Authorized dealer
Also called authorised dealer, AD
An authorized dealer, or AD, is a retailer appointed by a watch brand to sell its new watches, with stock supplied directly by the brand and the brand's warranty applying from the date of sale.
For a pre-owned dealer, the AD matters in two ways. It sets the retail price that the secondary market is measured against, and the AD's warranty card and receipt are what give a pre-owned watch its documented history.
When a model is hard to get at an AD, pre-owned and gray-market prices can rise above retail; when ADs have stock readily available, secondary prices usually come under pressure.
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Plain-English guides to buying, pricing and selling watches as a business. Free, and written to be used at the counter.