AD change of practice - no more wait lists

[foxy1moo]

Stopped by local AD, I have a modest buying history, not enough to get any Rolex models, and was told that due to demand and so many people asking, they are stopping with lists all together. Apparently everything now goes in the window and it’s first come.

I asked if they had done this yet with any of the very popular models, apparently a new BLNR went in the window a week or two back.

Not entirely sure if I believe this is the case for all - perhaps more like VIPs can get scares models, everyone else this is what they say. And perhaps every now and then one makes it in the window.

Anyone else been told the same thing? Or anyone think this is likely, or just a polite way to say no chance?

[jrs146]

Man I donno. I’m not buying it. Maybe a sub or an explorer ii might hit the case. But the big dogs. They will be kept for the people who the AD wants to give them to.

[burnthesehills]

AD’s can still order some Rolex watches and will do so with a deposit, but none of the SS Professional models as far as I am aware.

As for wait lists, I can’t imagine why any AD would want to deal with the hassle of this. Why bother filling out the paperwork and having impatient customers call you constantly for updates when you can literally sell the watch the same day it comes in?

Do any AD’s actually put the hot models in the display case for sale to the public? Or do they horde them for their top customers or to sell bundled with more expensive offerings? Some do, some don’t. That’s the best answer you will likely get.

[Etschell]

Lists are mainly fake.

[Calatrava r]

Originally Posted by Etschell

Lists are mainly fake.

Not when they tell you, you are next and it will be in in the next few whatever with a firm allocation. When they tell you yes your on the list but who knows, that list is probably fake.

[Speedfreek28]

Originally Posted by Etschell

Lists are mainly fake.

I can say this is partially true. I was put on a “list” for a sub expecting to wait months but after a few weeks my AD called and said that they moved me to the top of the “list” all of a sudden. Definitely not complaining but from my experience the list is there it’s just how the list is followed is what’s up for interpretation.

[Calatrava r]

I am told by one AD who does this that this is what Rolex prefers. I got my Pepsi there just sitting in the case. Came in that day.

[schoolboy]

Originally Posted by Calatrava r

I am told by one AD who does this that this is what Rolex prefers. I got my Pepsi there just sitting in the case. Came in that day.

Wow, I would be so excited to stumble upon a Pepsi like that.

Congrats

[ras47]

Was there ever really a waitlist? Sure, ADs have preferred customers - repeat buyers with whom they have a relationship. But an actual list? I'm not buying this. I think it was more of an informal system. How hard an AD worked to get you a model about which you inquired depended on the rep himself and how much work he puts into doing his job.

Supply/Demand has spoiled these dealers. Gone are the days of hustling for sales. Now they sit back, smug looks on their faces, and wait for the beggars.

[Nairn1980]

Originally Posted by ras47

Was there ever really a waitlist? Sure, ADs have preferred customers - repeat buyers with whom they have a relationship. But an actual list? I'm not buying this. I think it was more of an informal system. How hard an AD worked to get you a model about which you inquired depended on the rep himself and how much work he puts into doing his job.

Supply/Demand has spoiled these dealers. Gone are the days of hustling for sales. Now they sit back, smug looks on their faces, and wait for the beggars.

Spot on

[burnthesehills]

Originally Posted by ras47

Was there ever really a waitlist? Sure, ADs have preferred customers - repeat buyers with whom they have a relationship. But an actual list? I'm not buying this. I think it was more of an informal system. How hard an AD worked to get you a model about which you inquired depended on the rep himself and how much work he puts into doing his job.

Supply/Demand has spoiled these dealers. Gone are the days of hustling for sales. Now they sit back, smug looks on their faces, and wait for the beggars.

I doubt many AD’s consider themselves spoiled. Unable to get any of the hot models. Constantly getting phone calls from customers trying to order watches that the AD’s can’t get. Stuck with PM models they can’t move. Empty display cases and a frustrated customer base. Not exactly high times for the AD’s.

[drtii]

Originally Posted by burnthesehills

I doubt many AD’s consider themselves spoiled. Unable to get any of the hot models. Constantly getting phone calls from customers trying to order watches that the AD’s can’t get. Stuck with PM models they can’t move. Empty display cases and a frustrated customer base. Not exactly high times for the AD’s.

Spot on.

Consumers aren't looking at this from a revenue standpoint. If they were they'd know that AD's aren't laughing at you over the phone when you ask for a piece, or smugly ignoring you when you walk in.

They aren't Ferrari dealers. They're jewelry dealers in a supply and demand commodity business and right now the commodity people want isn't available.

You know what I hear when I call?

Despair.

They desperately want to sell you watches. They want to make you happy. Their hands are tied. They're forced to wait for allotments that may never come, and if they do, they have to reward top customers.

It's not a game to them. They have rules and they're stuck. They don't know what's coming or when. They might know what they have when they have it, but it sure isn't going to make everyone happy.

And in the end, they just want to sell watches. By all means these would be record-breaking sales years for AD's. Instead they get to say "Sorry" to every customer that walks in.

After they're done apologizing for the 50th time that day (no joke, really) the end result is they lost 50 customers and all of the future LTV that comes with them.

This isn't what they want. AD's are not the problem. Rolex supply chain is.

Fix that and everyone wins, for now.

[Luke@TRF]

I suspect they put the batman in the window and when a random guy comes in to buy it, he will be told it’s not for sale but just for display. Too good to be true the story sounds

[joshua182]

Actually, it really goes down to how badly you want something. A couple years ago when i first started collecting watches as a sorta kinda investment/hobby, i spent half the first year looking and not finding even a basic submariner..

Well persistence paid off and I found my first steel sports rolex in an AD that was shipped to it the very moment i walked in. Remember it clear as day, a shiny black gmt... then u know one thing led to another, they allocated me a few better pieces.. i always made it a point to wear the watches to the ADs, talk about some of the issues i sometimes faced, about how great some of them worked out, being conversation pieces and such in my line of work.. i was really into it so obviously being authentic helps plus they know for a fact youre not flipping them. pretty quickly i started getting really good pieces that id never imagine id be able to obtain. Some of the Rolex ADs in HK where i live and work also do Patek and once again i start getting calls that offer, what were to me, extraordinary pieces.. of course, in between i bought other non rolex watches and brought them new customers who buy stuff other than popular watches.. they bought stuff such as jlcs, iwcs, cartiers, even a diamond at one point so this made them very happy and in turn they started allocating nice rolexes to my friends as well..

i mean im trying to stay really really constructive but offer up some useful facts as well..

ill summarize cos i keep getting PMs about this.. . in HK, if u wanna be on that so called list, start off with passion, develop a near obsession, have the necessary cash to fund your hobby, buy stuff other than steel subs, direct all friends who want to buy any watch to your AD if they carry it (theyll give the best discount anyway in my experience so its win win, plus theyll start giving your friends those excellent allocations as well making it a win win win jesus everyone is winning here). theres no secret or trick. you dont have to beg. just be a good customer.

[Pius XIII]

I called up a few ADs within a 3 hour drive of me yesterday asking for certain models. Two of them said that everything goes straight to the display case now and that they don’t do waitlists anymore. I spoke with the owner of a third AD and he was kind enough to take my information since I was within the state. He expressed confidence in being able to acquire some of the more difficult models for me.

Of course I still think most of the hot models will never hit the display case at most ADs. Maybe more references that used to be easier to acquire a few years ago will start to find their way to the case though. Wishful thinking....

[Kirk19]

This story might be correct... My AD got me a new model BLNR in may of this year after a 3 week wait time. I was told it could take years so I was surprised to get the call. When I told them, thanks for taking care of me they told me they had changed their policy. No more lists! And I had no previous history with them but I wore my sub when I placed the order for a BLNR, I clearly showed them I wear and love my watches. I am a user not a flipper!

[slus]

I think the "lists" are pretty much BS, they keep them in the back and sell to who they want to. Each SA probably has a list of favorites, owners/managers likely have a list of big spending VIPs, but as far as them going to a spreadsheet somewhere and saying OK Sir, you're currently #526 on the queue for a BLRO, we'll call you in about 6 years... I'm not seeing that happening.

As far as putting them in the case right away, I guess from a moral standpoint that would be great, but I'm sure most of us have been in an AD when a pushy tourist comes in and demands a bunch of watches that clearly are not for them. I saw it in Fourtaine years ago before the big shortage, they went down the case pointing "that one, that one, that one....". I know it's a free market and all that, but it would be a real bummer to be the next guy in line behind a scene like that these days knowing that none of those watches will ever touch their wrist, I like thinking they are a little selective and occasionaly try to get watches to people who will enjoy them.

[drtii]

Originally Posted by foxy1moo

Stopped by local AD, I have a modest buying history, not enough to get any Rolex models, and was told that due to demand and so many people asking, they are stopping with lists all together. Apparently everything now goes in the window and it’s first come.

Nahhhh, dude. Nothing desirable hits the case or window. Nothing.

Lists are gone now, that's a fact. You're on a case-by-case consideration with individual sales reps. Period.

Of course, you can ALWAYS walk in and get lucky. They'll take the bird in the hand every time if they believe you're a good bet (meaning, a repeat buyer)

Otherwise, those pieces are locked in a vault and given to VIP's.

Basically, if you're looking for a GMT or Daytona, they won't see the light of day. Any other piece might make it to the case, including a Sub.

[Tokyo Mike]

Originally Posted by drtii

Nahhhh, dude. Nothing desirable hits the case or window. Nothing.

Lists are gone now, that's a fact. You're on a case-by-case consideration with individual sales reps. Period.

Of course, you can ALWAYS walk in and get lucky. They'll take the bird in the hand every time if they believe you're a good bet (meaning, a repeat buyer)

Otherwise, those pieces are locked in a vault and given to VIP's.

Basically, if you're looking for a GMT or Daytona, they won't see the light of day. Any other piece might make it to the case, including a Sub.

AD's do not keep watches in vaults. They need to move them on and have warranty cards registered, asap.

Holding onto watches and not moving them on, effect the AD's future allocations.

[watchmework]

I suspect some of the ADs have stopped having lists because they have more people coming in and asking than before and they are tired of getting people stopping by or calling asking where on the “list” they are.

[Zackwheat]

Another thing “an AD told me” Thursday was that although it’s still barren, more allocated pieces are coming in. But not enough to clear out the waiting lists.

I didn’t ask to be put on a waiting list, but after I expressed interest in a white or blue sky-dweller, the AD offered to take my name and number.

[dtwer]

Yes things may go in the window, the question is which one.

Daytona or GMT? No way they are going there.

YM or Explorer? Of course they go in the window.

[fsprow]

I think it’s important to realize that for most AD’s, sales of steel Rolex models are not a primary source of income. Most of them sell many other brands of watches and also expensive jewelry. So the idea that they spend a lot of time trying to manage the process of SS watches doesn’t seem logical to me.

[AK797]

Originally Posted by fsprow

I think it’s important to realize that for most AD’s, sales of steel Rolex models are not a primary source of income. Most of them sell many other brands of watches and also expensive jewelry. So the idea that they spend a lot of time trying to manage the process of SS watches doesn’t seem logical to me.

Any half sensible AD will use the power of the SS to get more sales in other brands, jewellery etc, bundling is standard practice now.

[Muxi]

So if you know the manager they can direct you to casually walk by the store window the very moment they pivot and extend their arms to the display case holding a Pepsi and voila! You improved your chance to get one.

[AK797]

They are running a business not a charity and if they get confused they won't be running either for long.

[Luap1976]

Originally Posted by foxy1moo

Stopped by local AD, I have a modest buying history, not enough to get any Rolex models, and was told that due to demand and so many people asking, they are stopping with lists all together. Apparently everything now goes in the window and it’s first come.

I asked if they had done this yet with any of the very popular models, apparently a new BLNR went in the window a week or two back.

Not entirely sure if I believe this is the case for all - perhaps more like VIPs can get scares models, everyone else this is what they say. And perhaps every now and then one makes it in the window.

Anyone else been told the same thing? Or anyone think this is likely, or just a polite way to say no chance?

I wish this was true because I would camp outside my ad but its not true unfortunately

[brucethemanlee]

VIPs will still get hot sought models and those will never hit the case.

if all VIPs taken care then perhaps a sprinkling will go to the case.

Why would a business (and it is a business) for ADs kill off or piss off their most valued and repeat customers?

Trust me they have a list of VIPs....sure maybe they're no longer doing lists for the general public but there is a VIP list (if not actual name to paper it will names in the mangers head as to who gets what)

You really think a SS Daytona white dial will hit the cases? Dream on

[TswaneNguni]

Lists always existed,but the tragedy is your positioning ... ADs decide who is where .
Dont believe the window display,then they lose power of decision .

[Batmannr1]

No AD I know will show a SS GMT, Daytona or Sub the light of day in the display cases at MSRP.
No waiting lists anymore and all stock is going in the window is a fairytale and a polite way of the SA to get rid of you.