Panerai at Costco: Market Impact Debate — WatchProSite Forum Digest

AnthonyTsai · 2013-11-20T15:05:41Z

Is Panerai's presence at Costco a sign of declining pricing power? Collectors debate market trends, brand perception, and distribution strategies.

AnthonyTsai

WPS member · Officine Panerai forum

22 replies11075 views1 photos

AnthonyTsai's post sparked a significant discussion among collectors regarding the perceived impact of Panerai watches appearing at Costco. This article synthesizes community opinions on whether this distribution shift signals a change in Panerai's market positioning and pricing power.

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I went to my local Costco today and surprisingly found a Panerai in the watch section (along with Cartier & Girard-Perregaux & Breitling) but this was the first time I've ever seen a Panerai there. Others have pointed to me that they've seen Panerai at their Costco's too.

Is this a sign that Panerai no longer has the pricing power it used to have many years ago?
Does this mean Panerai supply is exceeding demand?
Retail pricing has gone up far too high when compared to "value"?

And should we now expect AD's to offer mandatory discounts on Panerai's? Just like how you can expect automatic discounts on many of the other watch brands at your local AD?

Just something to rumble about and generate discussion. Let's hear your 2 cents!

Personally, as a Panerai collector, I'm disappointed to see Costco carry Panerai because it's a sign for me that there's a lot of excess inventory that Panerai has to dump. Whether or not that is true, that is the perception I get of all the luxury brands I see available at Costco. Costco usually has a maximum markup price of 15%, so you see what price it is buying product at.

Cheers,
Anthony

This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on 2013-11-20 15:06:31

Key Points from the Discussion

One collector noted that Panerai, along with other Richemont brands like Cartier and IWC, had been available at their local Costco for a couple of years, suggesting it wasn't a new phenomenon.
The presence of luxury brands like Panerai at Costco is seen by some as a sign of growing popularity, moving from a 'cult brand' to mainstream, potentially due to expansion policies and marketing decisions by Richemont.
Another contributor shared that they had also seen JLC and Rolex at Costco, alongside Panerai models like the 292, 375, and 312, indicating a broader trend of high-end watches appearing in the retailer.
Some collectors feel that seeing Panerai at Costco diminishes their impression of the brand, despite acknowledging that other luxury brands like Cartier have been sold there for years without similar impact.
A key point raised was that while brands like Patek Philippe and Rolex tend to sell quickly at Costco, Panerai models often remain on display for months, suggesting lower demand at those price points compared to market prices.
One perspective suggested that Panerai's current price points are not convincing the general public, especially for manual-wind standard models, and that the declining vogue for large watches also contributes to slower sales.
From an objective standpoint, it was argued that Panerai is a consumer product, and Costco's wider distribution network makes it an accessible outlet for buyers in areas without dedicated Panerai boutiques.

The Discussion

ImranLondon

Nov 20, 2013

Probably AD's who can't shift stock and it goes into grey market BUT

It definitely says one thing......, joe public are not convinced at the new price point The manual wind standard stuff was ok at £3000 but at nearly double that doesn't look so tempting Also big watches are not quite in vogue as they used to be so shifting them isn't as easy

MTF

Nov 20, 2013

Panerai is a consumer product: more Costco stores than Panerai boutiques

Anthony, Objectively, Panerai is a consumer product. There is a Costco in every US city but not a Panerai boutique. The distribution network is wider with Costco. If I were in some hick town in the middle of nowhere, its my only outlet and better than flying to NY or FL or CA. Regards, MTF

xtype

Nov 21, 2013

re: "my only outlet and better than flying"

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AnthonyTsai

Nov 21, 2013

Yes there aren't many models at Costco to choose from

from what I've seen, maybe each Costco has 1 random model or so. Jay Pulli posted that at his Costco that there was an IWC Big Pilot there! That's a very popular IWC model. - AT

MTF

Nov 21, 2013

Bipartisan

xtype, On a personal level, I agree with you. The whole experience is the fun part. I am lucky living in Singapore and Tokyo before, with all brands represented. Putting myself in the shoes of someone out in areas far from horological 'civilisation', I could empathise with at least limited access to a bricks and mortar outlet. I did take possession of my newly built house in Kalamazoo but stayed only 3 nights before being re-assigned to Singapore! I did not see any Panerai watches in Kalamazoo ;

jonrus

Nov 20, 2013

Patek Philippe also..

I saw a PP for sale in Costco about 1-2 years ago. I was surprised as well. I asked to look at the watch. The certificate was inside the booklet to view. The watch was originally sold in Israel, and somehow landed in Costco at Midwest USA. Open papers!

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