"How much is this screwdriver?" - he asked, pointing at a Bergeon single pack masterpiece.
"Eighteen".
"How much?"
"Eighteen dollars".
"No, this single screw, how much is it?"
At that point I thought that he simply could not hear me .
"EIGHTEEN. ONE-EIGHT!"
"Dollar eighty, that's not bad".
"No, it's NOT a dollar eighty, what can you buy nowadays for a dollar eighty? Certainly not a professional Swiss made tool! It is $18. Which is actually less than what they sell for on eBay!"
He didn't say anything. Instead he bought a set of five Bergeon screwdrivers, as well as tweezers and some other tools.
When I promised the other day that old fashioned 1950s' experience I meant customer service, not 1950s’ prices. Luckily our supporters are wonderful people, and getting adjusted to millennial prices is just a matter of education. And when it comes to it, I am the first one to admit how little I know about horological roads less travelled.
Here are two examples.
If you asked me yesterday what is the most expensive Bergeon screwdriver, I would have said probably some $50 torque driver. And that guess would be so embarrassingly wrong because the Bergeon Ref. 7965 set of 10 Tork Speed drivers goes for a cool $5,700 Aussie dollars. That is $570 per single screwdriver!
Still not shocked?
How about roughly $12,000 for a set of 10 Petit Pierre screwdrivers? And that is $12K at wholesale price, to a dealer! By the time a single piece is brought into Sydney, it would have to retail at around $1,500 plus GST. Just one single driver.
By the way, Petit Pierre was founded in 1973 as a manufacturer of specialised machines for the micro technology industry with great watchmaking experience (movement assembly side). The company is located in the village of Cortaillod, on the Neuchatel Lake, Switzerland. Population: 4,774 spread over the vast land area of 3.67 square kilometres...
"Wow, I am going to buy one PP, just for bragging rights" I told Josh last night.
"No, you aren't. But I'll get you a complete set once you make your first tourbillon" - he generously replied.
Fair enough - horses for courses.
As with anything, dream big but let time do its magic. Patience, mon ami!
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