Omega

WatchProSite Moderator Patrick_y, was a fan of magic and illusion shows since a young age. Not only because he enjoyed watching magic shows, but he enjoyed the challenge of figuring out how a trick was done. In this article, our moderator peels back the c...  

The only reasonable theory to explain the Rolex scarcity also,bravo !!!

The Rolex is a slightly different machine. But there are definitely some parts are from the same playbook or a similar playbook!

I also suggest watching on YouTube "Century Of The Self".

Too bad I can't download it and watch it on the plane! Thank you for the suggestion and thank you for reading! Looks like good content!

...I also wonder about skipping the LA market. Also, how many watches were gifted to 'influencers' who are expected to hype them on social media. These (I assume) would not be part of the limited series...

Thank you for reading this long analysis.

Let's all be blissful sheep! Baaaa baaaa blisss! Who wants a hoof massage? Baaa? Now the question is... Is it better to be the shepherd or the sheep dog? Or is it still better to be the sheep? Hmm... If WatchProSite didn't exist, life would be a lot easie... 

My team built one of the first and largest flash sale sites in the US, it was like running amazon for an hour a day, and people went nuts for what was ultimately overstock the brands couldn't get rid of any other way. Then we built one of the largest grou... 

Although the brands are now calculating what the grey market is doing and adjusting their strategies to be more in sync. But they're not always actively manipulating the market at the micro-level. I remember Woot! and these other flashsale websites. They ... 

I also think that the luxury watch market is fascinating case study for both human psychology and general market forces. Look at chrono24 for example - they are considered to be "the watch exchange" by many. But it is in fact a sort of dark pool, only ask... 

People definitely matter. And that's why I love the independents. You get to build such a close relationship with them! And you learn so much about the watch industry! Also, another reason why watches have gotten so expensive. So many new dealers have to ... 

Someone please wake me when when Rolex & Casio join up for the Subshock. Good read BTW in describing some twisted human behavior.

Marketers have to eat and their hungry children demand expensive organic milk and beluga caviar! So they have to come up with these crazy ideas to get consumers to buy things!

Bad behavior is everywhere! I wished bad behavior put me to sleep. I'd sleep really soundly on airplanes then. So much bad behavior on planes and by travelers. Why do people have to stand right behind you when you queue. Give me a full meter please, espec... 

Do you think their best strategy now is to continually perpetuate scarcity (always sold out even online), maintain crazy grey market prices, and rollout the now tried and true bundling strategy in stores? I think this is what they may want to do now.

Ultimately, for this particular launch, I still see that Swatch Group wants to make some money. So while I say in the beginning that "chatter" is a higher priority than revenue, ultimately, in this particular case, Swatch Group can achieve both. So I imag... 

…the cops had to be called to do crowd control outside the Swatch store! Can post a Twitter link to a video but can’t remember if that’s allowed or not. Best E.

The only thing that's not allowed is telling everyone your Twitter handle or your Instagram/Facebook user name in the hopes that people from this site will subscribe. That's not cool. Imagine if I was using your home to further my business. You'd say, "Pa... 

That’s reasonable. Well, since I posted there’s been ample press coverage of the crowds - although Hodinkee’s article didn’t mention HK. A friend in Tokyo said the shops remained closed after the police stepped in; the queue in Shibuya went around multipl... 

To most people, the MoonSwatch will be super desirable. People love buying conversation starters and impressing the public at large. On our website though, we are less impressed, since a large percentage of the readers on our website are much more incline... 

which also led to very interesting answers. I really want to thank you for that, dear Patrick! For me, the bottom line is: we are obviously being manipulated more than we want to admit. But in the end we only lose ourselves in these relentlessly grinding ... 

Ultimately, we must realize the important points of life and this requires active introspection, calming the mind, and stepping back to see the big picture.

Normally on their death bed or very late in life do they realize the big picture.

Thank you for sharing your comments and reading my long article MTR! Your thoughtful comments are very much appreciated! Hopefully our fellow consumer brothers and sisters realize that we do have a choice. But with the fact that there are millions of newl... 

Thank you for reading and commenting Bobbe! In San Francisco the line of people stretched around the block and was probably 200 meters long! It was crazy! I interviewed about six of the people waiting in line, the rule in San Francisco is that everyone ca... 

Sadly the “I have it too” mentally is to far gone and I think it’s irreversible. The forces involved in hyping Omega this days are beyond believe, there’s not one social media outlet where you don’t see gazillion podcasts, opinions about how much better O... 

Fully agree in every point!

Your line, "don't even consider using electricity or my precious time to study it" is especially funny and very accurate! People will always have their opinions, unfounded or not. Fortunately, here, on WatchProSite, we're slightly more fact driven than op... 

Markets have been flooded for nearly 15 years with cheap money. Helping manufactures, ADs and the grey market. Without that amount of cash flowing in our economic circles no-one would pay factor x of a Swatch on the day of release. Not talking about moon ... 

Although... It doesn't take a lot of capital to buy two $260 USD watches... So hence, why I didn't mention the cheap money and low interest rates in this article. But you're absolutely right! It has helped the rest of the watch market as a whole.

Yes! Lots of bubbles. Who knows if the watch bubble will ever pop. In the 2009 financial crisis, watches were still going up.

Now I’m really curious if indeed Swatch group will have a phase 2 with wider release. But they’d have to allow online purchase given the few physical Swatch stores.

So far, I'm certain there will be a wider release. How wide remains to be seen. But definitely a wider release coming.

Great read.

I did drive by my local Swatch store in the early morning (or late night) since I couldn't sleep. I saw a huge line! I'll wait for the subsequent drop(s), I imagine if I still want one then, I'll get it then. But so far my prediction of around 10,000 unit... 

I know it was a very long article. Thank you for reading it and commenting!

You nailed it pretty well!!! It looks like nowadays we are unconscious victims of marketing. Best. René

Hopefully now you're armed with a little insight, so now you know a bit more about what to avoid!

Great analysis I believe it makes sense and that’s the only reason why such big huge companies are not fighting the grey market. I think it’s a investment that will not pay out well, the reason is because they cheapened the watch, omega is on the planet b... 

Heck, they don't even need to give me a kickback! They can just gift me one of those darned MoonSwatch timepieces! Hmm... what color do I want? Hmm... Joking aside. I can't accept a watch anyways, not even a MoonSwatch as WatchProSite moderators promise n... 

Definitely no kickback from Omega nor Swatch nor SwatchGroup. They're probably slightly unhappy at me for posting their game plan! (Don't be mad at me Swatch Group, you know I like your products... I'm planning to write really nice things about the Bregue... 

Moderator Patrick is gotta go 👺 he’s a whistle blower and saying al the secrets. For me I hope it goes bad their plan and this watch fails, so other big brands don’t try to do the same thing and in a year from now when I’ll find a speedmaster that I like ... 

Your hopes are probably shared by many readers on WPS! And I commend your bravery for mentioning it. But so far, the launch has been going well. So far the reaction has been very much on point. Successful so far for Swatch Group, Omega, and Swatch Watches... 

Maybe those are real customers just looking? A hired crew of people being paid to stand in line by the store to generate buzz? Who knows. But there might be a run on the real Omegas as well!

I was looking into the consultation and the speedmaster but I no longer have a pull for it, I lost all interest. I wouldn’t be shocked if they paid people to stand in line all day

I don't know where you reside, but if you're near San Francisco, the team at the SF store is great. Ask for Andre, he's realistic, he knows it's partially a game, he'll help you navigate the game, he doesn't try to BS you, etc. I still like my Moonwatch. ... 

Patrick, you called their game plan exactly. Great prediction of social media logarithmic marketing.

I had a large late dinner on Friday evening and found that I couldn't go to sleep. I had eaten a late lunch and a very gluttonous dinner. Shame on me! When I first saw the queue of people on Stockton street, I thought it was a homeless encampment (no disr... 

Threads like these are what makes WPS so worthwhile and educating. Keep up the good work and the format! Let's prevent people drifting off to FB and IG. Cheers from Old Europe Richard

Why thank you so much Richard for the kind words! That's what we strive to do! Offer a bit more depth than FB or IG. But for those who want their visual cortex stimulated, those are good places to go! Here, we try to stimulate both the visual cortex and t... 

I began my career in the early 1990s working for a marketing agency in London. Above my desk was a poster. It showed a pile of excrement on a plate, surrounded by halogen lamps. Under this crude image was the caption: "It's a piece of sh*t but it's tastef... 

Best cordial regards, Abel