Chronosect is always at the forefront when it comes to connecting our Certified Sellers with customers. Today we went to interview X-Watch, a jeweler from Trento.
Who are you and how long have you been practicing in the jewelry industry? Which brands and models do you work on?
Since the early nineties we have been dealing with the trade of art objects, jewels, carpets, antiques in general a Trento. For about seven or eight years, however, we have been more focused on the purely jewelery and watchmaking sector, because it is a type of market that continues to go quite strong despite the crisis that has instead involved other sectors.
Although a trader, I am above all an enthusiast. I sell feelings, not just merchandise. I treat the kind of watch that I like, not what the market demands. Obviously within the limits of what is possible to do commercially speaking: I still have to pay the expenses of the shop! But my job is based on selling products that first of all have to please me. I mainly focus on high-end watches, Then Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin and of course i Rolex. The local market is similar to the national one: steel sports are very popular, hence the Nautilus, Royal Oak, Daytona. As for the jewels, we mainly work on tennis bracelets around five thousand euros. If they happen, we gladly treat precious items or even particular items, such as those of Louis Vuitton. Then, when I can deal with watches that I particularly love such as Vacheron Constantin, the satisfaction is maximum ...
There is a tendency, which emerges from other interviews, to hoarding even the used watch, as well as the new one. Do you find it too, or do your customers continue to buy the second wrist as in the past to use it and not to speculate on it?
The market ofused watch it is world-wide and the dynamics seen in one country can also be seen in others. If a few pieces are produced, or in any case they are produced in insufficient quantities to satisfy the demand, it is natural that we turn to theused watch. Buy a used watch today does not mean making a renunciation choice: in fact, I prefer to use the term "collectible watch". Why? Because when a highly regarded watch goes out of production, the demand for that model can no longer be met, and prices begin to rise. The vintage it is by its nature a good available in finite quantities, so if demand persists, the price of the used watch salt. This is why many now also consider the second wrist a investment watch. Rolex, like other big brands, every five years it renews its models: “new vintage” are born continuously, which, being out of production, become collectors' items. It is a phenomenon that will probably continue for a long time.
He talked about the world-wide watch market. Is there a strong demand for the usual Rolex sports everywhere or are there differences in the various markets?
I am of Persian origin, so I have my foot in two directions, so to speak: I can get an idea of the market not only at the Italian level. Until 12-13 years ago I went to Iran and saw that i prices of Rolex watches they were lower than in Italy. Today they also have the same prices there as they are with us, if not higher: now, everywhere in the world, there are wealthy social groups who perceive the luxury watch, especially Rolex, as an investment. Then there are certainly differences, also due to cultural diversity: in the Middle East yellow gold or steel and gold watches are more popular, while in Europe steel models are preferred. These variations also derive from the way people dress: while neutral colors prevail in the West, in the East it is normal to dress in bright tones and wear gold bracelets or necklaces. Here then is a Rolex gold watch it is no longer a taboo, on the contrary, it becomes a completion of one's style.
Tell us something about your relationship with customers and how you have accompanied them in this crisis.
Everyone has felt the fluctuations of the market, both because we cannot move and because the economic availability decreases. Prices fell at some point, but quickly recovered, we are now back to the levels of a year ago and the trend is continuing to rise. For us, 2020 was a year that was not without difficulties. 2021 is marked by uncertainty, also because government decisions, both here and abroad, which are taken without warning, certainly do not help people to feel calm and confident in the future. Then the speeches should be divided by brands and price ranges, of course. Anyway me I am optimistic by nature, otherwise I would not be doing this job, so I am confident that i signs of recovery of the market consolidate over the course of the year.
Tell us an episode that describes your way of working.
My relationship with clients is something that hasn't changed with the crisis. I sell feelings, not just merchandise. My work is a pleasure, as well as a duty. It often happens to me that a customer comes in looking for a watch and that I show him something else that suits him better. I think of a recent episode: a client asked me for a Audemars Piguet and I, noticing that it did not suit him, I recommended a Hublot. I am not a financial consultant, but an enthusiast who often and willingly works with feeling and with the heart: commercially it might be better to be "smart", but when the customer thanks you and goes out happy they are great satisfactions ...
You can contact the X-Watch jewelry store in Trento by clicking here.
