Freebies From SAVE-THE-TIME.ORG

The ‘series of unfortunate events’ that have occurred over the past couple of weeks turned out to be of great benefit and, for me, it was a rare opportunity to step out of ‘business as usual’.

The phone has been running off the hook (and the fax too!). It was so nice to talk to fellow watchmakers from almost every corner of Australia. Support from New Zealand however was both totally overwhelming and unexpected; once again it has shown that our Kiwi colleagues are facing the same problems. We also received a tremendous amount of email support from the US, Canada, Europe and even few Asian countries. 

“You don’t know me, but I just want to say that I completely agree (with your campaign) and want to support Save The Time.” Was the opening line to just one of the telephone conversations I received last week. Although the caller and I have never met, it seemed we both shared so so much in common. 

“It is good to see that someone out there actually does care about us” was another common comment.  Yes, someone does care about you – a bunch of us- a bunch of your fellow watchmakers and many more watch enthusiasts, collectors and watch owners!

Yes, there are a number of people and organisations out there who couldn’t care less if you quietly packed your tools, cleaned your work bench and closed the ‘last watch repair shop’ in town, never again to train an apprentice. Despite years behind the bench, they tell you that you are incompetent to repair even the simplest ‘brand name’ quartz movement. That you, as an independent watch repairer, are too old to be trained, that your work shop is ‘not up to standard’ and that you no longer belong to the world of modern watchmaking. They have  rendered you basically useless.

Fellow watchmakers: don’t waste even a minute of your precious time listening to such nonsense!

If you call yourself a watchmaker and make honest living repairing watches, then you are nothing but an asset to the watch industry! 

You are an asset to your family, your customers and your country – no matter where you are.

And we do care about you.

Every day, I receive a number of phone calls and emails form watch owners who are looking for a local independent watchmaker. “Can you recommend someone in Melbourne who can overhaul my vintage watch? I am calling from Adelaide – there is only one shop here and they are not really proper watchmakers – can you help?  I need an urgent battery replacement, Easter suburbs, the “brand name” service takes 5 weeks and I am in a hurry”. Another similar email just arrived in my inbox as I’m typing: “I have a replacement crown, I just need a watchmaker to install it and take the case back off my watch so I can photograph the movement”. Yes, maybe a small job, and maybe not what you have been trained to do but nevertheless a priceless service that no one else can offer – but YOU!

There is plenty of work out there, but most of us are too slow to embrace new ways of doing business. The time for change is long overdue and that change must start from us, from within the trade.

Save-the-time.org is here for you, and we want to help you to attract new customers and grow your business.

We believe that talk is cheap. Here is what we can do for you right now, FREE of charge:

   We are compiling a WATCHMAKER DIRECTORY: a listing of independent watch repairers both in Australia and worldwide. This listing is specifically designed to showcase your repair business. When you send an email to register you will receive a FREE listing showing your contact details, email address and a brief description of what you can offer your customers. The listing will have a photo of your shop and a FREE link to your website! 

-   To register, fill-in the form in PDF or .DOC format by clicking these links and email it to register@save-the-time.org

Remember there are hundreds and maybe even thousands of customers looking for you right now, but to them you may be invisible.

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You are not only invisible to customers, but to watch spare parts suppliers! For that reason, we have created a SUPPLIERS DIRECTORY.
 

There are number of suppliers who, like you, are struggling to sell their product and who desperately need your business. You must start placing orders with those suppliers. Just because you cannot source parts for some brand name watches doesn’t mean you can’t offer an alternative solution.

SUPPLIERS: please also take advantage of our listing. We appreciate your support to the industry and we are happy to offer you a FREE listing too. Please fill in the registry form here in .PDF or .DOC format. 

FREE access to thousands of watch enthusiasts to showcase your independent watch business!

We will not sell your email address to our subscribers, we’ll offer you something much better: an opportunity to submit your watch related articles.

Our subscribers are hungry for quality content! Writing an article for a mailing list or blog is actually much easier than you think. We are looking for quality content: your expert’s story, opinion, advice, tip or explanation about anything watch related! 

Quite frankly, true watch enthusiasts are fed up with ‘brand name’ propaganda from glossy magazines, so called watch forums infested with anonymous trolls and so-called watch experts who have never actually seen the watch movement or who don’t have a clue what a balance staff is! If there’s one area where we can beat big brand names hands down, then it’s with the fact that we have countless years of real ‘behind the bench’ experience working on everything from Poljot to Patek, from regulators to complex repeaters.

You can no longer wait for someone else out there to change your destiny. There is no alternative:  we will either start doing things ‘properly’ or we will disappear like Tassie tigers.

Finally, a little personal gift to you, just to cheer you up and to once again show you that we do care about you: the most talked about Save The Time T-shirt:

Save-The-Time.org is giving YOU a FREE t-shirt!

Wear it with pride or frame it and display it in your shop as a symbol of your determination to fight for YOUR business.

Yes, in a few days we will have 100 shirts to give away.

50 shirts will be allocated to watchmakers and watch suppliers who register for either the Save The Time watchmaker or suppler directory.

An additional 50 shirts will be given away to the first 50

newsletter subscribers to email us back.

Simply fill-in the form here in .PDF or .DOC format and request “I want that super cool shirt right now”.

BE QUICK!

We do understand that some of our subscribers would prefer to receive a Save The Time t-shirt the old-fashioned way, by placing an order. While we are not really in the business of selling t-shirts, a limited quantity of 20 shirts will be available for those who wish to support the Save The Time project . If this is you then please fill in the second part of the form and tell us what the coolest watch shirt is worth to you.

Regardless of the way you intend to claim the shirt - as a supplier, watchmaker, subscriber, or buyer – please make sure to let us know your SHIRT SIZE!

All shirts are made by Fruit of the Loom using 100% cotton and are available in black. 

This shirt is a symbol of people working together for a common benefit.

*** New arrivals: April 16, 2012.

       Again, my apology to hard-core subscribers who are desperately awaiting new watch arrivals: please bear with us just a few days longer! We have a nice pile of goodies waiting to be listed: a stunning  Lange 233.026 18K WG, Omega Speedmaster Missions 3597.03 Gemini V 1965 mission patch, an Omega black /white gold bezel Seamaster XL size, a Breitling Navitimer, Breitling Navitimer twin 36, Breitling Superocean black chrono, 3x Omega Speedmasters , a Panerai Submersible, Panerai Radiomir and Panerai PAM005 logo (brand new condition), an Omega Railmaster XXL, a lovely Rolex President double quick set 18K YG, and a Heuer Monaco limited edition – plus a few more!