Sourcing a watch for a customer

A customer describes exactly what they want and asks you to find it. This is the most efficient work a dealer can do: you're buying with the exit already known, so the capital is committed for days rather than months. It goes wrong in predictable ways, almost all of them traceable to a brief or a set of terms that was never pinned down.

Agree the brief in detail

"A Submariner, good condition, around this budget" is not a brief. Before you start looking, agree:

• Reference and acceptable variants, including dial and bracelet options.
• Condition expectations, in specific terms rather than words like "mint".
• Accessories: box, papers, extra links, and whether they're required or preferred.
• Service expectations, and who pays if a service is needed.
• Budget, and whether it's firm or a range.
• Timing, including whether there's a date it's needed by.

Write it down and send it back to them. Half of all sourcing disappointments are a customer picturing something different from what you were hunting.

Agree how you're paid

Be explicit about your role, because it determines what "fair" means later:

• Buy and resell. You purchase the watch and sell it to them at an agreed price. Your margin is in that price, and it's your risk if they walk away.
• Sourcing fee. You find the watch and they buy it, paying you an agreed fee for the work.

Either is fine. What isn't fine is taking a margin from the customer and an undisclosed commission from the seller. Disclose any payment you receive from the other side.

Set expectations about price

Customers often have a number in mind from a listing they saw, which may not reflect what examples actually sell for. Show them recent sold evidence early, as the market prices article covers. It's much easier to discuss the market before you're holding a watch they think is overpriced.

Be honest about what the budget can realistically buy, including the trade-offs between condition, accessories, and price.

Deposits

For a serious search, a deposit is reasonable. Put in writing what it covers, whether it's refundable if you can't find one, and what happens if the customer changes their mind after you've bought. Without that, a customer who walks away leaves you holding a watch bought for them specifically.

Search your network first

The advantage you offer is reach. Start with the people most likely to know where one is:

• Other dealers, including those outside your niche who may have taken one in trade. The dealer buying article covers those transactions.
• Watchmakers and jewelers, who see watches before they're listed.
• Collectors who own one and might be persuaded.
• Your want list in reverse, since someone who bought one from you may now be ready to move it.

Then public listings, auctions, and marketplaces. The sourcing network article covers building the contacts that make this work.

Don't overpay because you promised

The most common sourcing mistake is paying above your ceiling because a customer is waiting and you said you'd find one. A customer's interest is not a guarantee they'll complete, and a watch bought above the market is your problem if they don't.

Run every candidate through the max buy calculator against a cautious open-market sale price, not the price your customer agreed. If it only works because of this one buyer, it's a riskier purchase than it looks.

Check it as carefully as any purchase

A watch bought for a customer needs the full routine: authentication, serial record, papers checked, and a stolen-watch check, as the pre-purchase checklist covers. The customer's enthusiasm is not a reason to shorten it, and a problem discovered after you've handed it over is worse than one found at intake.

When you can't find it

Say so, clearly, rather than letting a search drift. Explain what you found, what the realistic options are, and whether a change to the brief or budget would open things up. A dealer who reports back honestly gets the next request; one who goes quiet for months doesn't.