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#1 2007-05-17 01:27:34
- Incroyable
- Member
- Posts: 2310
Patek at Costco.
http://www.costco.com/Common/Search.aspx?whse=BC&topnav=&search=patek&N=0&Ntt=patek&cm_re=1-_-Top_Left_Nav-_-Top_search
Are we going to see Oxxford suits next?
Jukebox Babe
#5 2007-05-17 06:57:32
- Tony Ventresca
- Member
- Posts: 5132
Re: Patek at Costco.
How can one comment on this?
Maybe it is a sign of the end?
Or perhaps, the world is just becoming a little more transparent.
And style, taste, and quality---like everythings else---can be commoditized like everything else.
TV
#8 2007-05-17 10:43:29
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
I wonder if they waive the $45 membership fee.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#9 2007-05-17 12:25:26
- edmorel
- Member
- Posts: 194
Re: Patek at Costco.
Any tangible item that is produced by humans is effectively a commodity. When it comes to watches in particular, I don't buy into the "aura" bullshit. Patek is no less deserving to be on Costco's shelves than Seiko. As a matter of fact, at Costco you'll get better service and a better guaranty than at any of the "timepiece boutiques" that sell the higher end watches. I love that a Costco can take an item like a Patek or a diamond and strip all the pretentious bullshit away and say "here is the item, here is the lowest price we can sell it for" end of story.
#10 2007-05-17 13:01:46
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
Patek owners tell me that the Stern organization, owners of Patek, doesn't really consider any purchase of <$100,000 or so a significant enough purchase to warrant good customer service, and so those peons buying, say, entry-level Calatravas get back-of-the-hand treatment and would do well to take their business to Costco. I had been a WIS (Watch Idiot Savant, similar to a clothes geek) for some time until another WIS acknowledged that all watches are basically gadgets.
Definition of a Watch Idiot Savant...
*self-trained to sleep in 5 positions while wearing his/her COSC certified chronometer in bed.
*opens the back of a new Patek on the first day of acquisition and hand winds the rotor in order to tighten up the main spring.
*takes the 200 meter water proof Seadweller off from the wrist and puts it into the deepest pocket before walking into a storm without any rain gear.
*waits every 60 minute in front of a radio controlled clock all weekend in order to adjust all his/her 14 mechanical watches to the accuracy within -2/+2 seconds per 24 hours.
*spends $500 plus on polish equipment and materials and works 20 hours in order to refinish a $200 stainless steel bracelet.
*has an annual budget of $500 on the purchase of a new watch and posts the question on the Timezone forum "which one is better? a Rolex or a TAG?"
*wears a triple date chronograph with moon phase everyday, but cannot even tell time from the basic hour and minute hands on the dial without a pair of reading glasses.
*memorizes all serial numbers of the Rolex watches made in the past 60 years but keeps forgetting the wedding anniversary.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#11 2007-05-17 13:49:08
- edmorel
- Member
- Posts: 194
Re: Patek at Costco.
Yeah, I was a WIS until I realized that everything I ever wanted (in house movement, care for the craft, not cheating customers etc) could be found in an automatic Seiko. So the orange monster and the samurai are my daily wearers.
#12 2007-05-17 14:39:31
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#14 2007-05-17 14:51:09
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#15 2007-05-17 15:00:08
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
By the way, Costco has an unbelievable return policy, gladly accepting items months after purchase without as much as even asking the reason for the return. Perhaps they have a more stringent policy with PP watches, however, still, were I in the market for one, I'd rather buy a Patek from Costco than a traditional watch store. I can just picture standing in the returns line with a $26K PP watch, in front of someone returning a carton of spoiled Swansons macaroni and cheese TV dinners.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#17 2007-05-17 15:18:25
- Film Noir Buff
- Dandy Nightmare
- From: Devil's Island
- Posts: 9345
Re: Patek at Costco.
I have always considered a watch to be an accessory which is why I like Cartier, Simon Carter, Baume and Mercier and Dunhill; theyre more about style than precision. My dad is about to buy a Rolex which I tried to explain is a mistake but he's stalled in the 80s, what can I say?
#18 2007-05-17 15:30:14
- Incroyable
- Member
- Posts: 2310
Re: Patek at Costco.
I'm rather fond of vintage Omegas--style and substance all in one parcel without an exorbitant price.
However, lately their prices have increased but still nothing towards Patek's inflation.
Last edited by Incroyable (2007-05-17 16:35:54)
Jukebox Babe
#19 2007-05-17 16:59:15
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#20 2007-05-17 17:04:42
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: Patek at Costco.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#22 2007-05-17 17:53:43
- Incroyable
- Member
- Posts: 2310
Re: Patek at Costco.
Rolex does hold its value well, especially those recognizable models.
Some of the really gaudy ones also sell well apparently; those 18kt gold Presidents with diamonds emblazoned.
Jukebox Babe
#23 2007-05-17 18:20:40
- Twin Six
- Member
- From: WASP in Tokyo
- Posts: 1486
Re: Patek at Costco.
My mother bought me a Patek Calatrava from Sir Winston Churchills Flem spoon.'s as a graduation present. It is an outstanding watch, and my experiences with both companies have been nothing but positive.