I am sure there are examples of plain profiteering, but the impression that I get is that most people who did so signed up because they liked the look of the ST Limited Edition. And it does looks good, reverse panda is a good look.
Let's face it, there are more Omega LEs than you can shake a stick at, so when commitment to an orer had to be made, there was no guarantee whatsoever that this would trade at a premium. (Speedmaster Solar Impulse prices, anyone??)
So people signed up and waited.
Roll on to ST delivery time.
I asked myself this - If someone told me that (for almost any) watch I had ordered but not worn or even received, that someone would pay me £2k not to collect it, I would take the £2k. Almost every time.
That is not profiteering.
It is a simple statement that I cannot pass by an opportunity for a free £2k.
If someone offered any one of us a free £50k, we would almost all take the money.
If someone offerd us a free £50, none of us would, we would own the watch.
The only difference is the size of the number, and we would all (if we were honest) be able to point to a number that would make the difference. Below this, collect the watch. Above that, collect the free money.
EVERY one of us, all that changes is the sum of money that makes that decision.
I love my watch collection, but £2k still goes a long way.
So I am not suprised many STs are being passed on. In simple watch terms it is the equivalent of getting a free (used) Tudor Black Bay or similar.
In these terms, the watch enthusiast can easily justify shifting on the ST on the basis that he gets another (decent) watch he wants, free gratis and for nothing.
I think people here get far too hot under the collar about "trading".
I sold a watch recently that I never intended to sell.
A potential buyer (whom I had refused to sell this watch to before) asked my advice on another example of the same watch I had. I gave him honest comments (based on photos, not an advert) and told him that whether it was a good deal all depended on what price was being asked for the watch.
He told me, and I realised he was intending to pay more than 4 times what my watch cost me for an inferior example. So I told him that if he was willing to pay that, he could buy mine instead, and own a better example as a result.
Which he did. He is delighted, I am pleased too. I miss the watch, but not overly.
I do not feel the slightest bit guilty, but I made quite a large profit on it.
I have merely been lucky in owning something that was quietly appreciating.
I have no doubt it will appreciate more, and the buyer will also make a profit
Watches do not do that all the time, so I am happy when they do. A little over a long time, or a lot over a few months, all that changes is the scale. The principal remains the same.
Dave