Post by tocktick on Nov 11, 2017 11:33:58 GMT -6
Well, I am sat on my balcony in the hotel I am staying at on the sunny island of Lanzarote, and I got thinking. What constitutes value for money. Some may say a £2 Chinese watch that keeps good time and will give you a years trouble free wear, others would say a barely used Rolex for £5k. Of course, both may well be right. I no longer buy what I would consider very cheap watches, but that said, I also don't own a very expensive one either, other than a Nomos with a strange history. I now buy watches that I not only like the look of, but watches that I consider represent great value. I own a rather beautiful orange faced Orient Mako with an in-house movement. The list price of this watch is £320, albeit they can be picked up for less. I managed to buy mine from a collector for what I thought was a bargain, but is it? I must point out that the watch had never been used. In the watch world Orient are well considered, and in fact I also own an Orient solar model, which is excellent. That said, my Mako has mineral crystal glass rather than sapphire, a movement which I have regulated several times to get anywhere near accurate, and a strap that is noisy. I also own a Chinese made Parnis 200m divers watch, similar in size to the Mako. The Parnis has a miyota auto movement which is very accurate, sapphire glass, a great strap, guilloche dial, and a 316 marine quality stainless case. I am embarrassed to say it but it is probably as good as my Christopher Ward, which is no slouch of a time piece. Whilst the Parnis has no official MRP, I paid £82 delivered, yes £82. Ask the average collector what they would prefer, and most of them wouldn't know what a Parnis is. In fact, most enthusiasts wouldn't even look at a Chinese watch, even though the majority of electrical goods they own are indeed Chinese. As an ex retailer of many years, I have always said that the old saying "you get what you pay for" couldn't be further from the truth !!