How we deal
Six steps, from a first message to a piece in your hand.
There are two of us, so we keep the process simple and open. Here it is in full, in order, with nothing promised that we cannot do.
- First reply
- Same day
- By hand
- Dubai
- Terms
- Agreed in writing
What happens, and in what order.
Steps one, two, five and six are the same every time. Step three is the one that varies, because finding a reference that has not surfaced in two years takes as long as it takes.
Step 1 of 6: You tell us what you are looking for
A reference, a photograph, or a sentence describing something half-remembered. All three are a workable start.
Most of what the house does is sourcing, so the useful thing to send is what you want rather than what you have seen on this site. If you are not sure of the reference, describe it. Modern or vintage, a piece we hold or a piece we have to go and find, the first message is the same.
- You
- Send the reference or describe the piece, and say how you would rather be answered.
- The house
- Confirms in writing what is actually being asked for, and says plainly whether it is findable.
- You receive
- A written summary of the brief as we understood it, before anyone acts on it.
Step 2 of 6: One of the two owners replies
A real reply from someone who can decide, not an automatic response.
We reply the same day, most often within a couple of hours. There are two of us — one in the UAE and one in India — and whoever answers you owns the business, so there is nobody further up to ask.
- You
- Nothing. The next message comes from us.
- The house
- Replies with a real answer, not an acknowledgement: what we hold, what we can find, and what we cannot.
- How long
- We reply the same day, most often within a couple of hours.
Step 3 of 6: We find it, or we show you what we hold
Because we keep no premises, we are not limited to what happens to be in a display case this week.
The brief goes out to people we have dealt with repeatedly — dealers, watch experts and horologists — mainly in Dubai, Hong Kong and Europe. We put nothing in front of you until one of us has seen the actual piece, not just the reference. Where a piece calls for a specialist eye, we bring one in. Anything that does not pass that look never reaches you, which is why the list you see is short.
- You
- Set the tolerances: the condition you would accept, whether papers matter, and how long you are prepared to wait.
- The house
- Works the brief, asks for photographs and detail on each candidate, and says which are worth pursuing and which are not.
- How long
- We cannot promise a date. We tell you what looks realistic at the start, and again the moment that changes.
- You receive
- A short list, with an honest view of each — including when the honest view is to wait.
Step 4 of 6: You see it, on video or in person
A video call needs no travel from anybody.
The usual way is a live video call, with the piece in hand and one of us pointing the camera wherever you ask. Or we can meet in person, at a place we agree for that meeting. You are also welcome to have the piece examined by your own watchmaker before settlement, wherever that can be arranged. Ask to see a piece.
- You
- Say which you would rather, and for a meeting, propose a day and a rough time.
- The house
- Confirms the exact time and, for a meeting, the place. We never publish either.
- You receive
- The piece under a loupe, and an answer to anything you ask about it.
Step 5 of 6: Terms are agreed in writing
Everything that has been discussed is written down and confirmed by you before anything moves.
- Written down, not agreed on a call
- The piece and its reference, what is being settled, when, and how it reaches you. If it is not in writing, it has not been agreed — by either side.
- Settlement is discussed after contact
- We do not publish settlement terms, because they differ from piece to piece and from market to market. We agree them with you each time.
- Who carries the risk is part of it
- In Dubai, we hand the piece over in person. Anywhere else, the carrier, the cover and who carries the risk are named in the same document, before a piece moves.
- What we stand behind
- Authenticity: if a piece is not authentic, we buy it back and refund the full amount paid. There is no time limit on it. Description and condition: 7 days from delivery, refunded the amount paid, less shipping.
- Nothing is revised by message
- We never send changed payment details in a message. If you receive one that seems to, it did not come from us — please tell us in the conversation you already have, before you move anything.
The full position is on the terms page, in six clauses.
Step 6 of 6: It reaches you
By hand where we can, and by a route you have agreed in writing where we cannot.
In Dubai, we hand the piece to you in person. Anywhere else, we agree the carrier, the cover and who carries the risk with you in writing before it moves. We are not a shipping company or a customs broker, and we make no claim about duty or tax at the destination. How delivery works.
- You
- Confirm where the piece is going, and agree the route, the cover and where the risk sits.
- The house
- Puts all three in writing before anything moves, and does not move it until you have agreed them.
- How long
- The route decides it, and the route is agreed with you rather than quoted from a table.
How a piece is handed over.
In Dubai, we hand the piece to you in person. Everywhere else, how it reaches you is agreed with you in writing first.
UAE
- Handover
- In person in Dubai, at a place agreed for that meeting.
- Settlement
- Discussed once you are in contact, then agreed in writing.
- Risk in transit
- Named in the written terms for that shipment, before anything moves.
India
- Handover
- Agreed with you in writing, before anything moves.
- Settlement
- Discussed once you are in contact, then agreed in writing.
- Risk in transit
- Named in the written terms for that shipment, before anything moves.
Start anywhere in the sequence.
Tell us the watch, or describe it in your own words. We reply the same day, most often within a couple of hours.