Tick Talk #6: Status or Passion – Questions from the Community

The first episode of the new year runs as a game of question ping-pong: questions from the community, questions for each other. It covers buying motives, how loyal customers remain to their jeweller without a Rolex concession, the first luxury watch – and what really happens between the order and the front door.

The following version is an edited transcript of the conversation. The full episode can be found further below.

Passion or Status Symbol?

The first question from the community could not be answered in a single sentence, and that is precisely why it was a good one: do customers buy out of passion or as a status symbol?

The honest answer is a mix – with the caveat that nobody who buys for reasons of status would ever say so. Instead, the argument of value retention comes up. That is not wrong, but it applies just as much to other brands.

Alongside this stands the collector who deliberately does not buy Rolex, but instead builds a Speedmaster collection spanning all crystal variants and wants the matching Seamaster for the next Bond film.

Another observation is more intriguing: the impulse purchase does not happen online, but in the store – on Saturdays while strolling through town, with a coffee and a glass of champagne. Anyone who buys online has usually examined the model from every angle. And yet the impulse exists digitally as well: status updates on the company phone regularly feature watches that have only just arrived and have not yet been prepared – from a pre-owned Omega model to a Patek. Seen in the evening, a quick question, bought.

Is Wempe Losing Rolex Locations?

The most discussed question following the Rolex episode. The answer begins with a clarification: no crystal ball, no insider information. What stands out is the presence of Bucherer – a large store is being built in Nuremberg, and there are several locations in Berlin. The fact that Rolex has acquired Bucherer fits the strategy of moving into the major city centres.

One argument, however, suggests that concessionaires will continue to be needed across the country: service. Customers who bought their Rolex twenty years ago need a point of contact in their region.

Of historical interest in this context is the reason why Omega is absent from Wempe: Wempe opened a new store in a prime location in Paris, and Omega wanted to place its own monobrand boutique right next door – that was the trigger. If Rolex drops out elsewhere, such constellations could start moving again.

Do Customers Stay Loyal to Their Jeweller?

Here the answer is unusually blunt. If, after thirty years of Rolex, a jeweller tells a regular customer that from now on there will be Omega, Breitling or Panerai instead – will the customer follow? The assessment: one hundred percent no. Someone who has never bought an Omega does not switch brands because the retailer is pleasant. The fact that trade media portray this differently is not read as a contradiction, but explained by the fact that something has to be written.

That leaves the question of what the jeweller does instead. Three paths are on the table: new brand partnerships, a dedicated CPO business, or cooperation with independent dealers in order to continue serving Rolex customers. The calculation behind it merely reverses the order: in the past, one bought jewellery or another watch at list price and in return received the Rolex at list price. In future, one pays a premium on the Rolex and receives the rest at a discount. In the end, it comes to the same amount.

Movement in the Brand Landscape

Two news items from the same week show how much is currently in motion. Baume & Mercier is moving from Richemont to the Damiani Group, which operates around thirty boutiques in Italy with Rocca – Richemont is evidently focusing more strongly on the upper segment with Vacheron Constantin and A. Lange & Söhne and on its own boutiques. And shortly before the Geneva fair week, TAG Heuer dismissed its CEO.

What both find remarkable about this: at the moment, nobody knows what the other is planning.

New Rhythm

An announcement on our own behalf: from now on, Tick Talk will be released on the last Thursday of every month at 10 a.m. – twelve episodes a year.

The First Luxury Watch

The second community question: what should one advise someone who is buying their first watch and has no idea yet?

The first counter-question is not “which brand”, but why. Is it a reward, an occasion, an heirloom that is meant to become something lasting? Only then does the budget come in.

When it comes to the model, the person's type matters: how does someone dress, and where is the watch to be worn? Anyone who works in a suit is better served by a slim dress watch on a leather strap. And a rule of thumb from practice: men usually choose automatic, women more often quartz – simply because the watch is changed more frequently to match the outfit and nobody wants to reset it every time.

The recommendation divides into two cases. Those who want value retention end up with Rolex – ideally, they like it as well. Those who cannot relate to it should choose the brand they enjoy; an IWC also holds its value, and at around €3,000 a pre-owned Omega Speedmaster is a good answer. Buying a Rolex merely to own a Rolex is something both consider the wrong path.

Pay Attention to the Diameter

The most practical advice of the episode stems from personal experience. From student days comes an impulse purchase at a Munich jeweller: a Chopard Mille Miglia for €1,600, seen, bought – and clearly too small on the wrist.

Today the same thing happens in the opposite direction. When a watch with a 46-millimetre diameter is ordered, the cancellation is often foreseeable: in the product image, a 46 mm watch looks like a 38 mm one. There are exceptions – only recently, a Sea-Dweller in 44 millimetres in solid gold for just under €50,000 went to a long-standing customer whom it suits superbly. But one has to be able to wear watches like that.

Why the Delivery Time Is Two to Four Weeks

A question that comes up so often that it deserves an explanation. Stock items and watches held by concessionaire partners ship within a few days up to one week. Everything else is produced – it is not lying ready and waiting. On top of this come production backlogs and company holidays: in August, the Swiss manufactures practically come to a standstill. With these watches, it is not about speed, but about manufacturing.

The second reason is transport. From around €30,000, a watch is not sent by standard shipping, but by secure transport – armed and, for security reasons, without live tracking. This is the point at which customers regularly follow up, and the honest answer is: even in our own office, we sometimes wait two or three days without being able to see where the watch currently is.

What Happens Behind the Scenes

Two examples that nobody else sees. In September, a customer from Berlin bought a Vacheron Constantin for €80,000 and had to receive it before a flight to Asia. It took several phone calls with the secure transport company until an employee located the driver in Berlin and arranged the handover before the flight.

And shortly before Christmas: two special Patek Philippe watches – a Nautilus 5811 in platinum and a Nautilus Chronograph in rose gold – one bound for Stockholm, one for North Rhine-Westphalia. No offer came from the secure transport company. So on 22 December, an employee from logistics flew to Stockholm himself, and the second watch was delivered by car.

Both put this into perspective without pathos: anyone who spends a considerable sum is entitled to expect service. It is just that a small team works on such solutions at 10 or 11 p.m. – and that is the difference from the large chain.

Watch the Episode

Chapters

• 01:06 – Review and snow chaos
• 03:44 – Passion or status symbol?
• 10:03 – Is Wempe losing Rolex locations?
• 14:55 – Customer loyalty without a Rolex concession
• 18:10 – Baume & Mercier and TAG Heuer
• 20:32 – New podcast rhythm
• 22:44 – Tips for the first luxury watch
• 26:04 – Pay attention to the diameter
• 28:49 – The watch to match the type
• 31:10 – Delivery times and secure transport
• 34:25 – Courier missions for customers

Listen

Tick Talk is available on YouTube and on Spotify. The selection of luxury watches offers orientation for getting started.