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Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:20 pm
by Ryeguy
Seppia wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 1:14 pm
Ryeguy wrote: the SNAFU's suffered by CREPAS with their model that was shipped without a movement ring.

CUT

The micro brand owner puts a ton of faith in their contract manufacturer. Their business depends upon it as evidenced by the thrashing CREPAS received for their dud even after delivering multiple successful models in the past. Their reputation still hasn't recovered.
OT/

Are you talking about the Tactico Anko?
The issue there wasn’t the fact that the watch shipped without movement holder, but the fact that they refused to own their mistake and fix it for those who had a misaligned-shifting dial.
I’m not surprised their reputation hasn’t recovered.
Everybody has a snafu sooner or later, those who own it and take care of their customers are those who stay in business long term.
Yes, I was thinking of the Anko (or whatever it was called) model.

I think there were 2 strikes against CREPAS on this situation. First was not catching the defect prior to it getting to the customer and second was the poor handling of the resolution.

As you say, everyone has a miss now and again. It is how you handle the miss that matters.

Back O/T, I'm not at all bitching that I didn't get a watch. I'm old enough to remember dialing for concert tickets and redialing over and over hoping to get through to buy some. We were excited to get tickets and how quickly the concern sold out was the talk of the crowd for days.

This is no different. The talk of how quickly the concert sold out or how big the mob was on Black Friday morning creates the drama that drives conversation and promotes the brand.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:21 pm
by BSears
Seppia wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 2:41 pm
BSears wrote:So if just anybody complains, you’re going to say I’m butt hurt? That’s a whole lot of non sequitur going on but sure, whatever, just make sure you at least preface it “With all due respect...”.
Oh come on
English is not my native language, you understood what I meant
BSears wrote: Anyway, yeah, you all that are whining about missing out on the purchase are pretty much acting like whiners. Not all of you, but some of you. And maybe not necessarily you, but it certainly seems like it’s you. That’s a lot of you’s
I’m so butt hurt that I didn’t even try to buy one.
BSears wrote: And this is absolutely NOTHING like MKII. Not even close. Not even the same ballpark, league, or sport! But nice try there.
That’s not at all what I said. I don’t think anything got lost in translation on this, read again.
I’m not at all equating the two.
BSears wrote: Listen, I’ve been hit and miss on the dee dub for the last year, with spotty and random posts. I’ll just say for now that life has gotten...difficult. So if I seem callous, I don’t intend to be. Perhaps straightforward is more appropriate. Nonetheless, there’s just been a lot I’m putting in perspective so when I see folks upset because they didn’t get to buy one of Jason’s watches on this last batch, I don’t have a whole lot of pity.
I’m very sorry you’re having a tough time, but if you go around calling people whiners and butt hurt, I would expect you can deal with some amount of push back and straight forwardness as well?

I like this place precisely because users don’t put on gloves when expressing their opinions, but it has to go both ways or it isn’t fun anymore.

:cheers:
Gotcha. And yes, I can absolutely deal with push back and straight fordwardness. And I failed to remember and take into account you are not a native English-speaker. We’re good. :thumbsup:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:25 pm
by BSears
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 3:35 pm
BSears wrote:
ericf4 wrote:
Sat Aug 11, 2018 4:55 am
Very cool Jason posted here, that said the whole scenario is a joke. For me, I tried twice and struck out twice. Now I'm done. I gave it a shot. I've never owned a halios and now won't buy one unless it's from a flip as I won't waste my time again on a terrible buying process.

I tend to agree w above comment that Jason knows what he's doing, this isn't the first nor last time this will happen. As such, he will get lots written about his brand. Loved, hated but never ignored sort of scenario it seems.

Shame as as there are plenty of well qualified buyers like me new to the brand who he's pushing away with experiences like this. But, it doesn't matter as the frenzy created will sustain his needs. He doesn't need me or other new clients. He can sell 100 watches a pop with his eyes closed, a terrible buying process etc. Hey, all I can say is I tried, it didn't work and my money goes elsewhere. All good.





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Wtf is a “well qualified buyer”?? Are you leasing or financing? Oh you mean you could easily spend several hundred dollars on a different luxury item instead of this but tried (twice) to buy this luxury item? That is a pretty douchy statement if I’ve ever read/heard one.
Good to hear from you in typical Brad style. What I meant was that many micros are in the low hundreds and I saw a post where perhaps Jason felt that the higher price would weed people out. My comment was simply about buyers who are ready willing and able. As far as me being douchey, well Brad I'm sure you and I are still very opposite one another. And I'm good with that. Welcome back.



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Well maybe just shy of typical “Brad” style as it were. :lol: But I’m trying a little harder these days to be less old style and more new style, if that makes any sense. I’m glad to see you can still take a good ribbing, too. I appreciate your clarification as well. :cheers:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:33 pm
by ericf4
Axelay2003 wrote:
ericf4 wrote:
Fri Aug 10, 2018 2:54 pm
Nah he won't care. My whole beef is why even bother. Why does he post on social about these going on sale, get people lathered up only to disappoint all?

He should just email people who bought before and he can sell them all without turning potential new clients against the brand. Or here's an idea, produce more. I know he's a one man shop but at a grand a pop and selling shit out in 5 seconds, he should invest in deeper stock. Or better ecomm software.

I may know someone who could help him on the ecomm side :)

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Andrea has discussed and argued Jason’s business model in the past. I believe Jason had an idea how many people logged in to purchase Seaforths in the past and should have seriously considered this barometer.

The main problem is with Jason’s business model, IMO. If you decide to only have a small scale operation and you don’t see yourself exploding your business, that’s fine.

You know you will have a very limited number(in this case, 100 watches?), but still market the hell out of it and get everybody’s expectations extremely high.

If you are going to have 4000+ watches ready to go, then market the shit out of it(instagram, FB, etc).

If you will limit to 100, then be up front and lower everybody’s expectations(tell the customers that the chances of getting one will be like winning a lottery) so that if they were not able to purchase one, then the shock would be minimal.

I already know due to past experiences with the ordering process of the Seaforths that I will not be a candidate as a buyer.

Respect for putting out quality pieces and excellent CS.
Ecomm software needs to account for products in cart. His doesn't it appears. Certainly not the 5 minutes he said it was supposed to. If the cart is abandoned then it releases back to stock. That's how a shopping cart should work.

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Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:39 pm
by toxicavenger
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:33 pm
]Ecomm software needs to account for products in cart. His doesn't it appears. Certainly not the 5 minutes he said it was supposed to. If the cart is abandoned then it releases back to stock. That's how a shopping cart should work.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
I have this same problem. The shopify platform requires you to add the apps that do stuff like this to your store. Most of them cost money, and not all of them work. :banghead:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:51 pm
by ericf4
toxicavenger wrote:
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:33 pm
]Ecomm software needs to account for products in cart. His doesn't it appears. Certainly not the 5 minutes he said it was supposed to. If the cart is abandoned then it releases back to stock. That's how a shopping cart should work.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
I have this same problem. The shopify platform requires you to add the apps that do stuff like this to your store. Most of them cost money, and not all of them work. :banghead:
That's the problem. Look at other platforms. :)

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Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:53 pm
by toxicavenger
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:51 pm
toxicavenger wrote:
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:33 pm
]Ecomm software needs to account for products in cart. His doesn't it appears. Certainly not the 5 minutes he said it was supposed to. If the cart is abandoned then it releases back to stock. That's how a shopping cart should work.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
I have this same problem. The shopify platform requires you to add the apps that do stuff like this to your store. Most of them cost money, and not all of them work. :banghead:
That's the problem. Look at other platforms. :)

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
The rest suck. Believe me :angryfire:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 5:00 am
by Ryeguy
I'm not in the E-comm business, but my assumption is those shopify-type platforms work fine for normal buying volumes. Situations such as this where thousands of people are trying to buy a small inventory are not normal and are likely outside the design parameters of the software.

Heck, even Amazon went down on their last "Prime Day", so it isn't just a micro watch maker problem.

My question (again, academic only) is, knowing the software isn't up to task, and knowing the situation on the original Seaforth release, why do it again?

The Machiavellian part of me says it was a calculated move intentially done to create drama and drive conversations on the brand. Again, no different than he Black Friday sales occurring ever year. Maybe it was just done out of convenience - this was the easiest, most established, mechanism and he just went with it.

Either way, in my opinion, it isn't the best go to market strategy given the negative backlash. It isn't like I haven't jumped through hoops to buy a watch I like (I've joined specific forums, used Google translate, etc.), but this "preload PayPal info and hit "enter" at the precise second the virtual doors open isn't for me.

Ultimately, though, Halios isn't trying to sell me a watch. Halios is trying to sell their inventory of watches. To that end, their current practice is successful so, I guess if I were Jason, I might ask myself "why change?".

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 8:41 am
by toxicavenger
Ryeguy wrote:
Mon Aug 13, 2018 5:00 am
My question (again, academic only) is, knowing the software isn't up to task, and knowing the situation on the original Seaforth release, why do it again?
Chris, after the first crash Jason talked to his provider of his site if i recall correctly and they guaranteed him it wouldn't happen again. Then it happened a second time, so he changed to shopify. This time it didn't crash, the shopping cart hold didn't work. It seems he has made changes along the way to make it an easier experience.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 8:55 am
by ericf4
toxicavenger wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:53 pm
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:51 pm
toxicavenger wrote:
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:33 pm
]Ecomm software needs to account for products in cart. His doesn't it appears. Certainly not the 5 minutes he said it was supposed to. If the cart is abandoned then it releases back to stock. That's how a shopping cart should work.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
I have this same problem. The shopify platform requires you to add the apps that do stuff like this to your store. Most of them cost money, and not all of them work. :banghead:
That's the problem. Look at other platforms. :)

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
The rest suck. Believe me :angryfire:
Terry, Thats a statement that frankly i don't agree with. Robust cart software/ Commerce platforms are out there allowing for real time inventory pulls etc. There is a diff between using a "One size fits all" SaaS Model where there may be little to no room for customization, versus an open source product allowing for lots of customization to the merchants needs. Also, its vital that these extensions are vetted, tested for code quality, plagiarism etc. Now i do understand that cost for software licensure and implementation may pose a barrier to some merchants, but there are other platforms that are performant and can create a better user experience. The other downside to a platform like Shopify is that they are "Success based' meaning as a merchant sells more, Shopify takes more. Not a huge deal for a tiny merchant, but for anyone who wants to scale, it certainly not ideal.

If i were a merchant experiencing brisk sales, an in demand product, and wanting to scale,,,,,,i would be looking at the weak link of allowing customers to purchase effortlessly from me. If growing the base isn't that important, perhaps as is would be "good enough".

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 9:25 am
by Ryeguy
toxicavenger wrote:
Mon Aug 13, 2018 8:41 am
Ryeguy wrote:
Mon Aug 13, 2018 5:00 am
My question (again, academic only) is, knowing the software isn't up to task, and knowing the situation on the original Seaforth release, why do it again?
Chris, after the first crash Jason talked to his provider of his site if i recall correctly and they guaranteed him it wouldn't happen again. Then it happened a second time, so he changed to shopify. This time it didn't crash, the shopping cart hold didn't work. It seems he has made changes along the way to make it an easier experience.
Yes, makes sense. Plus, I don't mean to hate on the guy at all. As I posted earlier, e-commerce system failure happened to Amazon on their last "Prime Day" event. If it can happen to Amazon, it can certainly happen to anyone.

I do think it is also important to point out that Shopify (or whichever service he used for e-comm.) worked. He sold all his inventory. Just because a few of us weren't able to purchase watches doesn't mean no one was able to.

The reality is probably anything he did (create a list, prioritize former customers, etc.) would leave some people frustrated. In hindsight, the only thing he probably could've done better was to emphasize the fact there were only a handful GMT's made. It may not have eliminated the butt hurt, but maybe it would've smoothed it a little.

Somebody on WUS (in a 665+ post thread - so there goes my Machiavellian side again) said "treat buying a Seaforth GMT like playing the lottery. Be happy if you win, but not surprised or disappointed if you lose."

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 9:32 am
by toxicavenger
ericf4 wrote:
Mon Aug 13, 2018 8:55 am
toxicavenger wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:53 pm
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:51 pm
toxicavenger wrote:
ericf4 wrote:
Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:33 pm
]Ecomm software needs to account for products in cart. His doesn't it appears. Certainly not the 5 minutes he said it was supposed to. If the cart is abandoned then it releases back to stock. That's how a shopping cart should work.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
I have this same problem. The shopify platform requires you to add the apps that do stuff like this to your store. Most of them cost money, and not all of them work. :banghead:
That's the problem. Look at other platforms. :)

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
The rest suck. Believe me :angryfire:
Terry, Thats a statement that frankly i don't agree with. Robust cart software/ Commerce platforms are out there allowing for real time inventory pulls etc. There is a diff between using a "One size fits all" SaaS Model where there may be little to no room for customization, versus an open source product allowing for lots of customization to the merchants needs. Also, its vital that these extensions are vetted, tested for code quality, plagiarism etc. Now i do understand that cost for software licensure and implementation may pose a barrier to some merchants, but there are other platforms that are performant and can create a better user experience. The other downside to a platform like Shopify is that they are "Success based' meaning as a merchant sells more, Shopify takes more. Not a huge deal for a tiny merchant, but for anyone who wants to scale, it certainly not ideal.

If i were a merchant experiencing brisk sales, an in demand product, and wanting to scale,,,,,,i would be looking at the weak link of allowing customers to purchase effortlessly from me. If growing the base isn't that important, perhaps as is would be "good enough".
I am open ears Eric. Which ones are good? The problem I have ran into is most apps you add to your shopify store are super expensive and not that good. I personally use most free apps so that I transfer that savings down to my customers. If I had to pay for every app I use then my prices would definitely be higher.

Do tell. I am super interested. :salute:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 9:44 am
by ericf4
i have a bit of a conflict of interest here due to my work, but i suggest you take a look at things like the Forrester Wave reports, Gartner and the like. They are good resources to help show who leaders in the space are, pros and cons etc. Lots of great info there.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 10:01 am
by toxicavenger
ericf4 wrote:
Mon Aug 13, 2018 9:44 am
i have a bit of a conflict of interest here due to my work, but i suggest you take a look at things like the Forrester Wave reports, Gartner and the like. They are good resources to help show who leaders in the space are, pros and cons etc. Lots of great info there.
:cheers:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 12:03 pm
by ericf4
Saw one pop up on eBay. Bid until it got to 1200 , lol I'm out. No thx.

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Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 12:13 pm
by gonzomantis
$1200?

I've had 2 (non-GMT). They are nice, but not worthy of that much of a premium over the Halios price. I bet the latest buzz will die off, and they will come back down to around list in just a few weeks.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 2:24 pm
by ericf4
gonzomantis wrote:$1200?

I've had 2 (non-GMT). They are nice, but not worthy of that much of a premium over the Halios price. I bet the latest buzz will die off, and they will come back down to around list in just a few weeks.
I was ok paying a couple hundred over Max. But at this price I'm out not that Into it.

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Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 2:34 pm
by 59yukon01
Nice looking watches, but way too much drama involved in trying to get one for me.

They are after all just watches. There are just as nice and much easier ones out there to buy.


Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 9:37 pm
by Jeep99dad
dukerules wrote:For me, it's emblematic of the Participation Trophy generation. A big chunk of the (mostly younger) population thinks its entitled to something just because it showed up and wants it. I just don't understand this. And yes, it's good to have opinions, but strong opinions about something like this....I just do not understand.
Agree 100%

I just don’t get it. People get so fired up. I wish they spent half that energy on positive things.
Some of the comments on IG (and watchuseek on prior preorders) are embarrassing.

It’s just a watch Image

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 10:43 am
by ericf4

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 11:47 am
by JBZ
ericf4 wrote:
Thu Sep 06, 2018 10:43 am
Go get it only $1500 clams.

https://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/fs-br ... 83901.html
If only your PayPal account didn't have a negative balance. :excited:

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 11:48 am
by ericf4
dude i cant even pay the $25 for my kids drum lessons tonight as my acct is locked.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 12:32 pm
by Bradystraps
Really like the watch and respect to hell and back what Jason has built with his brand. :thumbsup:
That being said, I feel the price point here is too rich for my blood. If I saw one preowned on the market at a steal price I would probably pull the trigger. But, not expecting that to happen anytime soon.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 2:39 pm
by gwells
you rarely saw even the tropik at a steal price. his watches have always held value really well. not this kind of ridiculous overvalue, but 1-2 year old watches selling at original retail was normal.

Re: Seaforth GMT tomorrow

Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:51 pm
by HapaHapa
ericf4 wrote:dude i cant even pay the $25 for my kids drum lessons tonight as my acct is locked.
All funnery aside, that really sucks