What's the $ value of an AD experience?

For me, nothing. They are salesmen, participating in theater. Save yourself the commission money and take someone you love out for a nice dinner and unboxing instead.

It's a really interesting question, I'm also curious how most people rate their AD experience. IMO the higher price in AD is mainly for peace of mind because on the gray market you always carry the risk that the watch is fake. If you consider the fact that someone has already worn the watch from the gray market and possibly damaged it somehow, then the increased price will also give this fact a few percent for AD, even if the seller on grey market says that they are brand new then it's a dilemma because why would someone sell a new watch 15% cheaper? Either it's stolen or very good looking fake watch or what else. The main advantage buying from AD I think is the fact that you can track the watch history from beginning, you know the manufacturer where and how did the watch arrived from to AD and from there it's up to you what that watch will go through but from grey market never know for sure

Hey, I've had similar goals lately (looking for a GS or something comparable to mark a business milestone). So last time I was in Calgary, I stopped by the only AD in town, which happened to be the downtown jewelry store. With a doorman. Certainly the kind of establishment that I've never felt welcome inside before.

My explicit goal from the start: be nice, ask to touch and try on the models I was interested in, and then leave without buying anything. Let's be real, if it's your first expensive watch and you're not at an income level where you can buy 10 more every year, you're most likely going to keep it forever. And that puts you in a position where it's extremely advantageous to save $1,000 on an Internet aftermarket watch that's been touched once.

It was a success! The salesman was nice (I suspect they all are) and even seemed to be my age. I had a great time looking at watches that I had researched extensively beforehand, got shown their favourites from other brands too, and then walked out the door without any consequences.

The only question is whether you think the warranty and customer support is worth more than the $1,000 aftermarket savings. This is still a judgment call, but I would expect a high enough level of reliability from any used GS that it's not worth it.

Otherwise, visiting an AD is a lot of fun, but it's even sweeter to save a few hundred bucks and spend it elsewhere in whatever upscale shopping district you physically find yourself in.

* What did I end up buying after walking out? Since I was looking for the best dress quartz in the under-$3,000 price range, I ended up going for a Japan-only Citizen Chronomaster two months later. But I'd still visit the same store again.

I like my main multi-brand AD. On brands other than Rolex, Omega and Tudor, they generally give me discounts close to, equal to or greater than most private resellers. My AD prices are generally much better than importing from the big resellers like Jomashop, Watchbox or DavidSW.

Personally if the difference is less than 20%, I would buy from an AD for warranty and peace of mind, not really for experience which I will soon forget.

If the difference is bigger, I would look at grey market but even then I would only buy from a dealer that has brick and mortar shop in business for years.

With GS in the U.K. buying at their boutique granted entry to a club where they send you free things and there is a discord server and events. I only bought an SBGX261 - so for the price differential new/used on that one it was worth it.. Nice guys in there too..

I bought my Speedmaster at the Omega boutique. I asked for a discount, did not get one, but was gifted a nice Omega NATO strap and Champagne. The chairs were very comfortable so I stayed and finished the bottle.

Man they better pay me to come pick up the watch

If I can be brutally honest, it's worth 0% to me. I think it's pure wank.

And I'm sure someone's just dropped their foie gras reading this because, to them, wandering into their local boutique and being on first name terms with the staff, and having a champagne, and being able to point at lots of people and say, "Heeeeeey!" like they're some sort of well-loved celebrity dropping in for a visit is something they really love, and is probably worth an obscene percentage of their original watch purchase. I get it. It becomes part of their lifestyle. They live for this $%^#. Horses for courses.

But for me? Zero. I think it's silly. They're just watches. Same for cars, etc.

It depends if you are willing to take part in a commercial ceremony where one of the participant is willing to believe that beyond the exchange of goods for money there is also a display of honest respect and friendship.

I consider this as a waste of my time but YMMV as they say.

For me if its that special, go to the AD to get the experience, ask all your questions and feel the watch. If you feel its worth it, come back and get the watch, esp. if you’re looking to build a long term AD relationship. If you feel its not, then don’t. This way you get the feel for the AD and decide later where you want to purchase your watch.

I think that you’ll be able to haggle a discount at the AD bringing the price closer to the grey market anyway. Plus the warranty and freebies they’ll throw in.

As long as they know you’re serious and ready to buy, they will bend a lot more and give you most of what you ask for within reason.

It is nice to get a coffee at the AD, even if you just come in to check out a new release. But that is not why I prefer buying there. The reason is that I know that they take customer service serious and will not go dark if something goes wrong with the watch. In terms of price, I think the discount you get at an AD depends on the popularity of the model. But if it is a popular model, it will probably not be much cheaper at the grey dealer. Grey dealers do not buy from the manufacturer, but from ADs that have to clear their windows. Either for new models, or because they have to buy a certain amount of watches each year to keep their AD status, or because they just need some fast liquidity.

So if you see low grey market prices, the discounts at an AD will also be high. ADs are not stupid and now the grey market prices pretty well. Of course they do not feel the need to match the 100%, because of their superior service and after sales coverage.

Getting a chance to actually try the watch on. Getting help and good customer service if you have issues is worth something. So it will depend on the store and the service.

For me, it depends on what that experience is like and what watch we're talking about. For my Oris, I like the people I bought it from but the only reason I went for the AD experience was to make sure the watch was in my hand and I didn't get ripped off by online sellers.

If we're talking about a grail, though... something I've waited years for and possibly built a relationship with that AD in the process? Still not worth a lot of money for me but maybe a small portion

It depends on your priority, but it's hard to justify paying retail price for a GS timepiece because they are quite expensive now... I got my SBGW291 at 40% off retail as it's a pre-owned LNIB (from trusted reseller) and felt like a huge win for me.

I have bought watches thru forums, chrono and ad’s. There are advantages and disadvantages with both. For in demand models (ie Rolex) it is cheaper to buy via an ad while the reverse is true for many other watches. While it is a pleasant experience getting the ad touch it isn’t anything amazing realistically. I agree with the comment above that you could use that money to celebrate with a nice meal out or fancy champagne and still have change left

Over . The real advantage is 1) certainty re authenticity 2)building up spending history with one ad to secure more scarce watches in the future at retail rather than grey market premium and a final less recognised issue would be functional issues such as a watch not working properly or even something as simple as sizing the bracelet etc. An ad will likely help more with a problem with a watch you bought from them directly. If you do buy grey market or a forum, it’s an old saying but ‘buy the seller’…. Look for seller’s who have good reputations and reviews.

It depends upon the AD I suppose. My main local Rolex AD is wonderful mainly because of the relationship with my sales representative that has been built over years of knowing them and yes, purchases. Even though we know each other well, are rather informal these days, when the time comes for a pick up/purchase, yup, still get the "Rolex" experience, gloves and all. Not that I want the fawning over from them but you get it like it or not and it cab be sort of nice.

There are times that I do like all the attention such as the Omega boutique. They always manage to make me feel special and are attentive when I have reason to go there. Great getting that "fawning over" for a simple service drop offs or buying an accessory.

Then there are other brands that an AD adds nothing to except that the warranty is fully in effect from the manufacturer. Think Seiko/Citizen in this respect. Local department stores are AD's to those brands, but those really ain't much of an experience.

But to try and say that the AD experience adds any monetary value to the purchase is a misconception in my book. Its nice to have but....

At Siam Watch in BKK when I purchased my Ranger , I had a coffee while my bracelet was sized and then packed up magazine under my arm with bag with watch said thanks and took it back to my hotel . I saved $450 AUD tax so I was fine . If I could buy the same watch for $800 cheaper without fanfare of course I would . The AD experience is something as as a salesman previously, I understand the process , and that little bit of theatre is exactly that . If you can buy a watch on the grey market cheaper with box and papers and free of wear or scratches go for it .

Depends on your brand

I would say it depends on if your AD has other brands that you are interested in near future.. for example if your AD is also a Rolex dealer. You buying from such AD will get you other hard to obtain pieces easier. If you in market just for one GS and nothing else.. grey market would save you a lot of money.. most of them offer you 2 years warranty.

AD > Boutique > all others.

I bought two watches grey market early on, and never will again. Both experiences showed me why they aren’t ADs. Grey market dealers tend to suck at customer service if there’s a problem, and both times there were issues. They aren’t good enough to get a brand to give them an AD concession. Since then I have developed a relationship with an AD that carries the brands I collect. In my experience a good AD will be competitive on price, and you get piece of mind regarding warranty backing and authenticity of the watch (though I will concede that in absolute dollars grey market will be cheaper). At least, this has been my experience.

It depends. Some do it well and others don’t. I generally buy from AD’s or brand boutiques. Peace of mind and relationship building.

I prefer beer over champagne and I'm quite hesitant to let sales staff take sharp pointy instruments near my watch 🫣

Of course some places have trained staff and watchmakers but those are usually higher end boutiques and that means even less of a discount ... nothing is free 😄

A good dealership experience, being treated respectfully and catered to is probably worth a good $500 to those in that market. Conversely, avoiding the hassle of a bad dealership hassle is worth about 100%. A certain brand's gray market values may attest to this.

I see all sorts of responses here, but I must admit the watches I've bought from an AD seem a bit more special to me than those I've received in the post. A good AD experience sets the tone for ownership later, imho. Not a huge deal, surely, but something to think about.

If I was in the position of buying a fair number of brand new watches, I would probably buy them online or wherever is cheapest. Less hassle, less wasted money, and the product is the same. But if I had a small collection, and only decided to buy a special watch to commemorate and occasion or achievement, I think it would be nice to have a pleasant experience attached to that as well by buying from an AD or boutique - "pleasant" being the keyword here. If I felt off or if they tried to gatekeep what I wanted behind a paywall of other watches or products, I'd just be on my merry way to another retailer and not spare a second thought. And if I couldn't find any good retailers, I'd just buy it cheaper online and use the saved cash for something else that's nice - maybe a very nice dinner or even a short holiday, considering how much you could save.

I've only bought four watches in person from an AD, but every watch I've bought have been from an AD unless sold out/discontinued.