SEIKO is the only brand with UNLIMITED 'limited' edition watches. Agree?
If you 'disagree', please provide the other brands that are doing this. The recent limited edition series that I've been seeing from Seiko are in the 8000, 11,000 ranges. A truly unlimited would be '50' but since Seiko isn't in that elabore' price range, I wish they limited to under 1200 or so.
12 comments
Sort by
Naren
Not a watch nerd. But suffer from the disease of drooling at, and if possible, collecting watches.
Chennai
Member since
Last active: 3 months ago
I really wanted to agree but I feel as though IWC and Panerai are all “limited edition” 🤣
The micro dudes make a far better watch with Seiko guts for less money than Seiko ever will. Their quality is the only thing "limited". Glass and jangly bracelets with pressed clasps don't cut it anymore.
Why do you want other people denied access to the watch models they like? Just so you can feel “special“?
I am so done with limited editions as a blatant form of deliberate scarcity to drive brand caché.
It’s a Seiko, FFS. It’s nothing special and there’s no reason to limit them. I say the same about Omega. Just build the GD watches and let the people who like them buy them.
Why do you want other people denied access to the watch models they like? Just so you can feel “special“?
I am so done with limited editions as a blatant form of deliberate scarcity to drive brand caché.
It’s a Seiko, FFS. It’s nothing special and there’s no reason to limit them. I say the same about Omega. Just build the GD watches and let the people who like them buy them.
Exactly, my point. Why even call these limited editions (and price them higher) when you're making thousands of copies. Just leave it at that.
Omega does a lot of this as well.
Exactly, my point. Why even call these limited editions (and price them higher) when you're making thousands of copies. Just leave it at that.
It is exactly opposite my point. You want them to limit them to under 1200 to keep them exclusive. I want the exact opposite. No limited editions. Give people the option to buy or order the model they want without the artificial scarcity that limited editions are designed to create.
I don’t even read or watch reviews of models after they point out that it’s a limited edition. I don’t care anymore. I think it’s dumb and I’m not playing their game. I’m clearly not their target customer, I.E. loaded with FOMO.
Omega does a lot of this as well.
Or do they?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrbnB3td5nI
@Pete_NSOW discusses.
This discussion captures the tension in the hobby generally and around LE's specifically. I ran a series of polls over on my channel and the results/comments were all over the place.
1. as many loved LEs and hated them - but only the people that hate LEs ever comment
2. sometimes the same people would comment that they hated the FOMO LEs generated but they also felt a kind of (almost) contempt when they saw old out of catalog watches languishing in stores unsold. This was magnified if it was an old LE.
3. Some wanted LEs to be niche products to appeal to few people, others wanted LEs to be super desireable.
4. And some people wanted LEs to be truly 'limited' while others (or the same people on a different day) wanted everyone to be able to get access to them.
When it comes to Seiko I think they mainly use LEs not as a way to generate FOMO (their numbers are pretty large and you can pretty much always get one) but rather as a form of catalog/inventory control. Worldwide Seiko has between 5000-10000 retailers, we think of a run of 5000 LEs as huge, but at that size, perhaps only every second outlet will ever get one. This is also a form of inventory control - this means no dealer has so many that they can dump to jomashop or need to discount heavily. Also these LEs, by definition, come and go quickly giving the company product to release and promote and sell without cluttering up their catalog with hundreds of dead skus.
Finally on price - its actually pretty rare for Seiko to put much of a premium on an LE - maybe a 100usd here or there. The biggest impact you feel is that they are rarely discounted - but not getting a discount is not a price rise.
I was dead against LE's a few years ago (and the Hodinkee ones still rankle) but when I slowed and look at how the big brands really use them Im now a bit of a fan - our world would be a whole lot less interesting without them.
This discussion captures the tension in the hobby generally and around LE's specifically. I ran a series of polls over on my channel and the results/comments were all over the place.
1. as many loved LEs and hated them - but only the people that hate LEs ever comment
2. sometimes the same people would comment that they hated the FOMO LEs generated but they also felt a kind of (almost) contempt when they saw old out of catalog watches languishing in stores unsold. This was magnified if it was an old LE.
3. Some wanted LEs to be niche products to appeal to few people, others wanted LEs to be super desireable.
4. And some people wanted LEs to be truly 'limited' while others (or the same people on a different day) wanted everyone to be able to get access to them.
When it comes to Seiko I think they mainly use LEs not as a way to generate FOMO (their numbers are pretty large and you can pretty much always get one) but rather as a form of catalog/inventory control. Worldwide Seiko has between 5000-10000 retailers, we think of a run of 5000 LEs as huge, but at that size, perhaps only every second outlet will ever get one. This is also a form of inventory control - this means no dealer has so many that they can dump to jomashop or need to discount heavily. Also these LEs, by definition, come and go quickly giving the company product to release and promote and sell without cluttering up their catalog with hundreds of dead skus.
Finally on price - its actually pretty rare for Seiko to put much of a premium on an LE - maybe a 100usd here or there. The biggest impact you feel is that they are rarely discounted - but not getting a discount is not a price rise.
I was dead against LE's a few years ago (and the Hodinkee ones still rankle) but when I slowed and look at how the big brands really use them Im now a bit of a fan - our world would be a whole lot less interesting without them.
"..our world would be a whole lot less interesting without them." Spot on. My only point is, if they're limited, let them be truly limited, else call them 'special' or 'commemorative' editions, etc. I'd still buy a watch if I wanted to truly get it, irrespective of whether it's limited, special or unlimited; like for example, the Seiko Cocktail time in RED! :)
"..our world would be a whole lot less interesting without them." Spot on. My only point is, if they're limited, let them be truly limited, else call them 'special' or 'commemorative' editions, etc. I'd still buy a watch if I wanted to truly get it, irrespective of whether it's limited, special or unlimited; like for example, the Seiko Cocktail time in RED! :)
Yeah I get it but otoh does it really matter. As a Breitling fan I note they've got - last time I checked - at least 4 different forms of 'special' edition; Limited (restricted number), Capsule (restricted time), Boutique and E-Boutique only (obvious).
Nice but otoh does it matter?
Omega and panerai are also pretty bad offenders. Although, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with LE’s as it’s the brand trying something creative or putting a spin on a existing design. that way we all can have our own variation of the speedy or the birch.
Casio