Horological Meandering

WIS Community - I am new to the site and relatively new to watches over the last few years. I have a pretty basic question for the long-time watch gurus here. As a general rule, how willing are watch boutiques to show you their collections and let you try... 

But when I was in LA last year I spent several hours visiting the boutiques on Rodeo Drive and found them all to be friendly and very accommodating. I visited the AP, Vacheron Constantin, IWC, Panerai, and Blancpain boutiques and they were all more than h... 

I have had at least a handful of overly pushy experiences in both PP and VC sections of a few major watch retailers here. But it seems like it is worth trying directly at the brand boutiques and hopefully will get a better result.

My experiences have varied, and there was one in particular where the salesperson came off as very pushy and desperate to make a sale. But they were all happy to let me try on whatever I wanted to. As long as you're not taking up an excessive amount of th... 

One thing I didn't say in that PM is that you need to start going to the auction previews. You'll see stuff in the metal there that you'll never see at an AD or Boutique and you can have all the time in the world with the pieces. The drawback is sometimes... 

I will definitely try a few spots over the next handful of weeks. I must say this is quite the encouraging community - thanks for all the friendly advice.

And I am planning to go see it in person if I can. I’m hoping it will be a real chance to check out the latest and greatest from SIHH and get inspired for a 2019 purchase

NT

Usually in the states, boutiques are friendly without the arrogance/snob factor. In Europe and Asia, customer service experience is mainly based on appearances, unless the sales staff already know you. It's usually hit or miss, but NYC boutiques usually h... 

I would suggest visiting boutiques for sure. At brand boutiques, you can go to learn, try things on, chat a bit. There's no pressure that I've found. AP, FPJ, VC, Breguet, etc. It's been good and I think you'll enjoy it. I like Jay's advice to check out p... 

In Miami, a guy at such a place told me about how PP was connected to the illuminati. 🕴🕴🕴 Not sure if I'd call that a hit or a miss because it's weird but makes for an anecdote...

I’m personally supportive of the Illuminati, so it’s a hit in my mind. They deserve first crack at the application pieces and you wouldn’t be surprised to find out that they’re behind the grey market 5711 prices too.

No judgement about the topic of the pitch, only the dealer.

I think it would be foolish to try to sell watches with this premise.

Monday afternoon, probably a perfect time. If the champagne’s already opened up from Saturday, it will go bad and go to waste. If it’s unopened, the boutique staff should enjoy the remnants of an opened bottle at the end of a hard day. It helps if you hav... 

For me whenever i am near a shop (in EU)where they sell indies i need to enter and look and try a few pieces on the wrist. Never had a pushy experience here , allways very kind and willing to show the special pieces . Just tell them the truth ,, your just... 

Oddly, the worst experience I had was at the boutique I wanted to visit most. Cellini has some lovely independent watches, but they were in a temporary location and I found the salespeople to be not helpful/ the judging type. I hope to visit them the next... 

Really good selection of Independents - MB&F, Urwerk, De Bethune, Greubel Forsey, Richard Mille etc. My experience with their sales staff is that, yes, they are most definitely in the business of selling watches and making money, but I think the vast majo... 

I think the boutiques know that watch buying is a process-- it's about the thrill of the hunt -- and that a potential buyer may need to visit a shop several times over a few months or perhaps a year before committing to buying a very expensive watch.