Buying a watch in New York

[Chinski]

I have a friend who works in NY and has offered to source a Breitling Navitimer 01 for me. Would this option be cheaper than trying to source pne in England? I am assuming that the prices are the same? I guess that I will get more dollars to the pound making the watch cheaper? Is there anything to consider with buying a watch abroad?

[RichTT]

If he takes it back to the UK he might be liable to pay VAT on the value of the watch. He could however just post the box + papers to your house and then wear the watch back on the plane.

[andy_s]

Just check prices there and convert, Sinn 356 for example is £1280 from Jura, UK AD and the same watch is £1455 from the Australian AD - so different countries may have their slight differences, even new from ADs.

[7Llewelyn]

The first question to ask is how your friend in NY is going to get the watch to you? If he's posting it you may be liable for import duty (tax); he could label it as a gift but if he puts the watch's true value on the Customs form it's likely to be picked up on entry to the UK.

The best thing to do is find out the best price for the watch here in the UK and ask your friend to see how much cheaper he can buy it in the States. If it's significantly cheaper over there you could use it as an excuse to visit your friend and have a nice weekend in NY. Wear the watch home and post all the paperwork / box etc back to your home address in the UK.

I doubt the saving will cover the cost of your trip to NY but it's a great place to visit anyway.

[StefanVXR8]

I was in New York over Christmas/New Year 2010/2011 and I checked the prices in the Breitling Boutique on 5th Avenue, at that time I had already bought my Navitimer 01 here in the UK with a decent discount, however, I could have bought it from Breitling for the same price (and had a nice jacket thrown in!).

So, IF (and that's a big if because I think all the 01's were sold) you can get one discounted from a store in New York (a bit unlikely on 5th Ave) it will be considerably cheaper than you can buy one here, however as mentioned above, be careful of import duty as that will add about 25% on top for duty and VAT (if declared or found of course), I personally wouldn't risk not having it insured if it's being posted/couriered!

Stef