How do you sell a $100,000 watch?

I’m amazed at how well this blog has been received so far.  I’m really glad you all like it.  Thanks for the support.
I wanted to close the week out with THE question: how do you sell a $100,000 watch?  Of course that question has as its flipside: why buy a $100,000 watch?  This is something that I will be talking about often as the blog goes along, so today I’ll just get out some general thoughts.

I believe my Econ 101 course: someone buys a product when its value to that person exceeds the cost that they are willing and able to pay for it.  To me, this holds true in luxury just as much as it does for any other good.  The difference is that the composition of that value is much more complicated than for most other products.

I am not a salesman.

To me, salesmen focus on the sale.  Their goal is to convince the buyer that the value is high enough to tip the equation towards a sale.  It is a transactional mindset, and while there is nothing wrong with it per se, it opens the door to a lot of unethical behavior.

My take is simple: honestly explain the value of the product, work to create added value, and let the potential buyers make up their own mind.  On the brand side of it, I feel that this is the righteous way to do it.  As a well-informed collector, anything else feels patronizing to me.

When I first sat down with Max, this was the point that was most important to me.  Are we going to focus on selling or on creating value?  Luckily, his viewpoint is the same as mine, which I think can be seen in the fantastic company he has created.

As the blog goes on, I hope to explore the questions of how to explain and create value, and what is it that people value anyway?

Thanks again for a fun week.  Have a great weekend!

-Steve