Guide to Making the Most of Watches for a Retail Store

Buy watches and timepieces for your business to keep in time with customers' needs

By Rachel Davy

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Buy womens and mens watches from watch dealers

Don't skimp on quality just because you're buying wholesale watches online. You can find beautiful wholesale watches in bulk to stock in your store so that you always have enough for your customers to choose from.

I recommend: Purchase high-quality mens and womens watches from AlphaWatchWholesale.com. This site offers wholesale watches that you can search for by category or price. Find beautiful jewelry watches at Sourcing Map, which offers wholesale watches at prices bound to meet your budgetary needs.

Purchase pocket watches and timepieces at low prices

Even though many men no longer wear a pocket watch, some do, so keep a supply of pocket watches along with wrist watches and other timepieces available for customers who are looking for something more traditional.

I recommend: Go to Watch Closeouts to buy watches in many styles and prices for your business. Check out Anytime Wholesale to find pocket watches, wrist watches, decorative clocks and watch parts and accessories to add to your stock.

Use customizable watches to offer a unique product to your customers

There are many ways to create customized watches. You can select a photograph that you send to a company that creates the watches, or you can have your business logo put on watches to use as giveaway items to customers. This might help encourage customers to keep coming back for all their watch purchases.

I recommend: Go to Timissimo to order customized watches for your customers. Since you can order these watches in bulk, think of photographs such as puppies, kittens, landscapes or designs that would appeal to your customers. Get customizable watches to advertise your business at Fotowatch. This site creates watches, desk clocks and novelty timepieces with logos on them that you can use and display on your shelves.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  In addition to offering watches in your retail business, stock watch bands, batteries and other accessories. Customers may walk in for a battery and walk out with a brand-new watch that they just couldn't pass up!

Guide to Buying the Right Watch

How to ensure your watch reflects the right image

By Cris Robins

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Get a watch that tells time ... and so much more

A watch is basically an instrument that tells time. However, they can also keep track of your laps, your calories, your best exercise or running time, or can be used as stop watches, and can record your time, distance, and race rates; and can be shockproof, waterproof, as well as a fashion statement.

I recommend: REI for a selection of over 40 different multifunction watches. Simply elegant watches for everyday use are at Timex or Seiko.

Make your watch a major fashion statement

People notice watches; they are almost the single most important fashion statement a person can make. As with other fashion statements, the more expensive the watch, the more fashionable it is considered and the more reflective of your lifestyle.

I recommend: Two of the most world renowned watch makers are Rolex and Cartier. Not as well-known, but of very high quality, are watches from Swiss watchmakers Tag Heuer.

A good watch needn't be expensive

Nearly every retail or jewelry store has a watch department with prices ranging from $20 to several thousand dollars. With the variety of styles and prices available there are multiple watches for multiple events or outfits.

I recommend: For daily wear and under $50 watches, try Wal-Mart or JCPenney. For special events or jewelry watches in the $100 and above price range, try Blue Nile or Ashford. Each of these outlets also have online purchasing available.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Decide what you want your timepiece to do. Is telling time or looking good enough, or do you need more?
• •  Realize that you can have more than one. Matching your watch to your outfit is a good fashion statement.
• •  A good watch dealer can help you decide whether men's watches or women's watches are the right watch for your occasion.
• •  When choosing a watch be sure to equate cost with quality. Although a $20 watch can last as long as one costing over $100 it may not fit as well, keep time as accurately, or look as nice.

Guide to Working with Watches

Build relationships with watch dealers to buy merchandise and get valuable business information

By Rachel Davy

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Gather information about watch distributors and manufacturers in your area

Having listings of watch dealers and distributors will make finding the kind of watches you're looking for easier for you as a business owner. You can either create lists for dealers and manufacturers you want to work with or use listings of watch dealers to find what you need.

I recommend: Go to Right Time, which is not only an authorized dealer of 25 major brands of watches but also lists watch factories on its site from around the world, from Japan to Germany and Switzerland. Akzan Distributing Company offers high-end wholesale timepieces and wrist watches such as Bulova, Kenneth Cole and Casio watches. Wholesale Watch Company can supply you with everything you need, from mens watches and womens watches to novelty watches and customizable watches. Search the Watch and Clock Makers Referral Directory on American Watchmakers-Clockmakers Institute to find watch dealers and watch repair shops in your area.

Work with dealers of watch parts and other watch repair materials

Obtaining information on watch companies that sell watch repair parts, as well as replacement bands and other materials, will make it easy to answer customers' questions and keep necessary items in stock.

I recommend: Purchase watch batteries at BFM Battery Sales. This site offers a wide selection of watch batteries at bulk prices so you can easily keep them in stock. Choose from the wide variety of watch bands at Mountain U.S.A. You can choose watch bands by color, material or size.

Join organizations for watch dealers to get service and pricing information

Becoming a member of organizations created specifically for watch dealers to buy and sell jewelry is a great way to promote what you do, read current information about watch prices and find all kind of industry information.

I recommend: Join The Watch Dealers Network and the International Watch & Jewelry Guild to have your business listed so that you can sell or buy watches from wholesale and retail watch dealers. You'll also find up-to-date information about the prices of watches and other industry-related news, such as trade shows and other industry events.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  The ability to network with watch dealers and distributors is an invaluable way to learn about upcoming deals on watches and watch parts as well as upcoming trends that can help you achieve business success.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Analog display vs. digital display

A watch face with an analog display uses a dial numbered 1 to 12 and two watch hands to precisely show the time. Analog watches use wheels and springs to keep time. A digital display shows the exact time, often with seconds, and uses LED (light emitting diode) as a power source.

I recommend: Diamond Jewelers Online offers a brief explanation on the differences between analog and digital watch displays.

Quartz watch

A quartz watch is a type of mechanical watch that uses quartz to initiate time movement instead of a pendulum. Pressure is applied to the quartz which instigates movement.

I recommend: The Smithsonian offers more extensive information on quartz watches.

Water-resistant watches

A water-resistant watch is a type of watch that repels water and can operate while wet. There are different types of water-resistant watches that perform well at different water depths.

I recommend: Blue Dial offers in-depth information on water-resistant watches and tips on how to care for watches that resist water.

Self-winding or automatic watches

A self-winding watch, also called an 'automatic' watch, is a type of watch that requires no manual winding by the watch owner. The watch owner's arm motion initiates the mainspring in the watch to maintain active.

I recommend: Learn more about self-winding watches at Britannica.com.

Mainspring

The mainspring is the part of the watch that initiates movement and keeps accurate time.

I recommend: Elginwatches.org offers more information about the function of the mainspring and picture diagrams of mainspring types.

Hour wheel and minute wheel

The hour wheel and minute wheel are the wheels within the watch that drive the hour and minute hands. The minute wheel is powered by the canon pinion and in turn, drives the hour wheel.

I recommend: Timezone.com offers extensive information on the different types of wheels associated with watch movement.