Purchase New Rolex to Pass on to First Child

[johnnycakes]

Hi

I will start off by saying I am very new to the watch game.

We just had our first child and I thought it would be a nice idea to purchase a Rolex that I will pass on to my son at some major life event 20 or 30 years from now.

I am realizing that it's not so easy. I had no idea that you can't just want into a store and walk out with the Rolex that you want. I have 4 ADs in my city, none of them have much in stock.

I am looking for a submariner, Daytona or GMT in stainless steel/black face.

I can put my name on the list and likely never hear about anything other than a submariner, which I might get in 6 months to a year.

I realize that I can go on the gray market and pay a lot over MSRP.

Any other advice as to what I should do?

Thanks in advance.

[mountainjogger]

Since you have 20-30 years there is no rush. Wait and see if the situation improves.

[pickettt]

Originally Posted by johnnycakes

Hi

I will start off by saying I am very new to the watch game.

We just had our first child and I thought it would be a nice idea to purchase a Rolex that I will pass on to my son at some major life event 20 or 30 years from now.

I am realizing that it's not so easy. I had no idea that you can't just want into a store and walk out with the Rolex that you want. I have 4 ADs in my city, none of them have much in stock.

I am looking for a submariner, Daytona or GMT in stainless steel/black face.

I can put my name on the list and likely never hear about anything other than a submariner, which I might get in 6 months to a year.

I realize that I can go on the gray market and pay a lot over MSRP.

Any other advice as to what I should do?

Thanks in advance.

That's what you can do.

Welcome to the forum...and the watch game.

[fsprow]

Who knows what your son will value at that time. I suggest an investment in a mutual fund or similar and he can spend the proceeds on what he wants then.

[johnnycakes]

Again pardon my lack of knowledge in the subject, but it seems odd that I can't walk into a store, pay for a product in full, and receive the product when it arrives.

[Calatrava r]

Originally Posted by fsprow

Who knows what your son will value at that time. I suggest an investment in a mutual fund or similar and he can spend the proceeds on what he wants then.

10K invested now in a mutual fund should be worth a tidy sum 20 years from now. I agree forget the watch, if passing on something of value is paramount.

[tymonster]

You can do that with most well known "higher end" watch brands - Omega, Breitling, Blancpain, JLC, TAG, NOMOS, Cartier, Panerai, and a million others.

The stainless steel Rolex market, AP and Patek are off the wall the last few years.

If you don't want to play the Rolex game there are other awesome watches out there to pass down to your kid. Otherwise you'll have to buckle in and pay more or wait a while.

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[johnnycakes]

I'm not worried about the value of the product in 30 years, more so the sentimental value.

Wedding day, college or grad school graduation, etc. Getting a 30 year old Rolex that your dad wore for a long time would be very nice.

Not sure if the other brands would hold the same sentimental value.

Originally Posted by fsprow

Who knows what your son will value at that time. I suggest an investment in a mutual fund or similar and he can spend the proceeds on what he wants then.

[zengineer]

I noticed a coworker (a client actually) had a 5 digit Sub on his wrist. I complemented his good taste. He smiled and said it was his father's, gifted to him when he married. His Dad is still alive. I asked if he had memories of his father wearing it and he said yes and almost teared up. This was on the walk out the building after the meeting and someone I've known for a few years so It wasn't uncomfortable.

My point is, if you really want to do this, buy a watch and wear it as he is growing up and at the right time give it to him. It will mean so much more than a safe queen.

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[logo]

The idea of passing on a watch really only makes sense if you yourself are into watches - otherwise it’s just a random gift that was stashed away for 30 years. The fact that it’s worn and loved by you is what would make your child appreciate it down the road, not the watch itself. For that reason, I would agree with others that the better option is to invest some money that you can give as a 30th birthday gift down the road, where at that time if you are still thinking Rolex you can say “here’s money for a Rolex.”

That said, a stainless black dial submariner is really not much different on the secondary market compared to new at an AD so that would be the route to take if you did choose to buy now.

[watchmaker]

Originally Posted by johnnycakes

Hi

I will start off by saying I am very new to the watch game.

We just had our first child and I thought it would be a nice idea to purchase a Rolex that I will pass on to my son at some major life event 20 or 30 years from now.

I am realizing that it's not so easy. I had no idea that you can't just want into a store and walk out with the Rolex that you want. I have 4 ADs in my city, none of them have much in stock.

I am looking for a submariner, Daytona or GMT in stainless steel/black face.

I can put my name on the list and likely never hear about anything other than a submariner, which I might get in 6 months to a year.

I realize that I can go on the gray market and pay a lot over MSRP.

Any other advice as to what I should do?

Thanks in advance.

Choose one of the dozens of models that are currently available or a model with a short wait period, or a minimal second hand premium. Problem solved.

If you restrict yourself to only wanting to buy the same incredibly sought after (and therefore hard to get) models everyone else wants, you are in for a long wait or disappointment.

[johnnycakes]

I'm not really asking "if" I should buy one, more like - how should I buy one? Am I going to sit on an infinitely long list until I purchase more and more non-rolex items from a single AD?

[watchmaker]

Originally Posted by johnnycakes

I'm not really asking "if" I should buy one, more like - how should I buy one? Am I going to sit on an infinitely long list until I purchase more and more non-rolex items from a single AD?

Yes you are. Unless you find an AD willing to sell their best bargaining chip(s) to an unknown walk-in client with no purchase history. (This isn’t impossible, but it makes profoundly bad business sense so it isn’t going to be easy to find such a store)

[johnnycakes]

Well, I'll throw my name on the list I guess. I did buy my engagement ring from the AD and refer many people to him for the same. We'll see.
Thanks to the forum for advice.

[Dlong]

Ah, the old “I’m buying this watch for my newborn son” ruse. The wives always fall for it. I used to do that with fine rifles.

I thought that BS was only used over in the gun forums. It’s amazing what us guys come up with to buy something expensive and get the wife’s approval.

[watchmaker]

Originally Posted by Dlong

Ah, the old “I’m buying this watch for my newborn son” ruse. The wives always fall for it. I used to do that with fine rifles.

I thought that BS was only used over in the gun forums. It’s amazing what us guys come up with to buy something expensive and get the wife’s approval.

ADs hear it daily. It’s amazing how many kids are going to be gifted a Daytona in 18-21 years time

[johnnycakes]

To me, it's an interesting business model. There are other industries where items can be sold for an immediate mark up - sports and concert tickets come to mind. However, they do make it fair to all who are purchasing - either via a lottery or a wait in line/click as fast as you can method. Cars are also sold over MSRP at times, but this is directly from the dealer. It seems like Rolex has handcuffed the dealers to sell at MSRP, however they make up for that by forcing someone to purchase other items in order to get the Rolex.

[Seibei]

Originally Posted by fsprow

Who knows what your son will value at that time. I suggest an investment in a mutual fund or similar and he can spend the proceeds on what he wants then.

I can not agree more with this.

OP, if you want a watch for yourself, just buy it and enjoy it. If 30 years down the line you want to give it to your son, by all means do.

[Robtayham]

Originally Posted by johnnycakes

Hi

I will start off by saying I am very new to the watch game.

We just had our first child and I thought it would be a nice idea to purchase a Rolex that I will pass on to my son at some major life event 20 or 30 years from now.

I am realizing that it's not so easy. I had no idea that you can't just want into a store and walk out with the Rolex that you want. I have 4 ADs in my city, none of them have much in stock.

I am looking for a submariner, Daytona or GMT in stainless steel/black face.

I can put my name on the list and likely never hear about anything other than a submariner, which I might get in 6 months to a year.

I realize that I can go on the gray market and pay a lot over MSRP.

Any other advice as to what I should do?

Thanks in advance.

If you’re wanting to recognize some major life event, maybe you should wait until then and take him to an AD so he can pick out the watch he wants.

It might be a better bonding moment, then having him think he’s getting a used watch.

[Pw92676]

I was in the same boat 1.5 years ago, luckily the market wasn’t as crazy. Good luck. Being patient but persistent with the AD will hopefully pay off.

[whattimeyougot]

Invest the $ and gift it to him when he is ready to buy his first house.


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[SydR]

The AD I popped into yesterday told me that they don’t do a waiting list but I could register an “expression of interest” with them.

I guess the difference is they will contact me if they get stuck rather than when my turn comes up . Getting an SS watch from an AD is a bit of a lottery at the moment.

As others have said invest the money now and let if grow into a nice sum for him.

[Jm95809]

I’m same boat looking for a watch to past to my son I decided to wait for a hard to find watch since I’m in no rush to pass it anyway plus gives me more time to save for a prem watch.im just going to wait in a gmt either model or hulk great watch and great and instant equity

[jitdc]

There are a couple of Subs for sale right now here on the TRF Classifieds from trusted sellers for negligebly more than MSRP+tax at your AD. If you factor in the price increase coming next year than the cost is the same or less as what you will pay starting in a few days.

[afmars]

FWIW I was turned away from 4 ADs and the 5th AD I walked in with my 2 week old son in the car seat, set him on the counter and introduced him and myself to the sales lady. I Told her my intentions to get a watch that I can give to him later on, and I had the watch I wanted 4 days later. My polar ExpII may be easier to come by than the models you want, but I think a submariner is totally doable with the right impression and narrative. I also highly recommend buying from an AD so that when the time comes you can give him the watch with YOUR name on the card.

[Dlong]

Hey, this could be a business opportunity. Rent out babies so that guys can go into AD’s with the sap story about wanting the watch to pass down to the kid. Not like they’re going to ask the kid for ID.

Yeah, yeah. That’s the ticket.

[cerendigit]

Originally Posted by Dlong

Ah, the old “I’m buying this watch for my newborn son” ruse. The wives always fall for it. I used to do that with fine rifles.

this.

[gerobak]

OP which city are you located?

[1SG MTB]

Since it seems there’s no hurry, I would recommend just hopping on a list and waiting it out. As for building a relationship with an AD, I wouldn’t buy stuff for the sake of getting a relationship, just finding an AD with a mutual appreciation for Rolex will work eventually. The chase can be almost as rewarding as the day you finally are able to get your first Rolex. One could take the view that paying a premium for something you plan to keep for 20-30 years and then passing down isn’t a big deal (and I wouldn’t necessarily disagree), however, the premium on a Daytona or Pepsi is fairly sizeable.

OP, as you can see there are varying opinions on the concept of buying a watch as a family heirloom (not that you asked for them). I, for one, love the idea of having my dad’s watch one day, not because I’m a watch guy, but because it was my dad’s watch. He’s worn it almost daily for many years and many memorable events. I also love the idea of having my dad’s old Army uniforms. I’m definitely not into collecting uniforms, but I grew up on Army bases and have very few childhood memories of my dad when he wasn’t wearing his uniform. I will pass my watches on to my only son, perhaps grandson if I’m blessed one day, and if he’s not into the gesture it’ll be up to him to figure it out from there. I’m sentimental, I guess, but I hope my son wants to wear my dad’s watch one day, and is able to continue passing it on for multiple generations.

[cerendigit]

"getting on a list" is a waste of time. You have two options:
- Buy a lot of things from the AD (whatever he has in stock) to become a "VIP";
- Gray market