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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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The Laird
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Post by The Laird »

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

Post by CornishDave »

So Laird you disagree with the results of your pole then?? I think watches like the C700may be competitive when compared to some others out there but I question some of the price increases the old C8 Mk I is a prime example I paid £240 in 2008, here we are three years later and it was selling at over £100 more earlier this year. Not sure that an increase of more than a third in three years can be just down to the economy.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by Kip »

A very wise man said to me......

"I suppose “affordability” and “being expensive” needs to be defined better....

That is to say...
Our watches are getting more expensive... but our new oranges are not like our old apples.

Are our old apples getting more expensive? ...then again yes, in real terms maybe not.... but are they expensive against somebody else’s old apples?... "subjectively"...probably not...depends on which fruit barrel you are staring into.."
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by jack »

Kip wrote:A very wise man said to me......

"I suppose “affordability” and “being expensive” needs to be defined better....

That is to say...
Our watches are getting more expensive... but our new oranges are not like our old apples.

Are our old apples getting more expensive? ...then again yes, in real terms maybe not.... but are they expensive against somebody else’s old apples?... "subjectively"...probably not...depends on which fruit barrel you are staring into.."

The key word for me is "subjectively".

I was one of those that bought into CWL pretty early on (2007 - my eyesight was better back then, I could still read date windows easily :lol:) and enjoyed those ever so low prices some have mentioned. My first buy was the C3 - yes, a quartz. My only ever quartz. The thing is, I think I paid around £130 for it after a 10% discount, but I actually thought at the time that the price was not that keen! I figured that I could get a reasonable equivalent quartz at the time for around £100. The reason I bought it though was because I thought it looked fantastic and still do. I hadn't seen a model quite like it. I was happy to pay possibly a bit more for it to get that "look". I felt it was special and it's still a treasured piece in spite of it being a quartz! My C5 was different, I loved the look of it but also felt that it was exceptional VFM :) .

Laird has a point, if they were too cheap, it may destroy the idea that these are actually espensive luxury watches, which I think they are. And that could damage the brand because this has always been the pitch.

I think it's hard to beat the VFM of CWL if the watch you buy really floats your boat. And I think if you stick to the more timeless designs (can you say timeless about a watch?? :? ) you are onto a real winner, because the watch will never really date.

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

Post by highway62 »

we do not have, and are unlikely to be given, the information necessary to answer this question. Unless it is known what the manufacturing/marketing cost of the watch is and hence what the mark-up is on each piece then none of us can really say if the watch is 'too expensive' & even then each of us would have differing views on what is an acceptable margin.

Having said that, I do feel CWL are moving to a pricepoint where they will have to be seen as more part of the mainstream marketplace.I am though a little disappointed that the £800 C700 does not feature a 7750 movement, maybe it's just me but it does seem to hint at penny-pinching...
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by chb »

I voted that they are no longer the bargain they once were. However, since voting I have readnup on the change between swiss franc and sterling.....christ!

Ok so now i can qualify my statement, they may not be a bargain at the moment (not sure they need to be), but given the change in exchange rate, I am surprised prices have not risen more than they have. Chris has my sympathies on this one.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by Galton321 »

As someone said, expensive and value are subjective nouns but one way is to compare specs and prices. Generally speaking the watches without complications C9, C5, C20 still seem good value compared with similar spec watches from other manufacturers. Even the C90 seems good value, power reserve watches are generally expensive and not really offered by CWL direct competitors. However there seems to be a lot of competition when looking at the C9 chrono and the proposed C700 at their price point and CWL is no longer an automatic choice for me. Also the C60 GMT at £599 looks expensive compared with 399 euros for for an Ocean 1 GMT from Steinhart and I might go for one of those instead of the the C60 GMT. It doesn't help that the latest releases from Chris are not really to my taste. However, CWL still seem to have a quality feel in the flesh. The 60/60 is still a big draw as I can take a look and return it if I don't like it. I have never seen an Ocean 1 GMT in flesh so have to go on published reviews. However, I feel I am at a crossroad with CWL watches at the moment.
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Re: Do you think CWL watches are getting too expensive?

Post by Beastmaster »

I think that when Chris enters the £800 Market he has to be spot on with quality and marketing. For example I suspect he is not penny pinching on the 7750 but has a supply issue. If he launched with a 7750 and then slipped the sw500 in then people with the 7750 would feel they had the "proper" one and the sw500 ones would perhaps feel shortchanged. The way he has done it whoever orders gets the same one and presumably he can continue the c40 with the 7750 movement because if he starts substituting that one after the fanfare (marketing) he made of the 7750 in the c40 then again people would not feel that they had the real deal. Swapping movements, having backs quoting the wrong number of jewels, launching a watch with one strap but delivering it on another(C90) are all biggles that we can live with at the 300 pound Mark but not for 800 quids!

Launching from day one with the sw500 I believe was a step in the right direction. Put simply if/when I order I know what movement I will get, when it is either or it just doesn,t work
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