Reply With QuoteI suspect that London Luke was passing through and the local economy experienced a sex industry boom, he's very active out east I believe :D :D
I've just arrived in Thailand and was taking an internal flight to the rural north. The old guy sitting next to me looked like a farmer, but was wearing a yellow gold Yachtmaster II. In the row behind was a twenty something student type wearing a rose gold Planet Ocean chronograph (which looked stunning) elsewhere on the plane an 18-20 year old girl was wearing an Omega 'Project Alaska' ... its crisp white dial against her beautiful tan skin looked sensational. This morning at breakfast I spotted a businessman wearing a rose gold Patek Nautilus 5712R,
Back in London, it might be weeks before I 'spot' anyone wearing anything worthwhile, yet this rural outpost is a watch spotters paradise. Work that one out!
I suspect that London Luke was passing through and the local economy experienced a sex industry boom, he's very active out east I believe :D :D
I supose you are aware that in Thailand you can spot the best faked Rolex in the world...On the other hand, local Thais taking airplanes belong for sure to the wealthy part on the society....
Well, the well-heeled Asians are almost always very very brand conscious... HK/Seoul/Tokyo... they absolutely must have branded goods, where there's a decent percentage of well-heeled Americans that really don't care for such things. I think I'm in general agreement with the OP... appearances matter a LOT in Asia.
The chance would be a fine thing ... I'm here with the wife and kids! As Murray Head sang: "I get my kicks above the waistline, sunshine"Originally Posted by Rinaldo1711
No doubt.
As always though, the fact that they can afford some impressive watches doesn't really make them watch savvy, right?
Alex
Originally from Asia my self, i know there are lots of fake watches in Asia.
I've spent quite a lot of time in Thailand over the last two years.
My impression has been that those who have personal wealth in Thailand are in general a lot more likely to have one (or more) fine wrist watch(es) than compared to many/most European countries.
Generally there is a far higher interest amongst educated and well healed Asians for watches than anywhere else. I would rate Singapore as the most watch educated place on earth amonst general population. From the well known Swiss brands with lots of bling to the Japan market watches, and last but not least the small brands for the the more WIS. While Thailand and Malaysia are still full of the fakes (and of course the real things too) fakes are a large tourist industy and every Taxi driver will point out the difference between a real fake and a fake fake. But especially in the large financial capitals and the tourist spots one can spot an unsurpassed amount of high end Swiss exports on wealthy Asian wrists.
Watch savvy or brand conscious? 27% of Richemont's sales are Asia-Pacific (40% inc Japan), behind Europe but more than in the US. For LVMH, which is less watch-oriented than Richemont, Asia is the biggest single market now, more sales there than in Europe or the US.
Just examples, but I think it's fair to say that there is great appetite for branded luxury goods of all sorts. Maybe we see the watches more readily than the handbags..
I heard Luke's wife said to him not to stray whilst in Thailand, but she wouldn't mind if it was with some ladyboys :D
I think we in western Europe tend to be the most relaxed "Brand" conscious . As you go into poorer countries "brands" start to really mean something. Even if fake.
Hey the only way you can tell them apart is that the Ladyboys have better make-up than the women.
Bring us all back a nice Panerai from the local market. :P
I am generally suspicious of people who 'spend a lot of time in Thailand'...
Food maybe?
Culture and climate perhaps?
<tongue firmly in cheek>
Hope you are enjoying yourself, I have just moved along from Koh Samui to Penang in Malaysia and on to Hong Kong next week. I have seen some pretty "serious" watches over the last couple of weeks, some blatant fakes but also a few genuine (to my eyes anyway) Hublots, Pateks and Rolexes. A Japanese chap I was diving with was wearing a Deep Sea which actually didn't look bad at all doing what it was supposedly designed for (albeit at 28m :lol: :lol: ), I had my SD on so we compared sizes :wink:
I have been travelling to Asia at least a couple of times a year for the past 20 years and I must say that I have met a serious number of watch afficionados out here, some of the watch stores/boutiques are IMO amongst the best in the world.
Have fun and stay safe. Cheers, Gerry :thumbright:
Why not?
Surely if they are buying and wearing premium brands then they are discerning buyers?
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
If you are addressing me it's because of my work. Though I must say that I find the food delicious and the Thai culture (as many other asian cultures) and the Buddhism a bit intriguing as well.
And my travels to Thailand also provides me an opportunity to see some fantastic watches which I'd hardly been able to see IRL otherwise. Do a search for "gaysorn" on this forum (no, it has nothing to do with sexuality I'm afraid) and you should hopefully find some pics I've posted before. Not sure if I posted my pics here from this summers exhibition though.
I also spend a lot of time in several other countries, I'm a very suspect guy I guess.
[quote=S.L]If you are addressing me it's because of my work. Though I must say that I find the food delicious and the Thai culture (as many other asian cultures) and the Buddhism a bit intriguing as well.
And my travels to Thailand also provides me an opportunity to see some fantastic watches which I'd hardly been able to see IRL otherwise. Do a search for "gaysorn" on this forum (no, it has nothing to do with sexuality I'm afraid) and you should hopefully find some pics I've posted before. Not sure if I posted my pics here from this summers exhibition though.
I also spend a lot of time in several other countries, I'm a very suspect guy I guess.[/quote:3gl0b2ld]
I suspect you. And refuse to read your logical explanation...
<searches gaysorn>
Did the same and see that I have only posted the pics from th e2008 exhibition here.
For those interested in this years display please click here for a pictorial I did on a Swedish forum: http://tinyurl.com/Art-of-Time-in-Bangkok-2009
It was not as good as 2008 though.
Why not?
Surely if they are buying and wearing premium brands then they are discerning buyers?
In my opinion Far Eastern buyers are more informed when buying luxury goods and parting with money in general. There is a huge WIS community out there ranging from G-Shock addicts to serious Patek collectors. One good thing is all the horological literature available, far more than here in Europe for example. Always great to stock up on them and have something to read up on during the long flights.
Im being skeptical but arent there huge amounts of fakes of there & thats where they oringate from?
Intresting though as everytime i go on a airplane i always spot an array of nice watches!
where you on business class?
Much to my surprise yesterday just wondering around Brighton wearing my Pam 024 I saw a Seamaster GMT ''great white'', Rolex explorer II, Seamaster bond and an AP Royal Oak offshore :shock:
Weeks go by without me seeing anyone wearing anything interesting on their wrist in and around London and then a short couple of hour trip to Brighton and it's watch central :?
Nope ... regular cattle class :)where you on business class?
Yeah but if you drop your hat there you have to kick it all the way home. :lol: :wink:
Still Gok wears a Sub. :lol: :wink:
Cheers,
Neil.
I guess that the northern part of Thailand you went to is Chaing Mai.
Also, I think the old-farmer-guy you saw might be the farm owner :D .
My last flight, the Pilot had a nice watch, a navigator I think.
Hey the only way you can tell them apart is that the Ladyboys have better make-up than the women.
Are you speaking from experience !!! :wink: :shock: :D
when i was in singapore i saw the largest no of datejusts and panerai ever in the hotel and the surroundings
never forget you get the best fakes in Asia which are very hard to distinguish from the real thing
Absolutely. There's a far higher percentage of WISes in their populations. And they think differently from us. To them a watch is a living thing. And they are always careful not to wear a better watch than their boss. Is this something you have ever considered, white boy? :blackeye:
When it comes to watches, I love the Japanese. They are totally obsessed. If you have ever wondered about the shortage of 1940s-1960s European and American military watches … they are all in Japan.
john
THIN is the new BLACK
Very much a status thing also - in Asia they respect the watch a person wears and there is protocol as John posted.
Compare the to the odd (if private) w@nker comment that can happen when certain watches are worn here :?
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
Wow - I'd have to draw a watch onto my arm for it to be worse than my bosses. More money than God and wears some kind of non-brand timex clone! Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks though I suppose.
Luckily I was hat-less, either way I did not make eye contact with the gentleman wearing such timepieces :wink:Yeah but if you drop your hat there you have to kick it all the way home. :lol: :wink:
Still Gok wears a Sub. :lol: :wink:
I'd have thought "watch savvy" meant "I know a bit about the inner workings based on several technologies, and the general history of the wristwatch" more than "I can spend up big" ;). Consider who is more "savvy": a stereotypical buyer of any luxury Swiss watch from the expensive watch cases in the shop - Omega, Breitling, Rolex, IWC, AP - to a man of more limited means looking at a Seiko 5 and wondering whether he should stretch to something with a 6R15 because of its handwinding/hacking capability?Why not?
Surely if they are buying and wearing premium brands then they are discerning buyers?
...but what do I know; I don't even like watches!
You travel economy :shock: I would've thought you would've travelled business :?
I try and avoid economy if I can. Bit snobby, but I just hate having so many people around me.
The title of this thread should be changed to "It's amazing how good the fake watches are in Asia". :mrgreen:
There are lots of WISes in Thailand, including me of course :D . I think we just have passion about watches like you guys. Yes, you can find fake watches very easily there (so are on ebay) but you know what you want so just pop in an AD for a real thing (maybe cheaper when taking tax off). Siamnaliga is a Thai watch forum where members talk/sell watches like here. I understand that the COMEX jedly talked about the other day is now owned by a Thai WIS and one of the forum members just opened his amazing Omega museum.
http://www.siamnaliga.com/forum/index.p ... 0df2e78d3c
http://www.siamnaliga.com/forum/index.p ... 0df2e78d3c
Best wishes,
Jim.
There are a lot of WIS's in Thailand. I work with a lot of thai people and even the guys who are on the lower end of the scale all sport nice watches...not in the league of Omega, Rolex, Panerai etc, but Seiko's, Orient, Citizen etc. Mainly Japanese brands, but I dont see many of them wearing fakes. The most popular watch is the Monster, see a lot of them wear I work.
I'd wager most fakes are sold to tourists/westerners and are not for the domestic market.
I've seen more truly expensive pieces on peoples wrists in Thailand than in any other country, with the exception of Singapore (which can be a little unreal TBH).
Jim, thanks for sharing that. Looks very cool. :)
I'm quite often in Bangkok (will be heading there again on Friday this week as a matter of fact), is that museum open for everyone? If so, where can I find it?
Hi, I haven't been there yet but will definitely go at some point. I understand that it's located in Chachoengsao province which is not too far from Bangkok, just an hour drive. More details about booking a visit can be found here http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/07 ... 106979.php
Hope you enjoy the trip :)
Jim.
Many thanks Jim. :)Hi, I haven't been there yet but will definitely go at some point. I understand that it's located in Chachoengsao province which is not too far from Bangkok, just an hour drive. More details about booking a visit can be found here http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/07 ... 106979.php
Hope you enjoy the trip :)
Jim.
Not sure I'll be able to check it out on this trip but I will definitely try to go there when possible!
[quote=S.L][quote=js]Many thanks Jim. :)
I'm quite often in Bangkok (will be heading there again on Friday this week as a matter of fact), is that museum open for everyone? If so, where can I find it?[/quote]
Hi, I haven't been there yet but will definitely go at some point. I understand that it's located in Chachoengsao province which is not too far from Bangkok, just an hour drive. More details about booking a visit can be found here [url="http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/07/10/lifestyle/lifestyle_30106979.php
Not sure I'll be able to check it out on this trip but I will definitely try to go there when possible![/quote:1ebtjj1v]
Just remember to remove all your Gary Glitter tracks from your Ipod :P
Hi all
yeap, quite a lot of watch enthusiasts in Asia ... i'm from Singapore and wouldn't say i'm a pro but yes - loads of watch enthusiasts here, HKG and Japan.
HKG is a good place to hunt for pre-own/new/vintages ... they seemed to have a very good supply from the region and overseas expats who frequent there too.
Anyway, it'll be interesting to see some places in London and other parts of England when i drop by next wk! :mrgreen:
If anyone is passing through Bangkok in the month to come dont miss the opportunity to visit this event:
I don't necessarily think they know any more about watches but in certain parts of Asia they do like to show their wealth especially in the bigger places like Singapore, KL, Hong Kong even Shanghai. They are awash with top end watch shops and they must be selling or there wouldn't be so many. And watches are just trinkets to a lot of them, there's cars, phones, clothes and so on. Not many places where you'll see someone dump an Enzo half parked in a bit of a space outside a hotel and walk away without even taking a look back it so the watch is just a bit of expensive jewellery to go with the Vertu.
You'll have to settle for a Porsche and a boat, I didn't have my camera when I saw the Enzo :lol: :lol:
Wow - Im definitely going to go check that out 8)
Central dept stores usually have a good selection of watches and offer good discounts.
went last night to number one shopping centre in Borneo.......called surprisingly "1BORNEO". quite new and not yet filled units. OK but one classy watch vendor. Usual suspects...Roly, Omegas,Longine,JLC...but also Ball, B&R, and some others....all very pricey. None tickled but was nice to see. Vendor kept staring at my GO....didnt know what it was. Not worth going to as rest was crap. Shall await KL on return.
Heyho..back to the sun...maybe some golf today !
just back from the driving range....too hot. glove soaking afer 50 balls. No rounds for me as loan clubs shit, grass like house plants and fairways like ponds after last nights thunder storms....torrential.
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