I'm sure the margins are not real high for the TD'S. I'm sure it's all about volume. Figure it this way. If they only make $25 a watch but can sell 500 a month that's still $12,500 a month. That will go a long way in China.
The last time I was in China (18 months ago), I could go to the markets in Shanghai and get recognizable Noob and KW reps for around 500-800 Yuan. The exchange rate at that point was about 8-1 in favor of the US Dollar. The first time I went in 2006, I picked up some surprisingly nice pieces for half of that (400 Yuan when it was 9-1).
While the quality has definitely improved since 2006, I get the feeling that 3/4 of rep watches are made for the overseas market and 1/4 were made as a domestic commodity/novelty/tourist/discount/ "you don't know any better" version.
Even still -- 95% of what's available "on the street" in major Chinese cities is junk, so I would bet you chances of finding a TD quality piece are not very high.
Even still, factor in travel, lodging and import costs plus dropping a chunk of change to make it worth while, I'd take a cue from Apple and outsource it to our friends in China haha.
So to the point I quoted -- I think their margin is probably a tad higher, but not much -- especially if some of the crack downs have increased overhead or payoffs.
I'm amazed at the quality for the prices we pay even if there was zero margin. Am I willing to pay a 50% markup for an incredibly well-made illegal product that requires little hassle to acquire for under $500? You're damn right.
BTW, I didn't realize you were an Okie [MENTION=93655]droberts[/MENTION] -- that makes two of us!
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