Some of you will have seen the You-tube videos by a dealer, Paul Thorpe. In his recent offering, 'what it's like to be a watch dealer ' , he described dealing in used watches as a dangerous occupation, a high-risk business. He gave blood curdling accounts of three attacks, robberies, he had suffered, one of which could have been fatal. He said being a dealer was more risky than being a soldier.
Any thoughts?
Last edited by paskinner; 1st September 2016 at 17:19.
Physicaly dangerous? Doubtful, no more than most commodities, the main risk or 'danger' to the small time watch dealer is the minefield of fake, stolen or the con. it only takes a few bad deals or refunds of a high value item to wipe out your business.
I think dealing in any high value desirable product is potentially dangerous in respect of fakes, theft, cons etc really. Most danger is to your bank account than physical.
With common sense and reasonable precautions I don't see it as very dangerous. What are your thoughts ?
All trading is dangerous to a degree. When I was working in a shop I got armedly robbed for the contents of the tills (all of £200) What ups the danger is being known for being an easy target. If a shop gets done over once with a good haul for the robbers, the same thing will happen repeatedly. One branch in the chain I worked for got robbed repeatedly, as the conditions were ripe for it.
Only if you don’t check H&V first.
Don't think any soldiers, past or present, will agree with that daft statement
I did know a jewellery not particularly nice chap (treated a dear family member badly) but he equally had something nasty happen to him. Tied up and threatened in his own home by a gang. He was gold dealing so you may meet rough trade in that line.
It was a classic remote farmhouse no one near to raise the alarm. However much I dislike him he didn't deserve that. Also put me off living in remote places.
So I suspect you'd always have to keep things discrete don't be on face book saying here's my latest AP Royal Oak with easily identiable location.
Paul Thorpe says he and a colleague were ambushed as they left their shop in East Grinstead, and were beaten unconscious . He says that is the third robbery and that other dealers face similar threats.
It sounds awful, I just find it hard to think the UK is that dangerous and lawless. Mind you, my local Rolex store has been attacked several times, it now has big doormen and a big locked door too. In Lisbon, where we live part of the year, each Jewellery shop has an armed policeman.
I'm sure friends of mine who've served in places such as the Faulklands, Northern Ireland, Iraq and most recently Afganistan would beg to differ.
We should not forget that Paul Thorpe is linked (by family possibly) to West Sussex Watches. See thread here, http://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.ph...om-West-Sussex, which links to previous threads on the subject.Originally Posted by paskinner
Agreed
Wide-o self aggrandizing watch dealer makes YouTube video of himself telling people how dangerous his career is while sitting in his garden.
The only dangerous thing in this case is youtubes capability to broadcast that sort of onanism to its slack jawed fantasist consumers.
Do you realize that in one of the robberies Paul was attacked and had pretty much every tooth in his mouth destroyed? Have you seen what his teeth currently look like? What has the fact that he is sitting in his garden while making the video have to do with anything?
In view of the fact that Paul has suffered serious physical harm while doing his job I suggest you retract your silly comments.
The only risk I've ever been open to was the risk of heart disease with all the cakes, coffees and lunches I've had with TZ members when I've done face to face deals!
Why not follow your own advice and review your own posting history.
If you start now, you'll be well on your way to finishing by the end of the weekend, without breaks of course.
Leave him alone, somebody has to be the village idiot on TZ-UK.
I don't know the chap, and I won't be buying anything from him. But, for me, he is perhaps the most effective user of You Tube to promote his watch business. Worth having a look because he has the rare knack of appearing 'natural' on camera.
I suspect it will prove a highly succesful business move on his part. Probably the cheapest way of reaching an international audience of watch enthusiasts. It will be interesting if other dealers start following the same model. There is room there for dealers to make their mark. And he does make some interesting points.
Rough trade eh?
Good luck everybody. Have a good one.
Probably just been eating too many sweets
I seem to recall the report in the local newspaper of the last robbery he suffered. The paper made much of the fact that the police ended their investigation with what could only be called indecent haste. Hmm.
I met Paul back in January, he did explain he only meets at his office near Gatwick for safety reasons, his history of the armed robberies is in various news channels on google.
He actually really knows his stuff and the 16700 Pepsi GMT that I bought from him was absolutely mint and gets more wrist time than my others, he was a pleasure to deal with,
Three posts in six months, out of which two in defense of Paul Thorpe. What a coincidence.
Oh I dunno it wasn't dangerous all the time,in fact it wasn't dangerous most of the time.
Ballooning down the Falls road can't be as dangerous as selling watches for a living surely (not that I've done either).
How ineffectual of you.
Paul's added another video to his channel this morning as a dealer friend of his in Brighton, 'Pat the Watch' has been robbed a few hours ago at his home:
https://youtu.be/h8q7vKlDkRo
Paul's interviewed his friend and stated the golden rules of never keeping stock in your home and never wearing a watch in public.
Why would I own watches of I wouldn't wear them in public?
Someone who lies about the little things will lie about the big things too.
Yes - that's would seem to be an unintended consequence of turning a hobby into a profession.
It doesn't matter how discrete someone is when they're out in public; they can be first tracked / researched online then observed to see where they go - assuming that they don't broadcast their haunts on social media. You never know who is looking over your shoulder.
I'm not saying that the victim was particularly careless; though Paul's advice about not keeping stock at home and not wearing a watch in public makes sense.
Looking at the actual stats - being a farmer is where the real risk is.
I'm now curious why we suddenly seem to have multiple threads on this individual?
If you follow him on YouTube, can you send a request?
Since they were in his area, some members may be interested if he would do a video about Ludgate Watches and West Sussex Watches, about which one reads so much.
H
The guy comes across as a total ambulance chaser.
'I'm just going to go down there and see if he is ok...and while I'm at it , interview him for my YouTube channel '
Good luck everybody. Have a good one.
unless he owns a "Watches of Mogadishu" store, i cant see it being any more dangerous than being a Dairy owner (corner shop in UK)
I am not a subscriber, neither am I a fan. But I am intrigued . There seems a hidden aspect to all this, why not tell us what it is. Because presumably he won't.
this guy knows how to use You Tube; he is going to build up a serious following. He seems interested in the international market. And some of what he says is just good sense. But then that is the skill, hook,your own message onto perfectly sensible observations.
'Paul Thorpe' is an interesting sign of changes in marketing. Imagine 'Watchfinder' showing the stock on You Tube. The world changes so quickly.
And I do think he is genuine in his fear of violent crime.
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Last edited by paskinner; 3rd September 2016 at 11:32.
Ah... A quick google reveals many interesting accounts of these companies. Most illuminating.
His company is called 'Watchdealers co U.K.'. I had a quick look but can find no complaints against this company. Now that he has many 'hits' on You Tube any flaws will become quickly known.Publicity is a great cleanser.
i will reserve judgement for now. But I would not deal with him, just out of innate caution.
His other one is items of beauty / east grinstead watch company.
I wouldn't like to speculate about whether or not he has a link above and beyond name to J Thorpe from West Sussex / ludgate watches.
Anyway. It's been discussed before - http://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.ph...ead-used-Rolex
Fascinating videos. A really interesting collection to watch. A few strong visual tells IMHO. Don't think I'd deal with the guy personally for a Timex, never mind a Rolex.
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