Funny AD Interaction

[~Ocho1~]

We've all read the stories, so I decided to share mine....

This week I was at a company meeting in Vienna, Virginia & as we were walking to a restaurant the night we got there I saw a Rolex AD a couple of blocks away from the hotel. So on my last day, before leaving to the airport I had some time & decided to walk on over & visit them.

Of course they didn't have anything in stock, but the interaction with the pompous, douchie SA is what really made my day.

So of course he asked me if I was local & I said no, I'm from Florida, just here on business for a couple of days.

SA-It's best you deal with your local AD

ME-Yes, I've been on "the list" with the Rolex Boutique since April

SA-Oh No, don't think of it as a list. You need to build a relationship by purchasing other jewelry.

Me-Yeah, neither me or my wife are into jewelry. I only like watches.

SA-Well, it's the only way. We have plenty of other jewelry you can buy. You need to build that trust & relationship. The Rolex is a reward for being a good customer.

ME-(this is where I literally laughed at him) Yeah, instead of spending money on a bunch of jewelry that we don't want I rather just pay the mark up on the grey market.

SA-..........

ME-Ok, thanks for your time. Have a great day.



I wasn't really expecting much different, but it was the "Rolex is a reward" line that got to me. So my "reward" for spending thousands of dollars on stuff I don't need or want is I get to spend another $10,000+ on a watch? lol, that was funny.

[HiBoost]

You know what they say when it comes to grays... "buy the seller". I think this applies just as much to ADs. This one was crap, but not all are like that. That said, the out of town experience is likely to always be near the bottom of whatever an AD has to offer.

[mountainjogger]

Originally Posted by HiBoost

You know what they say when it comes to grays... "buy the seller". I think this applies just as much to ADs. This one was crap, but not all are like that. That said, the out of town experience is likely to always be near the bottom of whatever an AD has to offer.

Agree.

[Pop Art Suzy]

Wow I would have been shocked hearing that. What a bunch of BS.

[~Ocho1~]

No doubt. I've been dealing with the Rolex Boutique down here, & what I'm looking for is a very specific DJ41: Slate/Rhodium Dial, stick markers, fluted on jubilee.

If one of the trusted grey's has it at a reasonable price I'll buy it, but not at 50% more than retail (which is what I've seen it at) if not I'll just wait. I'm a patient guy. Not like I NEED another watch, lol.

[coolsound]

Well... I guess my story is on the other spectrum. Stopped into my local AD for the first time early September and told the SA I'm looking for my first Rolex. She asked me what I have in mind and I told her I'm thinking about a DJ41 TT. She said we can order you the watch but it will take 6-12 months. Less than 2 months later, I got the txt from her that the watch has came in and I just picked it up a couple days ago. The whole process was so pleasant that I am now considering buying a 30k ring from her for my wife :-) ...

[Jack T]

I don't bother much with random visits to AD's, they don't have anything to sell, I have no interest engaging in idle watch chatter, my Rolex stable is full (for now) and...they don't have anything to sell.

[Calatrava r]

Originally Posted by Jack T

I don't bother much with random visits to AD's, they don't have anything to sell, I have no interest engaging in idle watch chatter, my Rolex stable is full (for now) and...they don't have anything to sell.

I also think random visits to ADs really is useless at this time. They have no inventory to sell from the case and what is coming is allocated to their big spender customer base. The only way to crack the nut is to walk in and make a big-ticket expensive jewelry purchase and try to bundle it with a Rolex watch they have in their safe.

[bluestreak]

Which AD was it? Liljenquist and Beckstead or Lenkersdorfer?

[Santiago32]

I’ve been told this exact same thing at Ben Bridge at two different locations.

[daveswordfish]

I would contact Rolex USA and let them know. That’s no way to treat a customer, especially a current owner of the brand.


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[ArtNouveau]

Sounds to me like the SA was just being honest about how things are versus blowing smoke up your dress. Definitely an advantage of shopping at a Boutique is they have only Rolex watches to sell.

[Roger Lococco]

Originally Posted by ~Ocho1~

We've all read the stories, so I decided to share mine....

This week I was at a company meeting in Vienna, Virginia & as we were walking to a restaurant the night we got there I saw a Rolex AD a couple of blocks away from the hotel. So on my last day, before leaving to the airport I had some time & decided to walk on over & visit them.

Of course they didn't have anything in stock, but the interaction with the pompous, douchie SA is what really made my day.

So of course he asked me if I was local & I said no, I'm from Florida, just here on business for a couple of days.

SA-It's best you deal with your local AD

ME-Yes, I've been on "the list" with the Rolex Boutique since April

SA-Oh No, don't think of it as a list. You need to build a relationship by purchasing other jewelry.

Me-Yeah, neither me or my wife are into jewelry. I only like watches.

SA-Well, it's the only way. We have plenty of other jewelry you can buy. You need to build that trust & relationship. The Rolex is a reward for being a good customer.

ME-(this is where I literally laughed at him) Yeah, instead of spending money on a bunch of jewelry that we don't want I rather just pay the mark up on the grey market.

SA-..........

ME-Ok, thanks for your time. Have a great day.



I wasn't really expecting much different, but it was the "Rolex is a reward" line that got to me. So my "reward" for spending thousands of dollars on stuff I don't need or want is I get to spend another $10,000+ on a watch? lol, that was funny.

Doesn’t sound like the ADs in either Tysons 1 or Tysons 2. Was it?


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[saltyandwet]

Originally Posted by daveswordfish

I would contact Rolex USA and let them know. That’s no way to treat a customer, especially a current owner of the brand.


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good luck with that.

[riazah]

It definitely sounds like the one in Tyson’s beginning with L. Fortunately the other two in the DMV don’t behave like that


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[shwingus]

I dont care Im going to name and shame my AD as well. Have decent history with them which definitely warrants one of my asks at this point but last time I was there buying my gf her birthday present the owner of Lugaro in Vancouver straight up told me Id need to buy 2 Omegas to even be considered for a Rolex....

Unfortunately this has become the norm and customer service has gone out the window. They have had it good for too long and haven't had to work for sales in a long time which is leading to this crap environment of treating Rolex watches like loot boxes in a video game and forgetting actual enthusiasts who will be here long past any trend or hype.

People need to stop c*cking themselves for the brand and not play these games, or the power needs to shift back to the buyer. This is getting tiring for what is supposed to be a fun hobby, not a chore.

[Gab27]

The AD was honest with you, but it sounds like they were a bit jerk-ish about it. It still beats them giving you the, 'we'll put you on the list' appeasement statement.

I don't blame ADs for doing this one bit, but they can be more polite in how they present it. Calling it a "reward" is not the best way to word it, IMHO.

[~Ocho1~]

Originally Posted by bluestreak

Which AD was it? Liljenquist and Beckstead or Lenkersdorfer?

Liljenquist and Beckstead this was the place.

[~Ocho1~]

Originally Posted by ArtNouveau

Sounds to me like the SA was just being honest about how things are versus blowing smoke up your dress. Definitely an advantage of shopping at a Boutique is they have only Rolex watches to sell.

Originally Posted by Gab27

The AD was honest with you, but it sounds like they were a bit jerk-ish about it. It still beats them giving you the, 'we'll put you on the list' appeasement statement.

I don't blame ADs for doing this one bit, but they can be more polite in how they present it. Calling it a "reward" is not the best way to word it, IMHO.

Yeah, maybe he was, & I was just honest with him.

Instead of buying a bunch of crap that we don't want I'll just pay that extra money towards a grey dealer that get's me exactly what I want without the BS.

Like I said, I'm patient. I'll either get it from the Rolex boutique, or if a grey list the one I want at a reasonable price I'll pick it up. I'm in no hurry.

[Chester01]

Been saying this for years. Rolex is like a birkin bag and the scarcity fabricated. Good they were upfront and honest with you.

[Number3]

Originally Posted by coolsound

Well... I guess my story is on the other spectrum. Stopped into my local AD for the first time early September and told the SA I'm looking for my first Rolex. She asked me what I have in mind and I told her I'm thinking about a DJ41 TT. She said we can order you the watch but it will take 6-12 months. Less than 2 months later, I got the txt from her that the watch has came in and I just picked it up a couple days ago. The whole process was so pleasant that I am now considering buying a 30k ring from her for my wife :-) ...

Sounds like decent AD. Make sure you use the ring to leverage your next piece (assuming you want one).

[MrMikee]

What a joker.. I would have done the same.

I would NEVER purchase from an AD like that. They're having a laugh..

[huncho]

i'm glad there's nothing i want right now, but also there's no chance i can get anything living in nyc anyway

happy with what i have for now

[JRell]

I am so lucky I don’t have an AD like that.

[jcapulet786]

Leave a review on google about the interaction

[absurd]

The funny thing is how some of these folks think they are doing a "favor" to us! A recent conversation with a Vacheron boutique was enlightening & showed that they are trained better. She was clear to say
a) we do not have a pre-requisite that you own one to get another
b) though we dont have a prior purchase requirement, if you do buy one...when you ask for the 2nd one, it definitely wont go unnoticed! :)

I loved the english more than the actual message!!

[Forty6nTwo]

Rolex is a “reward”, this is one of the reasons why I’ve lost interest in the brand.

[Gebbeth]

What a douche. Imagine if you lived there and THIS was your AD.

The AD seems to be suggesting that Rolex is the "award" for financial stupidity.

As they say, some people have more money than brains.

[HiBoost]

This is definitely not behavior advocated by Rolex corporate, and they DO secret shop their stores often. This is a company that complains if the flowers in the store didn't come from the Rolex Floral Catalog. There are rules for everything, and one of them is that a certain percentage of watches need to be sold to new, first time buyers. There is zero chance that Rolex would be ok with the concept that customers have non-Rolex pre-requisites which must be purchased to gain access to the brand. I'd for sure pass that along to Rolex USA. And I'd cc the store in my email.

[Chewbacca]

Verified. Heard this once a week. Solid post. Lol