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Joining the conversation a bit late, but yes - this was not handled properly.
You have all the right to be annoyed and disappointed. I would also question the strategy of small "special edition" followed by the regular one. I don't think a small independent brand should follow the example of large conglomerates and their marketing strategies. I think the steel ones won't be easy to sell knowing that a tantalum edition exists. They should have followed FP Journe and made the whole series special, ie in tantalum.
Grönegraaf Tantalum was heavily oversold. A raffle?!
So, it seems the tantalum version of the Grönograaf was up for reservation a lot longer than needed to sell 25 pieces. They‘ve written, that they’ve done a raffle to decide who gets a tantalum Grönograaf. Of course, that‘s easy to write, but can‘t really ...
If you bought the tantalum Grönograaf then that's what you should get.
Seems like some brands, such as H. Moser, are doing these things to build a mailing list or ???? Obviously no one should be forced to settle for a stainless-steel version if you reserved tantalum. Personally don't feel this is a good business strategy, as...
You have a decision to make. Personally, if i reserved a tantalum and was offered a SS instead then just cancel the order.
There are many excellent choices within that price range (or less). No worries, in a year or so as this bubble comes back down to Earth we'll all remember how various manufacturers behaved... and choose our future purchasing of timepieces accordingly. Hav...
I received the same email.
I can appreciate the demand for the tantalum but disagree with the process. I placed my reservation early in the morning as soon as I saw the notice from the brothers in my inbox. Being in the US I imagine the time difference put me at a disadvantage. May...
Yeah, same here.
The tantalum watch was up for reservation for 3-4 hours. I‘ve send in my reservation less than 10 minutes after the website going live. Also bought my first Grönefeld when delivery time was still 2-4 months and they were happy about every single customer....
Tough situation but I'm not against the lottery system.
While a first come first serve approach might seem most fair, that also might lead to buying behaviors that perhaps they don't want to promote. For example, the MAD1 lottery was partly to deal with less supply than demand and also partly to try to change ...
Fair points, even though I do not fully agree.
The MAD one was designed to be a lottery from the very beginning. Everyone who applied for it knew, what they were in for. The Grönograaf preordering process didn‘t mention anything like this at any time until we received the email almost a week after sig...
MB&F (and Czapek) handle orders with open transparency.
Openness and transparency was largely discussed at Watches & Wonders only a few short months ago. Perhaps some manufacturers need to (re)watch the video from that seminar.
Agree, a different situation than the Mad1 and clearly a response to a mistake rather than a plan. I don't think there was anyway some were not going to be disappointed once the mistake was made.
That said, no one was harmed, seems an honest mistake, beyond a sincere apology I wouldn't expect compensation.
Same here I’m afraid
I celebrated too soon. Received the ‘raffle mail’ offering the SS compensation prize but not sure I’m going to take given I was particularly interested in the Tantalum (and pointing out that the SS is slightly lighter and probably more comfortable to wear...
That's not cool...
Seems to me they're copying that MAD Edition RED watch from MB&F which was also raffled, but they announced this raffle thing too late after people already ordered the watch, whereas MB&F announced the raffle thing from the beginning when the watc...
Ahh, that too!
Yes, in the past, on WatchProSite, we had elaborate raffles. I remember the Woo brothers would write down the names of members who entered the raffle, these names would then go on individual Post-Its that were all stuck to their living room wall. Then, th...
The smart way of getting this dilemma resolved would have been an increased quantity of tantalum watches.
Who really cares whether it’s 25 or maybe 50 timepieces? They would only have to order an additional batch of cases.
with some knowledge into highly limited editions and allocations
I would assume, that some ultra important customers were not quick enough for a "first come first serve". So now they needed to change the allocation and the email is what they tell the mortals.
I understand your frustration but i know of a few other indie brands that were already sold out way before the release and if you weren’t in the know then you didn’t got any chance to get one .
. I know its tough for such a small brand with high demand to think of a fair and honest system, there will always be people upset. And I don’t think the SS version is a downgrade imho
So, did all of the people you know get a tantalum piece? It‘s never honest and fair to change the set of rules after opening the orderbooks.
And sorry, but everyone (ok, let‘s say 99,9% of all people) who know watches will tell you a 188 piece ss version at 155k is a downgrade vs a 25 piece tantalum version at 165k.
In a time where steel sports watches are way more in demand then a lets say gold versions I don’t think its a real downgrade
Ofcourse if you look at the exclusivity (188 vs 25) I understand your point but still a SS version is as beautiful as the Tantalum imho . I am not familiar with the email you got from them so I can’t say if its fair or not . If i was in the market for a G...
Sorry to hear
The brothers won't find a one size fits all solution here, but a third case material is probably best. Too many of the recent independent releases have been sold out before they hit the public, so collectors will assume the same VIPs were accommodated in ...
I know at least 2 fellow purists who got the 'tantalum' version allocated - both of them, it is the first Gronefeld they've ordered...
so I wouldn't personally question fairness of allocation IMHO. if you like the watch, SS or Tantalum wouldn't make a steep difference in terms of joy... if it is a question of being 1 off 25....then it is a personal choice. Best, mahesh.,
Tantalum vs steel makes the big difference for me actually. If it would‘ve been a 188 piece tantalum and 25 piece steel version, I would‘ve still gone for tantalum
And again, this is not about not getting the tantalum, this is about a company creating hype for days and giving customers information on what‘s going to happen and what one then needs to do and afterwards not being prepared the slightest to deal with the...
Feels the Same…
I agree with you. Same situation, and feels exactly the same. Certainly v disappointed ☹️.
I understand your point...in deed it would have been better
nevertheless small companies often are learning by doing and most often the watchmaker is the one behind the communications not a specialist (I at least know this for fact with few Indies). I believe they'll learn from each mistake...like we all do.
Seeing who posted what before/after release on social media and who got one hardly makes it seem like a mistake tbh
This is not against these people who got one to be clear.
Joining the conversation a bit late, but yes - this was not handled properly.
You have all the right to be annoyed and disappointed. I would also question the strategy of small "special edition" followed by the regular one. I don't think a small independent brand should follow the example of large conglomerates and their marketing ...
