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Compete noobs guide to buying you FIRST Rep.

frigpig

Ghost of Sales Mod Past
Advisor
16/8/09
7,846
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Since I've seen many issues on the matter I thought I'd put together a liitle buying guide.

These few little steps will insure a much smoother transaction and happy customers all around.

1) Look around and find the watch you want. Check out ALL the trusted dealers websites and ask some questions. "who has the best xxxxxx" is not a very good question. Think about that one.

2) Choose a dealer. This is also a difficult to do but a lot of good info is located in the dealer review section found on the main page.

3) DO NOT ORDER FROM THE WEBSITE. This is were a lot of noobs get into trouble as the rep game changes daily and a lot of watches are no longer produced and are still on thier websites or there are better versions out there that can be sourced.

4) E-mail the dealer and ask them to source the watch for you. Most dealers don't like to do this but if you ask if the particular model is still available most will comply with your request.

5) Once the dealer gets back to you with availability, THEN AND ONLY THEN should talk of a money exchange be made.

6) BEFORE PAYMENT IS MADE request QC (quality control) pictures of your watch.

(Ok to clear this up.....in simple terms)

Ask for qc pictures before you pay. Pay once he agrees.

Don't demand to see them before you pay, just get the dealer to say he will send them before he ships the watch.

Dealers will want your money first as they do not want to be out of pocket if you decide that the rep game isn't for you. This is a VERY reasonable request due to your "noobiness". Think about if you were in there shoes. Nobody wants to be out of pocket including them. Almost no dealers carry stock of the watches listed on their websites especially of less popular reps. Once you have established a good relationship with a dealer this is not an unreasonable request.

7) Pay the man. However you agreed to.

8) You should get some sort of confirmation that the product is in hand and pictures of said watch. Make sure these pictures are not "stock" photos and prompty send your confirmation on the watch. This is great time to ask for a tracking number.

Side note: most reps are sent EMS and there tracking system is not the best. Check YOUR postal service ie. USPS website for tracking updates. The tracking information will show up a few days after the parcel is sent.

9) Wait. THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT STEP. Keep in mind that up to this point you are are looking at a minimum of a week and MANY e-mails to get this point. Wait patiently, Shipping can take from a week up to several.

Don't be concerned with "item is being inspected at customs" ect. ALL packages will be inspected by customs. Not many are truly inspected and our dealers are very good at describing the contents of these packages so not to attract attention.

Enjoy your watch, AND POST SOME DAMN PICTURES ONCE IT ARRIVES!!! ;)
 

JC7

Put Some Respect On My Name
15/6/10
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Good effort, Frig.

With many dealers 6 will not happen before 7.
 
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MrYesterday

I'm Pretty Popular
3/12/10
2,385
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Itinerant
Yeah, I've tried asking for that a few times, but I think in a lot of cases they don't have them in stock, so they need your $$ to go to the factory to pick up your order before they can take the pics.
 
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frigpig

Ghost of Sales Mod Past
Advisor
16/8/09
7,846
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Ok to clear this up.....

Ask for qc pictures before you pay. Pay once he agrees.

Don't demand to see them before you pay, just get the dealer to say he will send them before he ships the watch.


First post edited to reflect this. :)
 
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colt45gto

Renowned Member
22/12/10
769
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some dealers may allow you to pay cost to them, ie you send them the money its going to cost them to buy, this way they have the watch and can does pics or short vid maybe both. if the watch is exactly as you requested, you can then complete the payments and have the watch shipped.
if however the watch isn't right, ie wrong bezel, dial, whatever. you can say so and they go swap it or whatever they do to get the watch they say they can get. if this is unsuccessful then get the money returned. nothing lost.
 
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shandroid

Put Some Respect On My Name
13/9/10
3,555
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Well done Frig!!!! It's a shame that this sort of thing will go mostly unseen for noobs....

I'm gonna sig this one - you mind?
 

frigpig

Ghost of Sales Mod Past
Advisor
16/8/09
7,846
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Sure man, put it in.

I don't know if it's sticky worthy, but like you said it would have helped me in the beginning.
 

dombehsman

Horology Curious
28/1/11
7
3
3
Im a noob trying to read all these postings and just trying to learn, it seems much more complicated then initially thought.... but I am glad I checked this site out before spending money on a rep. I just question the quality of the steel bands and materials used as any fakes ive seen felt cheap. This is going off of what I could but in NYC lol....
 
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frigpig

Ghost of Sales Mod Past
Advisor
16/8/09
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If you get yourself a good quality rep the steel is fantastic. As for cheap feeling, go to your AD and fell a gen submariner. You'll be very disappointed if you've ever held a Pam or the like.
 
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murklemark

I'm Pretty Popular
28/7/10
1,265
9
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Great posts for noobs, if everyone read this post first it would stop alot of the same question being asked.
 

Suncoast

Active Member
29/6/12
437
1
18
Good post, Thanks. Can you request pics of the movement? I'm thinking of picking up a Sinn U1 and it comes with both the asian 2813 and the ETA movement for @ $100 more, is it alright to request pics of the movement to ensure that I am getting the ETA movement? I'd hate to get it here and then open it only to discover a 2813 movement.
 

kinjomusashi

Active Member
6/7/12
418
4
0
Awesome guide Frig, probably the best, easy to follow, and most thorough I've come across in my research so far getting back in to the rep game.

Just had a question concerning point 3 about never buying a watch directly from the dealer's website. Are there any exceptions to this rule? For example, how about the trusted sellers in this forum? Reason for asking is because I am considering going through WatchEden for some watches and they offer coupon codes if purchased through their site. Also, it's more convenient to place an order through a website as opposed to emailing back and forth for a week or so and I want to be certain I receive the exact model watch I choose on their site...

Thanks and looking forward to member comments and suggestions!
 
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frigpig

Ghost of Sales Mod Past
Advisor
16/8/09
7,846
63
48
Awesome guide Frig, probably the best, easy to follow, and most thorough I've come across in my research so far getting back in to the rep game.

Just had a question concerning point 3 about never buying a watch directly from the dealer's website. Are there any exceptions to this rule? For example, how about the trusted sellers in this forum? Reason for asking is because I am considering going through WatchEden for some watches and they offer coupon codes if purchased through their site. Also, it's more convenient to place an order through a website as opposed to emailing back and forth for a week or so and I want to be certain I receive the exact model watch I choose on their site...

Thanks and looking forward to member comments and suggestions!

Fair point. I was not telling to never order from the website. I was telling not to order from the website without checking that the watch is "in stock" for reals. ;)

Once the dealer tells you the watch is available and he wants you to pay through the website, by all means, do so. Asking first will save you tons of headaches in the meantime. ;)
 

kinjomusashi

Active Member
6/7/12
418
4
0
Fair point. I was not telling to never order from the website. I was telling not to order from the website without checking that the watch is "in stock" for reals. ;)

Once the dealer tells you the watch is available and he wants you to pay through the website, by all means, do so. Asking first will save you tons of headaches in the meantime. ;)

ok, thanks for clearing that up i'm actually kinda relieved you said that...Just find it more convenient to order from a website (and safer in some instances) especially because of the time difference between the US and Asia. You can imagine how difficult it was 15+ years ago (when I was heavily in to reps) to do business with dealers/suppliers from Asia because of this. This was before the internet was so wide-spread and popular.

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated!
 

frigpig

Ghost of Sales Mod Past
Advisor
16/8/09
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Not a problem at all! ;)

I wish I had read this the first time. My first rep purchase was a Slevin from Watch Eden. Everything went smooth because at the time those reps where in good supply. Had I ordered that watch from the website today, it would be a different story.
 

ShiroTenshi

Mythical Poster
7/12/11
6,782
234
63
I actually email their sales rep and PM WE over here for the same question regarding a watch in their website, quoting the URL.

One told me it is instock, one told me no.
Confusing..
 

kinjomusashi

Active Member
6/7/12
418
4
0
I actually email their sales rep and PM WE over here for the same question regarding a watch in their website, quoting the URL.

One told me it is instock, one told me no.
Confusing..

hmmm, that is confusing...I was going to try doing the same thing emailing both sales rep and PM just in case, but didn't want to come off as being an obnoxious and untrusting noob lol...But I'll give it a go and see if I get the same results as you.
 

steve_pinkcity

You're Saying I Can Sell?
7/8/12
77
0
0
Awesome post, thanks a lot for it !
I'm actually a newbie in rep things, and this kind of post will typically help me a lot avoiding some basic mistakes.

Great info in it !

BR,
Stève