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In a thought-provoking original post, WatchProSite member 'enjoythemusic' ignites a crucial discussion about the escalating prices of Swiss timepieces. He challenges the industry's pricing strategies, questioning whether modern manufacturing efficiencies should lead to more accessible luxury rather than ever-increasing costs. His inquiry prompts the community to consider the true value proposition of Swiss watches in an evolving global market.
I might consider British and perhaps US brands, depending on the style and finishing. No insult intended to either country or brand. It’s an excellent question that you are posing.
I have a soft spot for Swiss watches but, innovation and quality are not exclusively available in Switzerland.
To your first question are they pricing themselves out of the market, Not really as they heavily researched and to some extent know just what their customers and the market will bear and tolerate. I think it's important to remember and maybe even point out why these companies exist in the first place and it is not to be their customers' friend or even to be liked by them. It is quite simply to make a profit and as much of it as possible and this is the only thing that really makes any item so ex
And I’ll raise another question for the learned members of our forum. Without hard data, rather solely based on anecdotal data ingrained in my mind from just being in this space as a buyer over the last two or more decades, it seems to be that Rolex have had the more tempered price increases over the last two decades or so and at the same time seem to have leveraged modern technology to bring a better product to market along with those price increases. Their product is more expensive, but it als
appear to be produced in small batches, so there doesn't seem to be a ton of inventory risk. Modern Swiss watches appear to be the preferred currency of corruption and money Laundering in much of the world, so the higher the price the better from those use cases. You are looking at it from the prospective of a watch buyer / user / collector and that may be the wrong lens here.
Agree, Rolex pricing for SS seem rather sane while also showcasing real-world movement improvements in not just accuracy, but in longevity between service intervals. Rolex also decorates their movements... even in places never seen by the customer. For other 'Swiss' mechanical timepiece manufacturers, the story might be starkly different. Seems to me even small efforts of movement decoration are being ignored by some Big Box manufacturers, or they only decorate a tiny bit that might be seen in a
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