Is Buying a Watch or Jewelry Duty-Free Worth It?

Rolex appreciates

Rolex appreciates

IME Duty Free is marked up more then the savings you get…

My best experiences have been purchasing from Palisades Jewelers in Englewood, NJ – a real store, not just a PO Box somewhere. They have a vast selection of new, almost new and vintage watches though their biggest selection is Rolex. They are scrupulously honest, very competitively priced and they will stand behind the merchandise. I have bought 5 watches over the years and have always been happy. Good luck. BTW, you’re showing your age! You can’t GIVE a watch to a young person!

http://www.chronoshark.com/c-20-luxury-boutique.aspx?pmc=FB&utm_campaign=socialmedia&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=ssfacebook&a_aid=723

Never pay retail. And definitely price shop. E.G., Tourneau in NY.. you can easily get 20% off listed prices or more. I bought a Blancpain and I think was able to get 25% off. A friend got a higher amount (shocking to me) on a Jaeger le Culture (Spelling?). Different Tourneau in NY will also give different prices. My experience was the one near the Time Warner Center gave much better discounts than the flagship (which would feign they give O, which is a lie). You must show you are ready to buy “right there and now”. Remember to only buy from an authorized dealer — you don’t want problems down the road with the warranty (although my experience is sending a watch back to service is always the customers fault). Its like buying a car. There is the MSRP where every dealer says they can’t sell below, but there are dealers out there (and most of them) that will provide a meaningful discount to close a sale that second. That is how it works for watches. Oh yea if you are comparinig to duty free — don’t pay taxes on a watch! Have it shipped out-of-state! So not only are you paying below MSRP, you don’t pay tax as well! IN terms of price negotiation, rolex are rare to get discounts on (perhaps that has changed in the past 3 years, but I don’t know).. they hold their value better and enough folks will pay retail for rolex. Same with Patek I imagine. But given fact that the vast majority of watches lose 25-40% of their value immediately after purchasing, their is clearly room to negotiate on the MSRP on the vast majority of watches. I would never buy a watch unless I was getting minimum 20-25% off and I would target 30% off MSRP as my buy price. And I would NEVER pay taxes on it.

The key is the monitor the FX fluctuations … Last March, I bought a rolex datejust 2 from LHR when the GBP was at 1.47. A watch that would have cost $8200 including taxes in the Texas was only $6300 at LHR.

The added benefit of buying from the airport duty free is that you get 100% of the VAT back as opposed to 2-300 GBP fee they typically charge.

As one of the others posted – figure out the exact model you want and note the model number so you can call around. As the MSRP for rolex and many top watches is set by the watchmaker in each country, there is often times little variability.

I would recommend two websites , Gems4me.com amd Luminouswatchshop.com which have a lot of great unusual watches to choose from. And since my boss is an such avid reader of your blog and finds your blog most educational and rewarding he will treat you extremely well on any watch you liked or even barter.

Or you could go to Bangkok when the big department stores have their annual “Watch Show”. Lots of high end and super high end models on display and for sale. I used to be in town quite often for the one at Zen in CentralWorld. Now that the Red Shirts burned it down though I don’t know if there is another outlet for that particular one. I think the Central Chidlom has one too. Usually November-ish. The big jewelers in Bangkok like Gems Gallery are quite flexible on price and typically do not charge tax to foreigners. I have never shopped for watches there though so I don’t know what sort of selection there might be. All you have to do is show your passport and they fill our some paperwork. Of course you have to declare it when you get home so you may or may not have to pay duty. None of my jewelry purchases have ever caused me to pay anything despite my being over the limit.

Rolexes in general do NOT appreciate. Only certain coveted special editions do (e.g. early edition steel Daytonas). They do however hold their value better than most watch brands. The most important question is what do you want. It is not a bargain if you don’t wear it frequently. For men, there are two primary forms of jewelry that we wear, rings and watches. Therefore, watches are expression of your tastes and not necessarily a functional addition to your wardrobe. If you have small hands, a large diameter watch will look out of place on your wrist. If you have large hands, a Patek Nautilus will look dwarfed on your wrist. Most watches can be bought in the US with a substantial discount. It depends on the retailer, and those that do tend to only do so for their best customers (not necessarily the biggest spenders but customers that buy regularly).
Also mechanical watches will need to be serviced and occasionally, albeit rarely, break within the warranty period. Most people do not consider the maintenance involved with a mechanical watch though infrequent is not trivial. I personally favor visiting a non-duty free retailer. Watches are frequently shipped out-of-state to save on sales tax. Know that as X x has posted that cost is typically 50-60% of price. Your target discount should be 30-35% of the price. X x is correct that Rolexes are rarely discounted beyond 20%. If you are going to buy a Rolex you should get a limited edition i.e. coveted by collectors. As for what is considered desirable, you should check the forums. In any case, there should be no reason to buy from an unauthorized retailer. I can recommend shops within the US (Michigan, LA) and in Asia (Singapore). Getting service from a duty free shop is a hopeless venture. I will reiterate. Get what you like to wear.

Wow, lots of watch experts here. What are your thoughts on Panerai?

It looks very nice. Historically, the movement has not been the most reliable thought that might have changed recently.

I suggest you check the Watchuseek forums, they are very informative.

Absolutely …. I recently purchased a TAG watch in Singapore. Was approximately30% cheaper than purchasing it in the USA. A couple of pointers. Pay with a Credit Card that does not have a foreign transaction fee. Purchase it in the airport on your way out of the country to eliminate any VAT taxes. The watch came with a full factory warranty.

Wearing a good watch has nothing to do with telling time. For that you get a Timex. Just like driving a BMW or Porsche is not about getting from point A to point B.

Brian – what watch did you end up buying?

I just came back from Canada with a watch that I really liked. It’s an Orient automatic. I paid about $265 USD for it. As I tried to find the watch model number online, I couldn’t so I matched it to a picture from an online retailer. Their price was $170! I contacted Orient Watch USA and found it although the model numbers are different, the watches are identical. Hence, if you buy duty free, you better know what watch you want and the prices in the USA or risk getting ripped off like I did due to impulse buying.