hopefully this move into retail will remedy some of the issues watch buyers have been dealing with lately.
Great video, really insightful. I think we can all speak to unpleasant experiences at AD's. Walked into Betteridge and the mere act of setting foot in the Rolex section prompted the associate to belt out, "These are for display only." Not even a "Let me know if I can help." Primarily for this reason, I'm fine with not owning a Rolex.
There iş no way to giving good customer experience without the watch 😂
Very true. I’m always treated well at the AD I visit, stop in every few months to talk watches, remind them I’m still interested. I have to wonder how many people crying about bad treatment are successful in their field, making very good money, and just used to being catered too and never heard ‘sorry, you’ll have to wait. And no guarantees or timelines.’
I really like the color of the Nato on rootbeer. Wonder which B&J Nato color you would recommend for the Guinness (GRNR)? [welcome back!!]
A smart business move by Rolex, but now I love Omega even more. My local boutique takes excellent care of me. I can get what I want, I'm getting a master chronometer at a competitive price, and I get royal treatment to boot.
Hope to see more videos from you soon! I really miss having new ones from you in my feed.
A couple of years ago I bought a Cameron Deep Sea from a friend (new, mint in box). After a week I realised what I was wearing wasn’t a watch it was statement about aspiration that said something so unpleasant about me I sold it back to him at a small loss. It’s a nasty brand selling average steel watches that will, one day, get a comeuppance.
Morality and luxury goods: uneasy bedfellows. Rolex is at the extreme end. Hermes handbags, same thing: massively overpriced. No watch, made from an assembly of springs and gears, is worth more than £1000. It's a scam, and we are willing victims, in moments of moral weakness. If I had the disposable funds, I'd buy the ALS Zeitwerk - not a Rolex - and donate an equal amount to charity.
There's another unpleasant aspect to Rolex: whenever I have been wearing Rolex in recent years there have been occasions (after dark and/or in certain places) where it has made me feel really UNSAFE. It's a truly horrible feeling to be walking back to your car, or taking a shortcut through the park, etc - and feel like you are constantly looking over your shoulder for muggers! You don't get this with a Patek or Lange strap watch (I speak from experience!) Vanishingly few people recognise one of those - and those who do are not the menacing category of person. But you can almost physically feel everyone and his dog noticing, say, a GMT BLNR. It's not a nice feeling.
In center of Stockholm Omega opened a Omega brand store. Made al the AD's put there Omega watches on sale. Almost nobody sales omega in the center area anymore. So, is it maybe a trend among established brands? Will we see a new bunch of luxury watch stores in all big citys all over the world? Hmm...
I missed you Adrian ❤
Missed you man! Also, next week will be crazy! If I get a hotel booked 🤣
is it fair to assume Swatch group et al will now stop supplying into Bucherer?
Rolex now will control even more who gets to buy a Rolex. Me being a Joe schmo, the possibility of ever owning a new Rolex...bucket list...is even more of a pipe dream. Rolex has the ability to price fix and completely control the retail market. They really don't need authorized dealers now. They can just open new retail stores and wipe out authorized dealers. Win for Rolex...not a win for buyers whose dream is just to own a Rolex. Feeling Ferrari vibes coming from this acquisition.
I hope so lmao , rolex is as big as it is because of the exclusivity. Not that I agree but it is a big reason behind the brand success today
@@ryhcky Ah yes, putting "biggest watch brand" & "exclusive" into the same idea is some proper mental gymnastics. Grey market prices very much suggest that there's some serious artificial scarcity going on, and only a few extremely desirable SKUs are actually exclusive and rare these days. A car analogy would be something like Mercedes trying to present itself as a Ferrari. Rolex just isn't that luxurious or exclusive compared to actual high horology brands, but they're sure trying to price themselves as equal to the high horology brands. The 1908 is comically bad value, for example.
@@viciokas1993 Again , never saying I agree but that again is why they are the “biggest” brand. Not because they sell the most watches but because of the demand for them. If they were sitting in every store available the name would not be as popular for most people that don’t know anything about watches. Rolex’s craftsmanship is top tier as well just because it doesn’t have anything crazy or have an insane price tag doesn’t make it a mercedes. Artificial scarcity was never the debate.
You should hope Rolex does ‘price fix’ - I sure do! If Rolex raised the price of every popular sport model $2k tonight (and maybe 4 for Daytonas) it would destroy the grey market. But there are still more than enough true watch lovers to buy them all up. I’d pay Rolex $2k more - won’t give the greys a dime. I doubt I’m alone.
What does this mean for the uk market?
The whole game of waiting to purchase a simple Tudor turned me right off getting into watches. I’ve had my name on 4-5 waiting lists for months now. The whole marketing strategy is frustrating for someone new to this watch world. I’m sure I’m not the only one who says screw it.
Spend my $ on something else.
Just an AD shout out to Goldsmiths in Nottingham my brother got 2 sports models in a year at the height of the hype market, he isn’t a millionaire footballer but had just fought off cancer for the Second time, so some ADs do have a heart and its not all just about the money. Cheers
I believe they will withdraw Rolex from WOS, MP & Goldsmiths and offer to buy certain boutiques from them to soften the blow. This will be mirrored in other countries and Europe. One thing for sure - Rolex know exactly what they are up to - and nobody can second guess them !
As I understand it Bucherer doesn't have a presence in the uk so what difference will it make here?
Let's get back to 2000 where you can walk in unannounced and buy a Submariner, like I did. Rolex stopped production during Covid, prices went through the roof. Now Rolex is finishing up on there new expanded production facility. And China is not buying as much as before. Thus lets hope demand and supply can be like the decades and decades before the wait list for a Sub.
Yes I remember walking into Bond Street 1997. Trying on different Rolex then walked out with a gmt master £1900. Brand new. Travel the world with me. Unfortunately due to work and costs in 2008 had to sell to. Stay in my house. But it helped me out but I wish it would go back to what it was then give the ordinary working man and woman a chance to. Buy at a reasonable price
We didn't touch on the other brands attitude towards the acquisition. Ie - how Omega will react to this and whether they continue to stock Bucherer.
I was in Zurich and Lucerne a few months back and the Bucherer stores were horribly overpriced. Literally €1000’s EUR markup on the actual store next door. IMO avoid Burcherer.
Tbf my explorer 1 is the last Rolex I ever need also. So I’m probably done with Rolex unless a decent vintage GMT or explorer 2 comes up at a reasonable price.
Agree with this video the buying experience is not good. the hype around Rolex is overrated even as someone who has owned several.
Good video Adrian!🎉
Just remember the world of watches is totally daft and irrational!
I was in Zurich at the beginning of the year as well, and can't say I've noticed the same. The prices at the Bucherer store there were on par with retail pricing. Same with their London stores, as I live here and have bought few watches from them. They are definitely not a brand/retailer to do sales or discounts, as I have never seen them have one, so if something was discounted in other stores, I can see where the discrepancy in pricing might come from. But I have never seen a new watch above its retail price there. Pre-owned Rolexes is different story...
I've had nothing but pleasurable experiences at Bucherer in KOP Pa. The staff is helpful and very attentive.
Welcome back...I thought you gave up on the channel.
If I'm running Swatch Group, I'm looking hard at exiting Bucherer and doubling down on Watches Of Switzerland as a preferred distribution partner and potential investment opportunity.
Will anything change for retail prices and availability?
Very nice to see a video again Adrian. 😊
On topic, I think this is very smart from Rolex. Now they have full control, have full return and can give a far better buyer experience.
What will omega etc do about this?
I believe this has very little to do with improving their self customer experience (the frustration they provoque with way they manage their stocks availability says it all), and everything to do with gaining more power over their competition. Will they entirely decide what is advertised, seen and sold of other brands in these stores? I mean, will Rolex have full control of what happens inside these stores or will there be agreements in place with other brands?
It would be good to hear other top swiss brands thoughts on this, we are all missing that part.
If you think the other brands won't pull their franchises from them, you are crazy.
Where have you been Adrian??
Finally back huh?
Keep posting mate, we love this channel. My personal favorite to watch with a cup of joe.
Thanks so much mate 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻
Adrian don’t leave us hanging so long man we missed you! Lol
Any plans for Bark & Jack to start shipping internationally?
Interesting speculation for me is what they do with Bucherer watch brand. Its an opportunity to keep moving up market while positioning Bucherer as the JLC, Panerai, Omega competitor. They could also use it to experiment with movements the way Montblanc does with Minerva movements.
Havent even thought of that. Is the watchbrand a seperate entity or was it included in the purchase? Id love to see some freaky Tudor models with a Bucherer peripheral movement!!
@Kyle97x having recently handled a few JLC's for the first time, I can confirm that they are amazing watches closer in quality to Patek and Vacheron than they are to Rolex and Omega. Marketing makes such a difference, and no one has done that as effectively as Rolex.
Rolex have acquired only the retail business, not the watch company. Carl F. Bucherer, the watch company remains part of Bucherer AG and have nothing to do with Rolex or this deal.
Remember when watches weren't a commodity... good times
It’s been an absolute horrid experience trying to buy from Rolex ADs.
The worst is I can buy a self described “new” 2023 version from a Greymarket dealer, which is walking distance from the AD.
So I am still on the “waiting list”, for the same watch. Yet, I can’t give an alternate for (so definitely no multiple options). They would not even sell me a Tudor.
So I am honestly happy about this move, I hope Rolex runs them out of town.
Won’t even sell you a Tudor? Which one? There are short waits for the new and most popular ones but to refuse makes me think you were a little too arrogant. I had 0 history: got the BB Pro 3 months after it was announced, P39 in 5, BB GMT Opaline in 3.
That is what I hate. I am on the wait list and was told by the AD that it might be 3 years before I can get it. I see the same item on sale as used on multiple sites. But its $8,000 more. Yeah, absolute BS.
Don't even get me started on the scumbag AD (I'm naming names: CD Peacock of Oak Brook) that discriminates. They wouldn't even take any of my info. They claim not to have a wait list but when I asked how I would be able to purchase a Rolex, they said I would have to wait in line behind other people. How? They refused to explain how that worked. As I walked out, some guys (that better fit the country club look) walked in talking about the notification they received about a shipment of the Rolex model I had just asked about.
I've been a long-time follower of your channel Adrian. I just noticed that there's something you could do to fix the subtitles for your videos. At times the subtitles show up with a lot of text flashed for a fraction of a second without adhering to the timeline. I have had this issue on my channel and was very stressful for me to write the subtitles. However these days I use an Opensource tool called Whisper AI - which is available for free to download. Once the video is ready to be uploaded to youtube, I drag and drop the video in WhisperAI tool and it generates subtitles in seconds. Then I do minor edits to the text and export the srt file. Hope you could use it on your future videos. Keep up the good work. Greetings from Zurich, Switzerland 🇨🇭❤
Let’s not forget it has to pass anti competition regulators, which may not be as simple as it may appear. Although Bucherer will be run completely separately to Rolex the same as Tudor is, the “other brands” may have something to say about Rolex Ultimately having a profitable interest in their sales.
Those guys are already wearing their new Daytonas! 🤣
No way Rolex announces this w/o knowing it would get approved.
There is zero reason this would be blocked.
surely if there was Zero reason it would not be passed to regulators@@-Jason-L ? Although Rolex may be "hands off" of the control of Bucherer it will still be responsible for selling competitors brands which must bring up some questions, Just my simple opinion.🤣
@@thatwatchguylondon I have little doubt many competing brands will likely pull their brand away from them. But then again, how many competitors do they actually have for sports watches in their price range?
Will be interesting to know what was the fair value or goodwill above valuation did they pay for Bucherer
Epic move by Rolex to buy turnkey business enabling them to showcase their brand. No downside for them. Looking forward to walking into Rolex/Bucherer and enjoying the buying experience.
How far is your nearest Bucherer shop and how far is the closest AD?
Turnkey, enable many big words!!
@@Cohen.the.Worriermost AD's ive visited didnt even have display models, so? Bring on bucherer.
No downside. Apart from the enormous overheads of running a business the size of Bucherer.
@@thedaveaftertomorrow Rolex is going to funnel more of their watches to Bucherer stores to get all those juicy margins and make up the overheads with volume. And bye bye to all the other brands that are direct competitors to either Rolex or Tudor, Omega is already out of the Bucherer website. More to follow for sure.
Adrian has the channel ''About Effing Time'' finished as it's been a while since I've seen any new ones? Hope you are well.
That root beer + NATO combination is too beautiful!!
Also, I love Bucherer - got almost all my new watches from them. The staff are very friendly and knowledgeable, and often recommend and pull out watches across brands for me to try/compare. I hope they will keep it this way even with Rolex as owner.
Are you serious? The modifications made to that watch are just plain hideous. They completely messed up the innate beauty it had. You know how Rolex watches are all about those legendary bracelets, right? It's like getting a Ferrari and slapping on some bargain bin lids and a spoiler that's big enough for a whole neighborhood. It's just not the way things are done. And the same goes for brands like AP or Cartier. EOT.
@@juliyav7656 what can I say, I am a huge NATO strap guy 🤷♂️ and the color combination is just pure on point.
@@juliyav7656
Aaaaahhh
The watch snob....
Not sure that that Omega, Grand Seiko and the other brands will continue to supply their stock to a competitors owned store (Bukherer) under that operating model. They will most likely look for new independant AD's or perhaps other avenues. Sure it will improve the AD exeperience and may limit the supply to other Rolex AD's.
I think it's bigger than that for a few reasons:
1) For sure some brands might exclude Bucherer from their distribution network because well - it's not great for a brand to be something that is sold only when the real stuff is not available.
2) I'm not sure if that will fix the customer experience unless we're talking decade or so, so there must be something else. What is it?
3) money is the answer, but not just money from selling pre-owned certified watches or other brands like Omega or IWC or whatever. Where are the real BIG money? Where's that sweet creamy margin hiding? Correct, in high horology watches.
Imagine a high end complicated perpetual calendar platinum Rolex? What could be the price? 100k? 200k? Even 2% margin on it could be 4k, times more than the slice you earn selling simple Oyster Perpetual, in absolute numbers of course, but you get it. Now throw in any sort of formal or informal customer loyalty program so that a few can buy it at certain condition and boom - certified pre-owned price tag is 500k. And if sold - every buck is going back to Rolex.
Grey market? Mostly eliminated as you can return the watch back after 3 years and get another "piece-unique".
Now optimise the Supply Chain network and squeeze a buck or a few from logistics, ensure supply chain management is mentally healthy and sober and control your cash flow distribution - you're set.
The final ladder is completed - Tudor for some as a test environment of peoples estimations, likes and dislikes, Rolex sports as a regular daily watch still in high demand for certain pieces like Daytonas etc to keep the flow and pants on, and a more margin-friendly whole new segment that will explode with brands recognition, high end high horology bespoke/taylor-made/piece-unique/not-for-everyone crazy pieces with crazy complications rivalling Pateks/Vacherons etc.
We all wondered "Why Cellini is still here? Why not killing it?"
Well here is the possible answer why!
Throw in a new factory or “maison” and voi-la!
Of course that might be the most stupid explanation of what's next, but hey... why not to dream a bit
P.S. to be honest I would be in a cue to get a highly finished Cellini with a display case back and all these kinds of perlage’s and anglage’s. It’s not a bad watch, with history and heritage, just not the one we’re used to see from a sports oriented brand, think it get changed and we suddenly rush for it as it was many times earlier🤷🏻♂️
My experience with rolex was different. Lovely sales person, stayed in touch over a few years, came to see him a few times. Then asked about a green 36mm OP, and got the call 6 months later... no purchase history
sometimes they do try their best to help (p.s. i decided i didn't want the OP, but that's not the point)
They’ll do exactly the same as the crooked other AD’s and sell to who they deem “worthy”
I stuck my fingers up to Rolex several years ago and I’d love to see other watch brands do the same to Bucherer.
Omega, IWC, Grand Seiko etc, take your stock and redistribute to other retail outlets
Realistic comment.
Went into WoS, gave my details to register my interest in a black 36mm Oyster Perpetual, popped in 5 months later & it turned out they hadn’t put me on the waitlist - 5 months wasted… Assistant (a different one) apologised & then made sure I was on the list: had a follow up confirmation via email & popped in a number of times since. That was over a year and a half ago. I’ve bought Tudor & Cartier from WoS too, it’s a joke.
Thank you for the episode. I wonder how this acquisition will effect ad's besides bucerer and the grey market for consumers.
Doubt this is true Adrian. My local (former AD) was selling Rolex watches since 1960 and in my experience was very good at it. The issue came when there were not any watches to sell which soured the customer experience. Rolex then removed their AD status (at the end of 2022) which in the end was a blessed relief.
Loved the clear explanation of the impact. Appreciate you and your content as always, Adrian!
Expansion of Assets supplies is great, it is an added expertise in the field of science as well as in valuation of wealth/investment(s) supplies.
I don't have any great expectations about that move. I bet that it will just increase the number of watches that
Any thoughts on if other brands move away from Bucherer and then move those or even more to WOS? I'd like to think WOS would then come back bigger than ever
Oh wow, that GMT on a NATO looks nice. I wasn't sure if the newer maxi case models would be too wide for a NATO over the slimmer 5 digit models.
I was an AD for some other brands (now retired) and always posed the question to my reps about gray market dealers such as Joma shop and the like and they never gave a straight answer as to controling the supply but always got a kick out of the smug purchaser that tried on a watch at my store then showed it off to me as how they got such a great deal until they broke it only to find out the manufacturer wouldn't repair it because of non authorised dealer purchace it was especially more satisfying when it had a manufacture movement and they were shit out of luck. As far a Rolex not sure what will happen to the brands they sell at Bucherer are going to respond hopefully they will drop them as AD's and stick it to the Crown, I've never been a fan as there are more interesting offerings but if they float your boat fine
Tried to buy a Rolex Air King from WOS but they kept me holding on the list so WOS can do one. Got a Omega Speedmaster instead.
Hi @Adrain, there are plenty of coverage online and on youtube on Rolex's take-over of all of Bucherer 100+ stores.
What I am curious to know what are your expert take on what this might mean to the Carl F. Bucherer brand (of watches).
Do you think they will still remain independent with Rolex take-over? will they see movement from the Rolex-Tudor fam, ie Kenissi ?
Just wondered why no one talks about this. And where Carl F. Bucherer might be headed after this BIG news. They have some really nice timepieces, with the Heritage Tourbillion Double Peripheral being one of my favourites..
Adrian, there are many ways that Rolex can play this acquisition of Bucherer. The competition can remove their products out of Bucherer due to sharing competitive information with Rolex. Rolex built its AD network over decades, and I cant imagine tearing it down to have mono boutiques. The ADs could feel threatened and remove Rolex, but the ADs would be shooting themselves. All in all, we will have to wait and see what Rolex is planning in the next 13 months and longer.
Hi Adrian I thought since all of your videos are about luxury watches, how about reviewing two watches like the Casio G-Shock GA-2100 and the Casio G-Shock GA-B2100, like spice things up a little bit, hope you like the idea, plus both watches are really affordable, good looking, you can really push your watch creative style to the maximum by adjusting straps, bezels, even paint the watch face marks on the GA-2100, like with Casio G-Shock they really properly let the watch enthusiasts do their thing etc, even those both G-Shocks ain't luxury or no where close to it, I feel it would be two great watches to review on your channel.
Excellent video Adrian. Also lets not forget the CPO side. CPO seem to be offering a higher rate to buy back a rolex. So not just they are making money from selling rival products, they would also be taking business away from the grey market and setting the baseline price for pre owned. Why would I sell my hulk to a grey dealer when rolex are offering me more and a potential to start of a long term relationship…
Prices are not going down. Bought a 2020 S/S no date last week 2k above current retail. Ive been fogged off by AD from Bahrain to Gibralter. Did the slog around West end. AD ignored me so bought from a great dealer in Mayfair. If you want a watch you buy it.
I know value is important but what about percentage of units (watches sold). Would Rolex still have this predominance? I do not think so. I really would like to see which companies are the major seller per quantity of units. I think the market share would be very different.
Well that's cheered me up W of S share price falling, thanks for that!
I am more curious about how the other brands will respond. I am sure the WoS stock price will recover but I can see the larger rival brands treating Bucherer as Rolex will treat other retailers - they can't pull out of the chain which will pull customers in for the Rolex name but then not offer the actual watch, but I can see limits on what is stocked, only AT and SM300 from Omega, no GS exclusives, etc.
That was my initial thought... What if the other brands end the collaboration with Bucherer?
@@philipp5389 I dont think they can afford to, or it would be smart. Given the reputation of Rolex, they stores will be full of people wanting a luxury watch, pulled in by the Rolex name, but with no Rolex to buy and their pockets full of cash. But I also think they wont want to actively support Bucherer, and so wont put their headline timepieces available there. They might be smart about it - alternatives to Submariners can be stocked there, but rivals to Datejusts are not.....
Your GMT rose gold looks amazing on that Bark & Jack strap! I dont typically wear gold but that, I can wear!
Nice video. For me the interesting question is what will the other brands who sell via bucherer do next?. Will they stay and accept that a sale makes Rolex richer, or do they withdraw their watches and speed up their own AD network.
Is the elephant in the room that isn't mentioned in the video? Bucherer were the main route for the pre-owned certified programme. So that means Rolex can sell used watches, totally inhouse via this programme. I get what Adrian is saying regarding Omega, it seems like Rolex is the only brand without a boutique and owning Bucherer means they would get the AD's cut from sales. So you have Tudor/Rolex and Certified Preowned and have it as basically boutiques in all but name.
It basically means they are a used/grey market Rolex supplier, with the added bonus of people paying the extra for the rolex cert, plus getting 100% of retail from new Rolex sales. I don't think they give two hoots about flogging Omega to be honest. They can feed the boutiques product at a higher rate too.
With the Rolex watches on the grey market - were they purchased in the UK or are they purchased abroad? If they are from dealers abroad will they have had UK duty and taxes paid on them?
I ask as we all know that insurance companies will get out of paying anything if they can and if they were to find out that a watch that was imported did not have the due taxes paid they would worm out of paying.
Another concern would be if the original purchases claimed the watch was stolen after selling it and you only find out ten years down the line after sending it to Rolex for a service. What provenance other than the box and tags does the seller provide? Would the original sales receipt form part of the provenance or would that be some breach of current data protection laws?
I really want to get a Rolex but there are so many hurdles……
Precious metal references as well as some two tones are already bellow MSRP on the grey market. This time next year we will be able to buy almost anything on the grey market at retail while the AD will still try to play games ..