The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Beginning diligence on a purchase. Located in Southeastern U.S. and intend to purchase from an authorized dealer. Some comments in other threads have been critical of Tourneau. On that note, are there preferred ADs (or other non-preferred ADs)? Can I expect much deviation in price between different ADs?

Any advice is appreciated, as this is my first Breitling (or comparable) purchase. Any commentary w/r/t customary discount percentages from the prices noted in the PDF is also greatly appreciated.

For what it's worth, I'm looking at "plain" Navis: silver (white) or blue (thoughts?) dial on stainless case, with gold strap.

Thanks in advance.

I haven't bought any Breitlings in the US, but I've been to Mayor's in Florida Mall (Orlando, FL), and bought a beautiful Tag Heuer for my wife with a nice discount. The sales guy was very kind and helpful, he showed me some Breitlings and Rolex as well. We had to go back the next day, because the warranty card wasn't filled in properly. They of course fixed it and apologized for their mistake. All in all, I can recommend them to anyone looking for a Breitling/Tag/Rolex AD. I'm not sure what discount can you achieve with them about Breitlings though.

As for the Navi, I think it's a very good choice as a first Breitling. If you don't rotate between various watches, you may want to consider getting the black&white dial Cosmonaute Limited Edition instead, with 24-hour dial:

http://www.breitling.com/en/intro.html# ... -edition-/

If you stick to the regular Navitimer, then I'd get the classic white on black dial, and put it on a black leather strap or bracelet. It's a more universal choice than a blue dial one, and probably more recognizable as well (if you care about that).

In the case you have a thick wrist (7 inch or bigger), try on the big Navi World and the huge Chrono-Matic 49 as well. They're both utterly fantastic pieces.

_________________
Ingenieur - Speedmaster - Submariner

Thanks - that's helpful. I was actually looking at the wrong navi (hence my surprise about the blue dial). I'm really looking at the Montbrilliant with silver (white) face and gold strap (there's no blue face).

I appreciate the feedback about the Cosmonaute.

As for rotation, I have a couple of others that would still see some action (a Tissot PRC 200 chronograph and a much more conservative Raymond Weil), so I'm not particularly worried about versatility.

Thanks for the feedback re. Mayors. I was under the impression that a lot of them were closing. Hopefully that's incorrect.

The short answer is that the only way to pick an AD is to go visit as many as you can and try to engage your salesperson. If they are any good, it will show.

As far as discounts, most places in the US will give you 15-20% off the bat. A deep discount is something closer to 30%. Torneau gets a bad rap here because they are plopped in malls and give stingy discounts.

This being your first purchase, you might want to get your hands on the peice before you buy. That being said, if you's consider buying remotely, Govberg in Philadelphia has a lot of good feedback here. You'd have to deal remotely but apparently his service is top notch (and the discounts ain't bad either).

I also agree that a Navitimer is a good first purchase. It's iconic and classic looking. I would go try one on ASAP to make sure it's the right one.

_________________
“The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once.” - Albert Einstein

Thanks Ian.

I won't buy remotely (well, I might actually buy remotely for the obvious reason) but would visit a remote AD. The price of the round-trip ticket and hotel in a worthy city is probably less than my state's sales tax cut would be.

Thanks for the Tourneau explanation. Stingy discounts are something I want to avoid. I've worn the piece (or those like it) so I know I'm getting close...

Is this like buying a car (finding the best price) where all pride is checked at the door and haggling commences, or is there etiquette?

I agree. It would be best to try on as many Navitimer-range Breitlings as possible. There's a not-so-slim chance you'll not actually like the Montbrillant "in the metal", and instead you'll fall in love with another Breitling. Feeling a Breitling on the wrist is a completely different experience than looking at pictures or browsing Breitling's website.

To tell you the truth, I never considered any Navitimer-range Breitlings. I thought they're for older guys, they're too dressy, and generally not suiting me at all. Then one day, just for the fun of it, at an AD I've tried on the Montbrillant Edition. I just wanted to check out the 7-row Navi bracelet in the flesh. It felt so nice and unbelievably special that I've decided I'll need get one as soon as funds are available. Later down the road I've tried on the classic Navitimer, the classic Cosmonaute, but never considered the Navi World due to its perceived huge size. Then -- yet again, just for fun -- I've tried on the Navi World, and it was just as fantastic as the Montbrillant Edition. So I was in a big trouble with multiple watches in sight, plus the Cosmonaute LE looked very appealing as well. Then I walked in an AD where I've never been to, just because they offered a big discount on all watches on stock. I've found another watch that I never considered, mainly because of the size, the Chrono-Matic 49. The mentioned last AD had no Chrono-Matic 49 on stock, but they had a 2-year-old NOS Chrono-Matic 44mm variant. That (44mm) is a size that I can surely pull off, so I've tried it on. I've completely fallen in love with its retro looks and (IMHO) perfect dial colour arrangement (silver chrono dials on black dial). The rest is history: now I'm waiting for the 7-row Navi bracelet for my new Chrono-Matic 44mm to arrive

And the bad news for me: the Montbrillant Edition I've tried on months ago is still unsold at my AD........

_________________
Ingenieur - Speedmaster - Submariner

I too don't buy remotely, I always buy new watches, at a respective AD. I always push my luck about discounts, especially this year, since sales on luxury goods seem to have dropped by a huge margin due to the recession. ADs started to offer promoted discounts -- which was never the case about Breitling/Omega ADs before here. Last weekend 3 local Breitling ADs had a promoted discount, two at 20%, one at 30%.

Feel free to haggle strong, but also make sure to have the $$ in cash with you. It helps to achieve a bigger discount.

_________________
Ingenieur - Speedmaster - Submariner

If you have a Tourneau, they usually have a pretty large selection. You can see everything in person there and then buy remotely after you nail down which one you want. Of course, ask Tourneau what type of discount they can offer you just to be fair. You can go to any local AD to see them in the flesh for that matter...I dont think anything is wrong with that as long as you are actually willing to buy from them if the price is right.

_________________
-RJ

I would say as far as haggling, don't bother until you bring sufficient funds to buy on the spot. Like car dealers, this has tremendous influence. Make sure they know you will buy it right now. Once you do, keep it civil and be prepared to leave (politely of course) if you don't get the price you want. In my limited experience, unlike many car dealers they are not prepared to sell at any price, so you will probably arrive at their maximum discount quickly. Also unlike car dealers they are usually not prepared to drag out negotiations forever, but that's a good thing I think. My theory is that car dealers try to drag you up to the maximum car you can afford, so that is why the negotiations take so long. The jeweler knows you are buying a piece that is strictly a luxury purchase for you, so you will only buy it if you can readily afford it (and 5% either way is not going to put you over the threshold of affordability).

Also, offering comparisons like "this other AD gave me X price" does not seem to get one very far (whereas car dealers do often respond to this kind of thing and will match competitors' prices).

That said, the ADs also know that 95% of people will accept whatever discount they end up giving, so that's why it's important to just say no, because they might go down a notch when they discover you are in the other 5%.

I have not bought from Govbergs (I normally buy pre-owned), but certainly they have a great reputation and they carry many many brands, so establishing a relationship there might also be worth it because it gives you consistent access to a variety of watches through a trusted source who provides good service and is willing to discount competitively. If I were to buy new, the relationship with the AD would be important to me. But if an AD local to you is a good one, that's also worth something. And you are right about the plane ticket: a short hop to Philadelphia for you and you can not only see your watch in person but also spend some quality time in the store itself. Just make sure they end up mailing you your watch or you might be liable for PA sales tax (they would know for sure, though).

Good luck!

///M

_________________
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness." --Dave Barry

As one who has bought twice from Govberg, I can recommend them without any reservation at all!!
My local AD (there is only one in a 100 mile radius) thinks "discount" is a word found between "dirty" and "ditch" in the dictionary. So I went remote and have never looked back.
Contact jnelson3097 for George at Govberg if interested.

_________________
Chronomat, Steel/Gold, MOP Dial, 2-tone band (2008)
Super Avenger Black Baton Dial (2009)
Bentley B04 GMT Silver Dial (2013)
Avenger Blacksteel Baton Dial (2014)

Personally, I would never buy new. I own 2x the number of watches I would otherwise have probably because of buying used.

I buy new from an AD. All but once in the local store. I like the way some people think about having more capital to buy more watches, although after two, it starts becoming a chore to decide which one to wear! Bottomline, if you plan to flip, buy accordingly, if you plan to keep, it really doesn't matter what you paid for it. How much something is worth that you're never going to sell is irrelevant. It is important you "feel good" about what you bought, where you bought it, and the service you received during the process and in the future.

R/

Where do you live?

To give you an example, I'm located in the midwest and there are only 2 AD's within say a 4-5 hour radius. I visted the closest when I arrived and was immediately offered 30% off any Breitling which I thought was pretty amazing, particularly coming from Australia where 20% is more the norm. The range was pretty good too.

I've since been to one other AD in another state and have also been offered 30%, without having to work too hard to be honest.

For me personally when I purchase an expensive (relatively speaking) luxury watch I prefer to buy new from an AD. Based on this my advice would be to try a few (if you can) to see what you think of both the timepieces and the sales staff. When you find the right sales person and watch then you're set to go. As others have said, George from Govberg is also very good if you wish to buy over the phone or in person (perhaps after you've narrowed your choices).

I'm also more than happy to provide you details of other AD's I've either met, bought from and think highly of or can recommend from others if you wish to PM me as I'm sure pretty much everyone else can.

Have fun with the process and good luck!

_________________
Happines is Good Health and a Bad Memory.
"Ingrid Bergman"

Sure it is! I have never sold a pair of socks, but I would not say that the price I paid for a pair of socks was irrelevant. Same goes for all of my clothes. I certainly don't purchase my underwear planning to sell it, any yet price is a factor.

If I can get two as-new pre-owned watches that I will keep forever for the price of a single one from the AD, then I would still rather do that.

Some people derive value from having something brand new, others don't. The former buy new, the latter do not. But no matter what, the price you pay always matters, because you could have used that money to buy something else instead.

///M

_________________
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness." --Dave Barry