Hontwatch experience - not all sunshine and roses

[Radirka]

I'd like to share my experience with Hont so far. After 5 purchases we've come to a wall. With first three watches all went perfectly smooth, no issues and a good communication. Than there was some bad luck with one, which arrived DOA, plus the additional rubber had a bad stitch, so I opened a helpdesk ticket. Hont offered to send watch back to China but since this meant a lot of risk for me plus the (not so small) postage cost I decided to let that go and swallowed the local repair cost myself. All good so far. On the last order I received the QC pictures and there was something that looked like a "ding", so I asked Hont if it is damaged or is it just a mark in the protective film and he replied it's just film:




After receiving the watch I have found out that it's not just the protective film that's damaged.



I asked Hont about why he didn't tell me the truth about the damage and he said that I GLed QC and that it is not even the same - he said that there was no issue at QC. I did not want a refund, a compensation or anything, but I did tell him/them I'll write an honnest review here, Now, here's how the conversation went more or less.




I have always had nuthing but a good word for Hont but I got a bitter aftertaste in my mouth after these last two, and especially after last purchase. I will not discourage you to use him as your TD (hell, even I might eventually), nor will I rant over it any more, I just want you to know what sort of treatment you can expect if anything goes sideways and you try to call them out.

 

[Hec]

I don't think it is right to publish private conversations except in very serious cases. I understand your anger but I would handle this differently.

At the same time you say "I don't discourage its use as a TD"... after posting things like that...

 

[DJTony82]

It happened again, no comment.

My intuition about Hont and never moving forward with him have always been correct!

 

[Radirka]

I don't think it is right to publish private conversations except in very serious cases. I understand your anger but I would handle this differently.

At the same time you say "I don't discourage its use as a TD"... after posting things like that...

It's a TD review page- I don't want to be called either a scammer nor a liar and I don't want anything else than to be treated with respect the same way I am respectful to others. If it's against any rule (which I could have missed), I'll remove snapshots of our conversations, otherwise it's staying for educational purpuses.
As for my "recommendation" - it's true - service is good, QC timely and postage superb - it's only when things get complicated, they're not easy to deal with.

 

[eBoy]

I just purchased a watch from Hont that arrived last week for the missus. How did it go? I'd say very well, because she was happy —and she's not easy to impress with watches. I had purchased stuff earlier this year as well w/Hont, also w/out issues.

I guess what I take from this is: Don't rely on his judgment, use your own. There are TDs who will be very accurate, honest and reliable if a QC question comes up, like Lucy, and others who just don't care that much. I'd rather not rely on the TD's opinion during QC and only make my own calls instead of waiting 6 months (no offense to Lucy, but stellar QC isn't worth waiting an eternity for the watch to arrive , just a personal preference, as I have not enough patience ).

From the QC photo you posted, I wouldn't even have asked and just rejected (based on my own experience with Hont with a previous purchase where I got the strong impression that there isn't much motivation to help with QC past the bare minimum).

Pretty obvious that it's damaged in the QC photo and not the film, to me at least, tbh.

I know.... This doesn't help you much now, but just giving a different perspective. The old saying 'rep world is not Amazon' unfortunately rings true in many facets. I had my own disappointments with other TDs, but nothing major yet, so I just cut my losses and moved on... Not much recourse possibilities here, other than trying to open a help desk ticket.

 

[Radirka]

I won't even bother to open a ticket as I've tried that in the past but it's only work for the ticket-mods and not much tangible success at the end. As said - I'll swallow it and move on - it's not like I paid thousands for it. It's just that - even though it's a rep game - I'd like to be treated with respect and not be told - if you're not happy get a gen. It's not something I'd expect from somebody that makes a decent living from the margin made on us.

 

[Reaps]

I won't even bother to open a ticket as I've tried that in the past but it's only work for the ticket-mods and not much tangible success at the end. As said - I'll swallow it and move on - it's not like I paid thousands for it. It's just that - even though it's a rep game - I'd like to be treated with respect and not be told - if you're not happy get a gen. It's not something I'd expect from somebody that makes a decent living from the margin made on us.

The sad thing is that Hont, because he's the cheapest of all TDs, he has alot of volume and customers, so he doesn't care.

One lost customer is nothing to him. That's why he can afford to be an ass to most people. Too picky with QC? He'll drop you. Question him? He'll drop you.

I bought a few times from Hont, no issue, but the minute you have 1 issue with him, you have to swallow and accept it.

 

[eBoy]

The sad thing is that Hont, because he's the cheapest of all TDs, he has alot of volume and customers, so he doesn't care.

One lost customer is nothing to him. That's why he can afford to be an ass to most people. Too picky with QC? He'll drop you. Question him? He'll drop you.

I bought a few times from Hont, no issue, but the minute you have 1 issue with him, you have to swallow and accept it.

Very true.

I bought a Cartier Panthere BVF for her and tbh, the price was so good (+ free shipping), it was significantly less than the other offers I had.

And the watch is absolutely flawless. I studied the QC photos for hours though... Sometimes, knowing TDs and their strengths and weaknesses is what make those transactions non-problematic. That's why people rarely switch once they found "their" TD.

 

[eBoy]

It's just that - even though it's a rep game - I'd like to be treated with respect and not be told - if you're not happy get a gen. It's not something I'd expect from somebody that makes a decent living from the margin made on us.

Not disagreeing with your overall sentiment.

It’s how it should be in an ideal world.

Look outside the window, check the world news... Is it a perfect world?

We have to adapt to navigate this shit show that is our planet.

In Hont's case, this means: Unbeatable prices compared to other TDs with the caveat that you get very little to virtually no QC assistance and you have to rely on your own judgment alone...

 

[Geonor]

Not disagreeing with your overall sentiment.

It’s how it should be in an ideal world.

Look outside the window, check the world news... Is it a perfect world?

We have to adapt to navigate this shit show that is our planet.

In Hont's case, this means: Unbeatable prices compared to other TDs with the caveat that you get very little to virtually no QC assistance and you have to rely on your own judgment alone...

I exclusively use Hont and this is how you have to deal with him indeed. He doesn't hold your hand at all but he's cheap and quick to deal with. No unnecessary words. I have RL'd watches from him in the past without issues. Both times I asked for additional pictures of what I suspected were flaws instead of asking him his opinion.

The guy moves a lot of watches for less margin than the other TDs so he doesn't have time to do your QC for you and doesn't care if he drops you as a customer. Is he the perfect TD? Not at all. He can be rude and obnoxious if you have issues after the fact and don't want to send merch back but he's a cheap and efficient way to get watches from China to anywhere if you remember to cross all your t's and dot all your i's yourself.

 

[eBoy]

Sead is even worse in regard to communication. He rarely goes beyond 1-word replies in E-Mails, but who cares about that when you can get a watch within 4 days off his EU stock and pre-payment QC?

The truth is: The dealers don't really care that much about "building relationships"... and, tbh, why should they? They have no "legal obligations" towards their customers and they are from a county where there's no shortage of nice people (meaning: They already have plenty of friends and don't need any new ones ).

The most important thing about buying reps though is that we should always keep in mind is that it's an illicit business after all. Our expectations in service & support need to be adjusted accordingly.

 

[var554]

Very interesting thread. I'm sad the OP got a damaged piece, but agree with eboy that I would have just RL it. It is easy to forget sometimes the dynamics of this industry. Live and learn. I learn here every day.

 

[Comate]

OP, thanks for sharing this. I think showing the convo does help share both sides, something you will not otherwise get here.
I guess moral of the story
- ALWAYS video record complete unboxing and inspection
- Cheapest Price (Hont) seems to generally means giving up on post-sales support. DOA, damaged goods etc, sounds like there is little to no compensation..

 

[Storm.]

I not afraid any people

 

[Radirka]

I not afraid any people

Jap, that's the attitude.

 

[LongyUK]

Based on that correspondence i will avoid Hont. OP even asked him to check. Lets face it; he clearly didn't.

Shocking tbf.