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Discuss Christopher Ward watches

Do you think that Christopher Ward watches are getting too expensive?

Poll ended at Thu Aug 04, 2011 1:38 pm

Yes
16
16%
No
9
9%
They are no longer the bargain they once were
27
26%
I will only now buy them during a sale
18
18%
Depends on what other watch brand they are being compared with?
20
20%
They are getting too rich for my pocket!
12
12%
 
Total votes: 102

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downer
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by downer »

The Raffles wrote: “One day we will be millionaires”
I agree. It's just a matter of waiting.... :lol:
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by markuk »

I doubt it some how..

sorry to be a downer.. with so many models coming out the chances of a £8k CW watch unless it's stacked with gold or some other expensive material are not going to happen I feel.

Would they be in a shop may be but again they have it sew up at the moment so why have a shop? I am a retailer and i don't have shops! where as my competors do and 2 have gone this year..

I guess the CW watches will rise in price and gain new customers and customer base.. for the more ( so called ) expensive watches.

CW if they want to go down this route of expensive watches would have to control the number of models they produce and that's clearly not what Chris wants to do from reading up.. he wants to expand the range.

Wounder if one of the big names will make a limited run of a cheaper watch. Some one like say Tag or ( doubt it ) but still could Brietling product a one off limited run cheaper watch using an ETA movement for under £750-£1000 ( or less £499 ) I could see that happening poss in the future to stir things up.. create demand for their band.. could you imagin Brietling producing a watch for £999 limited run using cheaper parts.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by markuk »

I doubt it some how..

sorry to be a downer.. with so many models coming out the chances of a £8k CW watch unless it's stacked with gold or some other expensive material are not going to happen I feel.

Would they be in a shop may be but again they have it sew up at the moment so why have a shop? I am a retailer and i don't have shops! where as my competors do and 2 have gone this year..

I guess the CW watches will rise in price and gain new customers and customer base.. for the more ( so called ) expensive watches.

CW if they want to go down this route of expensive watches would have to control the number of models they produce and that's clearly not what Chris wants to do from reading up.. he wants to expand the range.

Wounder if one of the big names will make a limited run of a cheaper watch. Some one like say Tag or ( doubt it ) but still could Brietling product a one off limited run cheaper watch using an ETA movement for under £750-£1000 ( or less £499 ) I could see that happening poss in the future to stir things up.. create demand for their band.. could you imagin Brietling producing a watch for £999 limited run using cheaper parts. So suddenly £999 is cheap for a Breitling watch but too expensive for a CW??????? it's all in the name :)
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by ianblyth »

The Raffles wrote:For us CW collectors, I suppose they are still a best kept secret, but as the word spreads (and I’m sure we are all guilty of passing on the great news of CW watches to friends and work colleagues) the prices will rise, but thankfully in small bites.
Looking at the prices that the CWLs are going for on eBay these days it looks like enough people know about the brand so that picking up a cheap bargain on eBay is no longer possible. :(
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Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by DSHall »

ianblyth wrote:
The Raffles wrote:For us CW collectors, I suppose they are still a best kept secret, but as the word spreads (and I’m sure we are all guilty of passing on the great news of CW watches to friends and work colleagues) the prices will rise, but thankfully in small bites.
Looking at the prices that the CWLs are going for on eBay these days it looks like enough people know about the brand so that picking up a cheap bargain on eBay is no longer possible. :(
It is possible if you're quick and it's buy it now or your a bit lucky. Hesitate and it's too late. Picked up a C8 Mk1 and two C1s in last couple of months for very good prices.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by quark »

I think CW is taking a risk, but he may have been guided by market research. For me personally, he's now out of my range. I suppose we'll know when the sales come round,whether his strategy is working.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by st-rider »

quark wrote:... I suppose we'll know when the sales come round,whether his strategy is working.
I was just having a conversation this morning. If prices keep going up and up even with a 50% sale reduction they'll still be out of range for many, including myself for some of the newer models I'm liking.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by jack »

I wonder if as the brand develops there will also be less Sales?

If things go well for CWL over time and the brand also grows stronger, Sales may become a thing of the past. The top brands don't actually discount, the AD's do occasionaly, but that comes off their own margin. And with the really top brands the discount is not often that high. Those based in the UK may remember that some years ago a big row broke out between a well known supermarket chain and some top clothing brands because the supermarket started selling the branded clothing at hugely discounted prices - around 50% off. The brands stepped in and won, because they said that offering their premium products at high discount actually diminished their brand and its exclusivity. As CWL progresses possibly more upmarket, this consideration would come into play at some point.

The other reason Sales may not happen so much in the future is that inevitably just like any other retail outlet, CWL Sales currently mainly discount the models that haven't taken off too well at 50% etc, but as the brand develops and the target market is hit more consistently, there may not be many if any models that don't fly off the shelf.

Even without the sales though, I still think CWL offer very good bang for buck if you see a watch you really like.

Cheers,
Jack.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by st-rider »

jack wrote:...I still think CWL offer very good bang for buck if you see a watch you really like. ...
I think you're right and there's the rub.

I sort of know the new C700 offers good value for an auto chrono with a 7750 like movement for £800.
Yet I also know I can get an auto chrono from Tissot for ballpark £500.
Tissot is a respected, established brand. I wouldn't be buying rubbish. Granted it doesn't come with this new fangled sexy carbon fibre. Yet is that worth the extra? There's the rub.

I think if the C700 was pitched between the price of the C90 and the Tissot I wouldn't be typing this. I have no problem with the C90 being the price it is because that is a unique CW piece and an equivalent would cost as many, if not more, pennies.

I wish Chris had been asked in the recent chat where the company was going and if it intended keeping its wide breath of choice and prices and hence customers or if it was just going to be pitched as an exclusive brand. Maybe he was? If so please direct me to the thread/quote. You see I'm confused by CWL advertising and where it's pitched. Adverts in lads mags and then the Telegraph indicate IMHO a bit of a scattergun approach. Maybe that's right and required to appeal to the range of customers. After all my recent attempt at colour choices for a FLE shows I have no empathy with other watch buyers :wink: :lol:

Must end there, TTFN, Alex :D
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by AliBar »

+1 on Kip and Downer's comments.

If my memory serves me well enough, when I bought my first CW a couple of years back, I seem to recall the price range on the site was somewhere around £150 starting level to c£350 most expensive. The bottom end of that range does not seem to have increased significantly in those 2 years and whilst the top end has, that's (certainly in most cases) reflective of the complexity/movements being offered.

It would be interesting to see a price map of the change in the cost of individual models (C3, C4, C5 etc, that have been around some time) as that would tell you if CW as an organisation is getting more expensive rather than just offering a wider cost range of products.

Is any particular CW model getting relatively more expensive... IMHO I don't think so. Allowing for inflation and the fact the world-wide economy is shagged I'd hope there wasn't a huge deviation in the price of individual models. I tend to compare prices to the "alternative equivalents" and think CW are competitive and, again IMHO, better aligned to my tastes.

Good survey The Laird. Poked some/stoked some fires :)
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by downer »

st-rider wrote:
jack wrote:...I still think CWL offer very good bang for buck if you see a watch you really like. ...
I think you're right and there's the rub.

I sort of know the new C700 offers good value for an auto chrono with a 7750 like movement for £800.
Yet I also know I can get an auto chrono from Tissot for ballpark £500.
Tissot is a respected, established brand. I wouldn't be buying rubbish. Granted it doesn't come with this new fangled sexy carbon fibre. Yet is that worth the extra? There's the rub.
To compare like with like, you need to look at the Valjoux Tissot Chrono's, and they range from £835-£1155. The cheaper Tissot's have another movement which lacks the day/date feature of the 7750/SW-500.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by st-rider »

downer wrote:
st-rider wrote:
jack wrote:...I still think CWL offer very good bang for buck if you see a watch you really like. ...
...the new C700 offers good value for an auto chrono with a 7750 like movement for £800...an auto chrono from Tissot for ballpark £500...
To compare like with like, you need to look at the Valjoux Tissot Chrono's, and they range from £835-£1155. The cheaper Tissot's have another movement which lacks the day/date feature of the 7750/SW-500.
Thanks for the heads up I hadn't spotted that.
The C700 does look good value, bang for the buck and all that.
That'll put CW in middle range Swatch group territory.
:D Alex
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by Terminator 2 »

st-rider wrote:
downer wrote:
st-rider wrote:...the new C700 offers good value for an auto chrono with a 7750 like movement for £800...an auto chrono from Tissot for ballpark £500...
To compare like with like, you need to look at the Valjoux Tissot Chrono's, and they range from £835-£1155. The cheaper Tissot's have another movement which lacks the day/date feature of the 7750/SW-500.
Thanks for the heads up I hadn't spotted that.
The C700 does look good value, bang for the buck and all that.
That'll put CW in middle range Swatch group territory.
:D Alex
Is the C700 good value???? One thing you are forgetting to take in to consideration when comparing CWL to watches like the Tissot's etc is the CWL business model. Basically with CWL there are no middlemen. Tissot, Oris or Longines to name just a few have the retailers margin built in as well so a CWL watch at £800 is in fact more expensive than a retailers Tissot at £1000. Maybe not to you the consumer but the bean counters would see things differently. Of course which watch is actually better is an entirely different thing. CWL does not use retailers so that should in theory allow them to remain competitive but as we know the prices are tending to head a little northwards. According to CWL they also do not spend £millions on advertising so to move into the big boys territory re pricing might be a dangerous game to play in the end.

Of course in CWL's defence they also do not have the economy of mass production which might address the balance slightly as to wether they really are over priced or not and of course the strength of the Swiss currency will be affecting things too. Hindsight may be a wonderful thing but perhaps the move to Switzerland might have come at the wrong time. Finally we might not buy the "expensive" pieces but that does not mean that others will not. Do you sell 100 watches at £150 to make £3000 ( £30 per watch )or do you sell 30 at £800 to make £6000 ( £200 per watch ). The bean counters would prefer you to do the latter. You just have to make sure you can still sell them though. That is the hardest part and falling into the middle range Swatch territory will not make it easy because CWL still has a long way to go to become a "desirable" household brand name and when someone puts £800 on their wrists the majority of them will want their friends to know what it is or at least recognise it as a quality brand. Thats the main reason the majority buy in to expensive goods in the first place. They dont actually care what lurks under the bonnet ( Hood for our US friends ).

:wink:
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by davidfleming »

The core models are still there and are exceptional values. The C3,C4, C5, C6, C60,C600, C7, C70, C8, C9 all represent excellent values overall by themselves.
I voted Yes. I purchased a C8 less than a year ago, a core model at £299.00 which I felt was great value, the current price however is now £365.00, that's over a 20% increase in less than a year. Whilst I agree that many of CWL watches are great value and competative in relation to the competition I also feel that the majority of their watches are now out of reach to a number of people who were either attracted to the Chris Ward philosophy or didn't feel they could justify spending serious money on a watch.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by st-rider »

davidfleming wrote:...I also feel that the majority of their watches are now out of reach to a number of people who were either attracted to the Chris Ward philosophy or didn't feel they could justify spending serious money on a watch.
+1 to that
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