If you’re buying a Rolex watch you’re already making a blunder, trying to optimize it at an airport is like finding the least painful way to beat yourself in the head with a hammer. The best move is to not do it in the first place.
> Even expert negotiators struggle with airport Rolex purchases. You might get 30-35% off other luxury watch brands at airports, but with Rolex, expect 20% or less – “probably less” as industry experts say. Many frequent flyers say they’ve never seen any Rolex discounts at airports.
I wouldn’t have realized you could negotiate price on anything sold in the airport. I didn’t know you could negotiate on new, high end watches in general, though, to be honest.
And yeah, I’ve never understood the people who buy duty free booze, etc. The prices never looked particularly good, and it’s going to be another thing to wrangle and schlep home when you land. I always assumed it was targeted at people from other countries with higher prices.
Even then: Things can be negotiable. Haggling can be rejected, but that's not a hard-and-fast rule.
(It's anecdotal, but: During my brief time in big-name department store retail, one of my duties was operating a cash register. All cashiers there were able to discount anything by up to, IIRC, 30% -- without getting any special approval. It just took a few button presses.)
I think we were allowed to discount products up to 10% when I was a computer technician in a big retail store. I always felt it would be frowned upon, it wasn't something we did often.
Services, though, were very flexible. Nobody was looking at the receipt, just the work order. 80% of something beats 100% of nothing every time.
If they won't negotiate on price, consider negotiating for upgrades. Ask for an extra year on a license, or to be certified for commercial trucking.
...I joke, but in Thailand, where driving schools can administer the driving tests, not just the DMV, people do shop around for driving schools for various reasons.
Rolex is notorious for artificially creating scarcity by not allowing you to buy most of their watches seen in store and instead put you on a waitlist.
The Rolexes you can buy on spot are typically lower (undesirable) models.
Datejust is one of the most popular models. If you're desperate for a watch just ask for the 40k precious metal version of a watch and they'll sell you one without a fuss.
"Duty free" is a huge trap. I haven't looked at watches (I will never understand the desire for a Rolex or other 4-figure watch), but I once checked out a duty free liquor store. I spot-checked a few bottles I could get at home and found that the "duty free" store was easily 25-50% more than what I'd pay at home.
I guess duty-free stores were a thing decades ago when international trade was actually constrained by duties. Right now free trade is the default (or was, until Trump)
When it comes to such brands, isn't the big cost a feature? Wouldn't discounts ruin the point / the brand? Wouldn't these things carry worse status for all the customers of the brand if you can have an item with a discount? Why would the brand allow this to happen?
If you’re buying a Rolex watch you’re already making a blunder, trying to optimize it at an airport is like finding the least painful way to beat yourself in the head with a hammer. The best move is to not do it in the first place.
> Even expert negotiators struggle with airport Rolex purchases. You might get 30-35% off other luxury watch brands at airports, but with Rolex, expect 20% or less – “probably less” as industry experts say. Many frequent flyers say they’ve never seen any Rolex discounts at airports.
I wouldn’t have realized you could negotiate price on anything sold in the airport. I didn’t know you could negotiate on new, high end watches in general, though, to be honest.
And yeah, I’ve never understood the people who buy duty free booze, etc. The prices never looked particularly good, and it’s going to be another thing to wrangle and schlep home when you land. I always assumed it was targeted at people from other countries with higher prices.
If an item isn't being scanned by barcode by a cashier, then it can probably be negotiated.
Even then: Things can be negotiable. Haggling can be rejected, but that's not a hard-and-fast rule.
(It's anecdotal, but: During my brief time in big-name department store retail, one of my duties was operating a cash register. All cashiers there were able to discount anything by up to, IIRC, 30% -- without getting any special approval. It just took a few button presses.)
True, I think I could do up to 5% when I worked as a cashier ("team leads" could do 10%, and managers for anything more than that).
No ever asked me, but I probably would have tried if I knew it was under 5%.
I think we were allowed to discount products up to 10% when I was a computer technician in a big retail store. I always felt it would be frowned upon, it wasn't something we did often.
Services, though, were very flexible. Nobody was looking at the receipt, just the work order. 80% of something beats 100% of nothing every time.
The DMV really doesn't appreciate my attempts
If they won't negotiate on price, consider negotiating for upgrades. Ask for an extra year on a license, or to be certified for commercial trucking.
...I joke, but in Thailand, where driving schools can administer the driving tests, not just the DMV, people do shop around for driving schools for various reasons.
Rolex is notorious for artificially creating scarcity by not allowing you to buy most of their watches seen in store and instead put you on a waitlist.
The Rolexes you can buy on spot are typically lower (undesirable) models.
Yet to find a Rolex store that let you buy models. Even Datejusts can not be bought.
Datejust is one of the most popular models. If you're desperate for a watch just ask for the 40k precious metal version of a watch and they'll sell you one without a fuss.
I'll stick with my $500 VFS clone. Nobody in my social circle can tell the difference anyway.
[dead]
I think it’s the only place where you can actually buy Rolex watches.
If these are Rolex-owned boutiques, might they still require you to have a spending history with your local Tourneau/Bucherer?
Betteridge's law of headlines applies [0].
"Duty free" is a huge trap. I haven't looked at watches (I will never understand the desire for a Rolex or other 4-figure watch), but I once checked out a duty free liquor store. I spot-checked a few bottles I could get at home and found that the "duty free" store was easily 25-50% more than what I'd pay at home.
[0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge%27s_law_of_headline...
Counterpoint: I came home with a 1L bottle of Sipsmith gin for like $20 thanks to the combination of duty free and post-Brexit GBP crash.
I guess duty-free stores were a thing decades ago when international trade was actually constrained by duties. Right now free trade is the default (or was, until Trump)
When it comes to such brands, isn't the big cost a feature? Wouldn't discounts ruin the point / the brand? Wouldn't these things carry worse status for all the customers of the brand if you can have an item with a discount? Why would the brand allow this to happen?
Am I perceiving things horribly wrongly?
Somehow linked: I found Lego sets more expensive in Denmark's airport than in the US retailers.
[dead]