Invicta Watch Sale total rip-off

[Mynki]

10 hours ago, miched said:

Invicta watches are a rip off period.  Horologists on watch sites always joke about someone’s Invicta collection.  Want a large size quality watch buy a Panerai.  Want junk buy a Invicta and don’t worry about paying too much because with the purchase you already did at any cost.  

 

 

 

Same applies to Daniel Wellington, Michael Kors and just about any other crappy quality 'fashion' watch brand. 

OP - if you're interested in watches join the Facebook group UGWC (Urban Gentry Watch Club) on Facebook and ask questions before purchase on there. You'll get a lot of help first. 

[chemmo]

11 hours ago, guys2 said:

I bought them as gifts and now feel the value is greatly diminished. Posting this as a warning to other cruisers, in the hope that celebrity will learn by lack of sales.

 

 Thanks 

 

I am sure the gifts are still really valued...always the thought that counts.

[guys2]

Thanks for the kind words.

 

 

 Thanks 

[mikkelhansen]

2 hours ago, yorky said:

I do find the scramble around some of these sales at the end of the cruise quite funny, certainly for the watches which in general are just rubbish. However last Celebrity cruise they had a handbag sale in one of the shops and my wife got a huge bargain on a MK bag, literally a third of the price back in the UK. And you know when you purchase from Celebrity that it’s genuine.

Funnily we had almost the exact same experience regarding Michael Kors bags! We bought a quite cheap tote bag onboard Equinox in January (I believe it was a sale with items from last season), my wife had long wanted a MK bag, so it was ideal. The price onboard was about 40% off the cheapest legit US retailer we could find within a few minutes of searching, and more than 50% off retail prices in Denmark.

I would suppose it's common sense to hold the onboard price up against the price on land, but already when my wife saw the price tag on the specific bag, she knew it was a great deal.

[yorky]

14 minutes ago, mikkelhansen said:

Funnily we had almost the exact same experience regarding Michael Kors bags! We bought a quite cheap tote bag onboard Equinox in January (I believe it was a sale with items from last season), my wife had long wanted a MK bag, so it was ideal. The price onboard was about 40% off the cheapest legit US retailer we could find within a few minutes of searching, and more than 50% off retail prices in Denmark.

I would suppose it's common sense to hold the onboard price up against the price on land, but already when my wife saw the price tag on the specific bag, she knew it was a great deal.

There was a sale on last day of the cruise but the bag she purchased did not look to be included. She asked and they knocked 50% off, just shows if you ask sometimes you have success.

[Mynki]

2 hours ago, yorky said:

I do find the scramble around some of these sales at the end of the cruise quite funny, certainly for the watches which in general are just rubbish. However last Celebrity cruise they had a handbag sale in one of the shops and my wife got a huge bargain on a MK bag, literally a third of the price back in the UK. And you know when you purchase from Celebrity that it’s genuine.

 

It's not all bad. Silhouette has a Breitling and Omega 'boutique' onboard. The only thing is they have a limited range and very few current models. Even the Breitling cataloque in the window is three editions old now. 

My friend purchased an Omega Speedmaster 'Dark Side Of the Moon' whilst onboard Eclipse for less than any other AD sells them for, naughty I know but he pulled it off after they got authorisation to discount the watch. He also very cheekily 'negotiated' a few freebies included in the deal. 

 

[mikkelhansen]

3 minutes ago, yorky said:

There was a sale on last day of the cruise but the bag she purchased did not look to be included. She asked and they knocked 50% off, just shows if you ask sometimes you have success.

I think we bought it the last day before debarkation day as well. We didn't ask for further discount or discount on the newer models, but we might do that next time!

[Cruise a holic]

14 hours ago, guys2 said:

The price of the Invicta watches during the “75% off Sale “ is double the price from Amazon.

 

literally 2X the price after shipping and tax. I expect to pay more on ship but not 2X especially that they advertise it as a huge sale 

You are correct.  It also intrigues me how people pay so much money for prints at the "art" auctions.  They give you a glass of free sparkling and people pay a fortune for cheap prints!

[Luckiestmanonearth]

All cruise lines run the same scam.  We’ve seen it a lot on Carnival with the name brand watches.

 

They have you captive at sea with the deal of a lifetime with no real way to Google what something is really worth (most don’t have internet and if you do, it’s really slow during the day)

[yorky]

17 minutes ago, Mynki said:

 

It's not all bad. Silhouette has a Breitling and Omega 'boutique' onboard. The only thing is they have a limited range and very few current models. Even the Breitling cataloque in the window is three editions old now. 

My friend purchased an Omega Speedmaster 'Dark Side Of the Moon' whilst onboard Eclipse for less than any other AD sells them for, naughty I know but he pulled it off after they got authorisation to discount the watch. He also very cheekily 'negotiated' a few freebies included in the deal. 

 

Yes certainly, I was really just referring to the flash sales where they set up the stands outside the shops.

[Bo1953]

13 hours ago, grandgeezer said:

Why stop at just watches? This couldn’t be said about just about everything they sell. When you are a captive audience, you’re at their mercy.

Well, I can say that a few of the liquors are of good value aboard to bring home... from time to time.

 

bon voyage

[Bo1953]

13 hours ago, guys2 said:

I bought them as gifts and now feel the value is greatly diminished. Posting this as a warning to other cruisers, in the hope that celebrity will learn by lack of sales.

 

 Thanks 

Diminished even for the recipients who, most likely, are grateful you thought enough of them to bring back a gift?

 

I do not think you have anything to worry about in that respect, unless they are watch aficionados or collectors, in which case they would refer to you as a cheap skate... LOL

 

Did you leave the price tag on the boxes?

 

Many of us when purchasing something on-ship, it is usually as a memento and nothing more and do not mind spending the money even with the specter of a good deal....

 

bon voyage

[DirtyDawg]

When I see those sales in the shops on cruise ships, any cruise ship, it reminds my of the guy on the side of the road selling stuff out of his trunk. I treat both cautiously. 

 

[Bo1953]

6 hours ago, Nymich said:

well said.  Everyone starts teeing off on the poor guy who got a bad deal and all he is trying to do is help others not get taken.

 

We are not getting taken, we are willingly buying these items...

 

I consider it akin to purchasing our cruise(s), pending on where and how one purchases it depends on if they 'believe' if they were ripped off or not. Pending on whom they are talking with about it. LOL

 

If one is willing to purchase at the advertized price and is happy at the time, no need to check afterwards to garner buyers remorse, possibly.

 

bon voyage

[Bo1953]

6 hours ago, chemmo said:

We have bought cameras, binoculars, iPads and several bits of jewellery on board. We always do a bit of research before we board, then browse the shops, then return to our room to recheck prices, model numbers etc on the internet. 

 

Whilst we have never found the price difference as high as yours we have sometimes found things more expensive and successfully negotiated the price down. Sometimes we have gone ahead with a purchase because we have had significant OBC that we need to spend or loose.

 

OP thanks for the warning. I do think many cruisers do expect that prices on board will be good and certainly with a sign indicating 75% off they will expect to have found a bargain.

c - it is a bargain, a bargain for the ship only, usually.

 

With no relationship to purchasing of similar or same goods at other places, immediately unless in a port.

 

bon voyage

[DYKWIA]

1 hour ago, Mynki said:

 

...
My friend purchased an Omega Speedmaster 'Dark Side Of the Moon' whilst onboard Eclipse for less than any other AD sells them for, naughty I know but he pulled it off after they got authorisation to discount the watch. He also very cheekily 'negotiated' a few freebies included in the deal. 

 

You should rarely need to pay the asking price for an Omega even at an AD.  I got 10% off a Planet Ocean Seamaster with no difficulty at an AD. Discounts on a Rolex are another matter - good luck even finding a Rolex sports watch to buy, 1-5 year waiting lists (if you believe the waiting lists even exist)

[Bo1953]

1 hour ago, mikkelhansen said:

Funnily we had almost the exact same experience regarding Michael Kors bags! We bought a quite cheap tote bag onboard Equinox in January (I believe it was a sale with items from last season), my wife had long wanted a MK bag, so it was ideal. The price onboard was about 40% off the cheapest legit US retailer we could find within a few minutes of searching, and more than 50% off retail prices in Denmark.

I would suppose it's common sense to hold the onboard price up against the price on land, but already when my wife saw the price tag on the specific bag, she knew it was a great deal.

This post goes to point out that it does matter which country one is from that determines if a purchase is really a 'good' deal or not.

 

bon voyage

[Bo1953]

1 hour ago, Cruise a holic said:

You are correct.  It also intrigues me how people pay so much money for prints at the "art" auctions.  They give you a glass of free sparkling and people pay a fortune for cheap prints!

Its' the bubbles that make one want to buy all the art aboard... LOL

 

bon voyage

[Mynki]

15 minutes ago, DYKWIA said:

You should rarely need to pay the asking price for an Omega even at an AD.  I got 10% off a Planet Ocean Seamaster with no difficulty at an AD. Discounts on a Rolex are another matter - good luck even finding a Rolex sports watch to buy, 1-5 year waiting lists (if you believe the waiting lists even exist)

He did a fair bit better better than 10%. Omega would not be happy with that deal as it easily beat grey market prices too. 

 

We could also talk about 8 year wait lists for Pateks but we're in a different world / galaxy to Invicta now! :)

[DYKWIA]

14 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

We are not getting taken, we are willingly buying these items...

 

I consider it akin to purchasing our cruise(s), pending on where and how one purchases it depends on if they 'believe' if they were ripped off or not. Pending on whom they are talking with about it. LOL

 

If one is willing to purchase at the advertized price and is happy at the time, no need to check afterwards to garner buyers remorse, possibly.

 

bon voyage

 

Invicta often seems to be marketed as a prestigious Swiss watch company.  Yes, Invicta started life 100+ years ago in Switzerland, but it is now an American company with only a very small percentage of their watches made in Switzerland (and what Swiss Made in this context I'm not sure).  The majority of their watches are made cheaply in the Far East - some are quartz movements, some are automatic.  I have nothing against watches made in the Far East - Seiko and Citizen make great watches - and Seiko's Grand Seiko range is world class in terms of quality. 

 

If you like Invicta and realise you are buying a relatively cheap watch "inspired by"famous designs like Rolex, Frank Muller and so on that will probably last a 3-5 years - fine, enjoy.  But if you want a quality Swiss watch that might retain a reasonable amount of value (or even go up in value), last a lifetime, then Invicta is not the watch to buy.  Many of the Invicta watches I have seen would, if the Invicta logo was replaced by a Rolex logo, make for a reasonable quality Grade 3 replica  - hence why they are probably popular, they do to the casual onlooker look like expensive Swiss watches.

[DYKWIA]

Deleted 

Edited July 6, 2019 by DYKWIA

[guys2]

Deleted

[George C]

1 hour ago, Bo1953 said:

Well, I can say that a few of the liquors are of good value aboard to bring home... from time to time.

 

bon voyage

Totally agree have gotten good deals on Johnny Walker blue, also remember bottles sold on ship are normally liters not the smaller fifths . You just need to need to know prices , also no tax on ship.

[TeeRick]

Perhaps buying an Invicta watch on a cruise ship is in the same category as buying a print at the daily champagne art auctions.  Something different to do but not going to get a great price either way.  On the other hand IMO there are good prices to be had on some types of liquor in liter bottles.  I did once buy an Invicta watch which I liked for the price- but it lasted about a year and died on me.  A jeweler just laughed when I asked if it could be fixed!

[ggo85]

I generally buy T-shirts during their big sales (usually end of season for ports they're no longer visiting).  They're about $10 each and I've found the quality (on X and on RCCL) to be excellent.  They don't shrink, don't fade, and last for years.  I'm wearing one as I type.  Ditto with the 75% off logo jackets, etc.  I've personally never bought a "bad" item of clothing on any cruise ship.

 

Only bought a watch once and that was when the batterydied on mine.  Paid $10 at the "everything is $10" sale.  Looked good and worked fine until the battery died well over a year later (to be expected).  

 

There are Pandora look-alike bracelets for $40.  I put Invicta in the same category.  Looks like a high-end watch but isn't.  If you want a fine Swiss (or other) watch, check prices before you go and you may get a good deal.  Ditto with cologne.

 

Obviously, things like Advil and toothpaste will cost more, just as they do in an airport or in a hotel gift shop.  If you're not desperate, wait until you pull into port.  If you are desperate, pay it and move on.

 

Be a smart shopper and you won't be disappointed.