Exclusive CW Forum Prototype Sale

[triffidman]

And whilst everyone debates what is right or wrong with regards to how many each person is ethically allowed to buy (and sell on), Mike France is laughing all the way to the bank!! Having drummed up plenty of free PR here, patronising us by claiming it to be a "Thank You", this is basically a fire-sale of some unwanted pre-release prototypes (aka rubbish).

I personally don't fall for it.

[Kip]

And whilst everyone debates what is right or wrong with regards to how many each person is ethically allowed to buy (and sell on), Mike France is laughing all the way to the bank!! Having drummed up plenty of free PR here, patronising us by claiming it to be a "Thank You", this is basically a fire-sale of some unwanted pre-release prototypes (aka rubbish).

I personally don't fall for it.

You are being quite the cynic here.

Of course CW wants to sell these items and could just as well have an open sale like they always do. The point here is that I have arranged with them to offer these items in a truly exclusive sale (at least as much as we can make it). CW thought it would be a great way to say, "Thanks for the support" and let the members get the first crack at them.

Sure they are getting PR, but they get that every day from us and would get it anyway with a public sale. It is how they are getting it that might matter to those who get some items from the sale. Either way CW wins, and hopefully, members get some unique items.

I view this as a win win.

[JAFO]

In the context of this sale, lets hope that those who have a tendency to sell on rather than keep what they buy are wearing their enthusiast hat on this day rather than their scalper one and hope that a maximum sale number is enforced.

Any resold via reseller/eBay routes will be an objective missed for the forum and this sale. I fully expect some of these items to appear immediately on eBay or a reseller’s web site. Buying to re-sell will not equate to longer term increased forum traffic or discussion contribution.

Maybe CW could offer (certain) sale watches (such as these prototypes) with a non transferrable warranty and/or a requirement that they can be returned to CW unused for a 60/60 refund, but not sold in the first year of ownership. Maybe CW could also remove all stickers from sale items.

There's no guarantee that preventative measures will work.eg that green fully stickered PP nautilus was auctioned for a massive amount last week, when supposedly their ADs are supposed to remove all the stickers but it might help steer the watches to enthusiasts.

note that @triffidman posted above in between me preparing this reply. I certainly do not see anything negative about CW offering prototypes for sale and I concur with Kip. I didn't realise that the forum was partly (wholly?) involved in this offer though.

[Only one more]

I'd echo some of what others have said.

I joined this group a while ago but am more of a lurker than a poster. I do also use the facebook CWE page more because it's just easier. I'm a big CW fan and have been collecting them for a few years now so this really is a good idea to get people back on the forum if you ask me.

I'm not sure how many people would feel welcome when being openly criticized for doing exactly what was intended so not sure it's going to work as well as intended.

You will always get bad apples and it seems admin are on top of it so let people get their post count up and a chance to get something they are very interested in.

Anyway, my post count is 21 despite my fondness of CW and this forum so please don't judge everyone as if they want to pull your pants down over a watch.

Good luck to everyone interested, peace out.

Jon

[Thunder1]

I've yet to receive the link & PW for this sale..has anyone else gotten them yet?..

[Amor Vincit Omnia]

I've yet to receive the link & PW for this sale..has anyone else gotten them yet?..

You need to read the thread, Chuck…(quoted from previous page)…

I do not yet have the information myself so the start time may vary. The goal is to be live on Wednesday July 28 at 12:00 pm GMT. This is still subject to change. Do not panic if you do not get a pm around that time. it is purposely being sent to me at the last minute. Of course it may come earlier as well. I will send as soon as possible. If there happens to be a major change in timing I will notify with a post here.

[JAFO]

@kip
I assume it will just be a passworded page on the CW website, so our normal account and payment methods will work.

[Will_75]

And whilst everyone debates what is right or wrong with regards to how many each person is ethically allowed to buy (and sell on), Mike France is laughing all the way to the bank!! Having drummed up plenty of free PR here, patronising us by claiming it to be a "Thank You", this is basically a fire-sale of some unwanted pre-release prototypes (aka rubbish).

I personally don't fall for it.

You are being quite the cynic here.

Of course CW wants to sell these items and could just as well have an open sale like they always do. The point here is that I have arranged with them to offer these items in a truly exclusive sale (at least as much as we can make it). CW thought it would be a great way to say, "Thanks for the support" and let the members get the first crack at them.

Sure they are getting PR, but they get that every day from us and would get it anyway with a public sale. It is how they are getting it that might matter to those who get some items from the sale. Either way CW wins, and hopefully, members get some unique items.

I view this as a win win.

Very cynical indeed.

This is a great idea, and if you wanted to get more people to the forum as part of it, it’s worked. I’ll be here a lot more. (Sorry!)

In my experience CW are excellent to deal with and very open to doing special things for people who are invested in the brand.

As you say it’s a win win.

[exHowfener]

Wow, this thread has grown quickly! I do hope photo's will be posted on the forum - otherwise how will we recognise the watches when they pop up on the Bay? Always a fun part of any CW sale, seeing how quickly they appear on eBay - often before the seller has received their watch!

I'm fairly certain that I've qualified, but beat post some more just in case the bar is raised Only joking, I won't be buying but good luck everyone.

[triffidman]

And whilst everyone debates what is right or wrong with regards to how many each person is ethically allowed to buy (and sell on), Mike France is laughing all the way to the bank!! Having drummed up plenty of free PR here, patronising us by claiming it to be a "Thank You", this is basically a fire-sale of some unwanted pre-release prototypes (aka rubbish).

I personally don't fall for it.

You are being quite the cynic here.

Of course CW wants to sell these items and could just as well have an open sale like they always do. The point here is that I have arranged with them to offer these items in a truly exclusive sale (at least as much as we can make it). CW thought it would be a great way to say, "Thanks for the support" and let the members get the first crack at them.

Sure they are getting PR, but they get that every day from us and would get it anyway with a public sale. It is how they are getting it that might matter to those who get some items from the sale. Either way CW wins, and hopefully, members get some unique items.

I view this as a win win.

Very cynical indeed.

This is a great idea, and if you wanted to get more people to the forum as part of it, it’s worked. I’ll be here a lot more. (Sorry!)

In my experience CW are excellent to deal with and very open to doing special things for people who are invested in the brand.

As you say it’s a win win.

Not intentionally cynical, but I guess I'm not so easily swayed by marketing tactics. This is the equivalent of a car salesperson saying "I can do you a special deal here, but it's only because I like you and it's only available today" - they are establishing an emotional connection with you and making you feel special even though they just want your money, of course. Perhaps my emotions aren't quite so easily up for grabs as some of the people here on the forum, who are of course entitled to spend their money with Mike France if they want to!

But where I spend my money isn't with a company that sell off failed designs which weren't deemed good enough/nice enough to actually put to market through normal channels, and actually has the cheek to imply that I'm somehow privileged to have such an opportunity to buy these goods.

This is one jumble sale I won't be attending, simply through self respect.

[StrappedUp]

I kind of get where you are coming from, but consider these type of comments found quite often on this forum.

"I like this model, but wish they'd used *insert colour* accents"

"I wish they'd released a *insert colour* dial"

"I wish they'd used the twin flags @ 12"

These are the sort of things that *could* come up. They may in fact look great, but the committee thought they'd sell more to the masses in a slightly different configuration.
Surely doesn't mean it'll all be rubbish and nobody is pressuring anyone to buy.

[ajax87]

^^^ 100%, Ryan

My thoughts on this opportunity and the thread:

Maybe the pushback coming from longer term members is that this was presented as a reward to active forum members, but in practice it’s acting more like/or equally as an attempt to attract and reward new members. There’s a bit of a disconnect.

HOWEVER, let’s try to just take this for what it is, and appreciate what it’s doing. After all, complaining does nothing but… well nothing. There have been some solid thought-provoking posts from new members that would not have happened if not for this. And we still get this opportunity to go for some interesting and rare watches.

I’m 99.9% sure I won’t buy anything, but I’m excited to see what comes up.

[rkovars]

I pretty much feel the same way. I see it as a possibility to pick up a one of a kind from a brand I like. If I don't see anything I like or interesting I won't buy anything.

[thomcat00]

…this is basically a fire-sale of some unwanted pre-release prototypes (aka rubbish).

I personally don't fall for it.

That’s a silly and cynical notion. If these watches were rubbish, CW would strip them of usable parts (movement, handset, whatever) and bin them. They wouldn’t take the time to release them. I’m sure many others would at least like to see what ideas CW has explored.

[jkbarnes]

This is one jumble sale I won't be attending, simply through self respect.

A ”not for me” and move on would have sufficed, rather than throwing an insult at anyone who might be interested in the sale. There’s a real undertone of “some of you are suckers too stupid to see this for what it is” to your posts.