Could be down to Scotland being much less w*nky than England :devilish:
Could be down to Scotland being much less w*nky than England :devilish:
Still not sure on the relevance to be honest. Probably a tenner of material in a sterling silver fountain pen. You're not paying primarily for the raw materials.
Anyway my point is that folk are perfectly entitled to not give two hoots about brand image, but we're kidding ourselves if we don't acknowledge that the majority of people do care. It's not just a Rolex thing, most luxury watch brands are in the same boat, it's just Rolex are amongst the best at branding. As per the benefits in my last post, it does have a material impact to the end user beyond just showing off (which I take from your other comment is one of your main concerns).
But all that said, there's absolutely nothing wrong with someone deciding they don't want that association or aren't comfortable wearing a watch of that nature.
Verv and Templogin, excellent, instructive, and amusing posts here, thank you.
Like most things in life, if the purchase isn’t for “you”, don’t bother.
If it “sings” to you, you know what to do.
Thank you all for your answers, and especially for people who took the time to share some real life experience and to bring some variety in the thread!
Rest assured I'm not torturing myself to know what to do, I just enjoy discussing and learning, so I can give the credit where it's due and continue to be passionate about watches in general.
I'm aware of many facets of rolex and this whole image thing (which is not specific to rolex, but they just tend to be the best at it), I just wanted to know what else is about them, and a lot of answers there have been very instructive!
Rolex was to me, the common man's branded watch. A nice one nonetheless but very ordinary.
After abstaining from watch purchases for some years, i was surprised to find that i can no longer walk into a rolex AD and buy a simple submariner without having to put my name on a waiting list..
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I'm absolutely not interested in any brand name, if a product is quality made and has a long lifespan they can put the name 'Shit' on the tag, it would be fine by me.
Really interesting thread.
I've owned a rolex or 2 bought them as I like my watches iconic.
Navitimer and Monaco are similar iconic pieces I have
My tastes though run to quality not quantity.
Omega are decent but Jesus h they have more limited editions than unlimited editions,how can they be taken seriously.
I would much rather have less "things"but nicer things.
Rolex fall into that category for me.
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Okay, it should read 'common working professional'. Every other lawyer, accountant, sales man, insurance agent, property broker wears a rolex. The investment guys, doctors, and dentists tend to do AP or PP...
For me, its usually something from timefactors...
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I'm not sure Rolex are that great in this respect either. You've got the classic Sub (and it's various offshoots) and the Datejust, but then you've got things like the Yachtmaster (and II), the Celinis and the Daytona which all (to a degree, at least) got their own way. Not to mention their quartz models which had a design of their own, largely ignored in the rest of the range (actually one of my favourites!).
Personally, I think Omega has been far more imaginative and exciting as a brand - Yes, they've had some howlers, but also some stunning watches along the years, now mostly forgotten.
Everyone thinks 911 when they think Porsche, but they also made the 914, the 924/944/968 and 928. The Rolex/Porsche analogy is done to death, but in this respect I think it's valid.
I do like a watch that stays true to its heritage (eg the Submariner, the Navitimer or the Speedmaster), but doing something different in the brand isn't a negative in my view.
I find Rolex, on the whole, either a bit too ubiquitous to engender any interest ('familiarity breeds contempt') or plain unattractive (to me, beauty is, of course, in the eye...)
M
https://i.postimg.cc/zXkMDJd3/dENT.jpg
Huge clock?
I didn't try to slag off omega, if anything it is one of my favourite brands, and I love the speedy.
The point in the limited editions, is not here to say they're not good or exciting, it's just saying that they are so many editions in the same range, it's easy to get lost.
Rolex seems to have a few different ranges, but not too many limited editions so it seems easier to not get lost
Struggling to see how Rolexes are 'very ordinary.' The brand does go beyond the 6 digit ones that are caught in the hype these years. Vintage Rolexes are beautifully made and they can be had without walking into an AD. The gilt dial 1016 Haywood posted recently for example, would not be 'the common man's branded watch'.
No, I appreciate that, just saying that while Rolex have some iconic designs, they've also had a few less so...
Omega's dilution of the Speedmaster 'brand' with never-ending 'special editions' isn't something I suspect Rolex would have done, but then I doubt they'd still be making a Speedmaster that was (almost) unchanged from that which went to to the moon.
As with the Sub, they'd probably have fattened and blinged it into something 'better'.
You can't argue against their success though, so they're clearly doing something that the market wants.
Someone mentioned how their marketing has shifted from 'exciting lifestyle' to 'luxury lifestyle' and I guess that's probably why they've increasingly dropped in my interest - I don't aspire to a 'luxury lifestyle' even if I could afford one, but millions do.
M
Totally agree on the market shift for rolex, and it doesn't attract me at all, I wish they were still making simply elegant watches.
I'm more hyped by the great white on the SC that a yachtmaster, no doubt about that!
The speedmaster is incredible for me, I love the fact they kept it almost unchanged for about 50 years, and that they kept the original one without ceramic, shiny hands, applied indices etc...
The fact it still looks perfect in 2021 demonstrates how this design is great in my opinion.
It must have been slightly more than 10, 15 years ago, as a younger WIS, i could get a sub no date for 4500 singapore dollars, sub date for 5500 or a sd for about 6500 singapore dollars from a second hand watch shop... I was surprised how much prices have gone up since then...
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have a rolex passed down a couple of generations, an omega and a cricket. The rolex has only been serviced 3 times in 50 years and still going strong, the other two I repaired only for the sentimental value else it was not economical whatsoever.
Indeed, they should know their business...
https://monochrome-watches.com/top-5...7jOXKV1yph3Hy8
My 16520 were serviced twice in 20 years, still going strong!