Tiffany Angers Rich Clients Who Wanted to Buy Rare Patek Watch
The jeweler bungled the release of a coveted Nautilus timepiece, alienating some customers and fracturing its relationship with Patek Philippe.
Tiffany salespeople called them the “watch monsters.” The obsessives. The wealthy shoppers who were sure they should be among the chosen few to get their hands on a rare timepiece from Patek Philippe.
They descended on Tiffany & Co. a few years ago, when the retailer began offering a limited edition Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711 with a dial in the jeweler’s signature robin’s-egg blue. Patek crafted 170 of them, a tribute to the number of years the brands had worked together. Tiffany’s hope was that the buzzy timepiece would help attract – and retain – high-end shoppers who weren’t already regular customers.