Marco Ferrante on Transforming Passion into Professional Prestige in the Watch Industry

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Blake Rea (00:01):
well, everybody, welcome to another episode of
lonely brist.
Today, sitting in front of meis marco forante.
What's up, brother?

Marco Ferrante (00:10):
hey, how are you ?
Thank you for having me on yeah, thanks for coming on.

Blake Rea (00:14):
I've been trying to get you on for a while.
I knew I had to have you on.

Uh, glad to see that you're finally sitting in
front of me, yeah no, for sure,it's been a little bit of a
hectic week and hectic lastcouple weeks for us both, right,
but yeah, a little bit of ahectic week and hectic last
couple of weeks for us both,right.
But yeah, I know I'm glad to behere and you know, let's, let's
get into it.

Blake Rea (00:31):
Hopefully, hopefully now with some, with some sales
under your belt for this week,so you don't have to worry about
the end of the week.

But yeah, no, november, december is always
like the best time of the yearfor kind of the watch industry
in terms of, like you know,sales, even just volume, but
like numbers as well.
So, yeah, it's the busiest timeof the year.
It's the best time, you know, Ithink, because it's like the
most rewarding time for me.
You know, for me, like watcheshave always been a passion of
mine, the sales kind of comesecondary, but like getting you

(00:59):
know, new watches on people'swrists, I think it's such a
fulfilling job because I get tosee passionate watch people kind
of live out their wristwatchdreams, so to speak.
So that's the most rewardingpart of the job by far.
And now is the best time and Iget to see some of the coolest
pieces, I think, in the world.

Blake Rea (01:17):
I know, yeah, I watch your Instagram posts and I'm
like another banger going out,another banger yep, tell me what
got you into watches, um, andhow you, you know ended up in
the industry yeah, so I uh gotinto watches now almost 10 years
ago, uh, so I was 16 at thetime.

I bought an orient explorer off like this
canadian, you know, back pagecraigslist type website, not
knowing anything about the watch.
It was just this kind of funky,super busy, like I think it had
like a power reserve.
It had had a power reserveindicator, a date at six o'clock
like a date wheel, and then ithad like, uh, what's it called,
a, um, a world time function andlike a bunch of outer scales

(01:55):
that you could do.
It was a super funky watch thatit was so busy.
That's what kind of attractedme to it.
And when I went in person, Ithink I paid like 200 or 300
bucks for it at the time.
And when I went in person Ididn't know anything about
mechanical watches.
You know, I'd owned Citizen andArmani and that kind of stuff,
but I didn't consider myself awatch collector.
I wouldn't have consideredmyself kind of a watch collector
at the time.

(02:16):
And man, as soon as I turnedthat watch around and saw the
mechanical movement, themechanical movement, I was like
kind of like Whoa, what's this?
And ever since then mycuriosity was peaked.
And, yeah, I guess you can onlyget so much of Rolex and Patek
and AP and all that kind ofstuff that most people tend to
talk about.
So you know, the watch world isso expansive that there's so

(02:37):
much to learn all the time, andthat's what really keeps the
hobby fresh and interesting, inmy opinion.

Blake Rea (02:42):
Yeah, I mean, you can spend decades, if not lifetimes
, fresh and interesting in myopinion yeah, I mean, you can
spend decades, if not lifetimes,learning about watches.

Literally, you can spend a whole lifetime just
on one brand, absolutely it's,it's crazy.

Blake Rea (02:53):
Um, so obviously that's your early, the early
days.
Um, I originally saw you on, ofcourse, on youtube, right, and
then you know we have mutualfriends and uh, and then what,
what made you transition intoactually dealing watches, like,
okay, this is something that Iwant to pursue as as a career.

Yeah, it's funny , you know, it kind of just the
opportunity presented itself tome as opposed to me seeking it
out, right?
So a lot of people know me,originally, I guess, in watches
from either my personal know uhchannel on YouTube or you know,
doing live streams with JJ andeven back in the day with Archie
Luxury, all that kind of stuff,and it was a great time kind of

(03:31):
just you know talking watchesand whatnot.
And uh, back then I actuallygot, or was found, I guess,
through the live streams by NicoLeonard, who's you know in the
in the industry, probably thebiggest YouTuber on the platform
.
And at the the time you know,he kind of pitched to me hey,
marco, you ever consider workingin watches?
And at the time I was inuniversity I worked in wealth

(03:51):
management.
I had just quit my job, kind of.
At the start of COVID I wasjust like, hey, listen, I'll
just kind of figure it out andsee where things can take me
after I graduate.
And I fully planned I hadactually an opportunity to work
either in consulting or I had aninterview lined up to work in
consulting or in wealthmanagement and you know, I kind
of told Nico about it.
He's like, listen, I'd love foryou to consider it.

(04:12):
How about I kind of fly you outto Ireland?
So I actually went out toIreland and got to meet Nico,
got to see his whole operationthere and, listen, things didn't
work out from there justbecause it was.
You know, listen, ireland ishalfway around the world.
It was pretty difficult.
You know, I was 20 years old.
You know it's a 24 hour kind ofplane ride to get back home, so

(04:33):
it's a long ways away.
I don't think I was ready forthat kind of distance at the
time.
And you know, back then Nicowas a very, very small channel
but in the context he had maybe100000 subscribers.
You know his very small channelTo put into context, he had
maybe 100,000 subscribers.
His business was much smallerthan it is today.
Obviously, now he's the biggestYouTuber on the platform.
His pride and opinion isdefinitely a titan, I would say,
in the industry.

(04:53):
So, yeah, props to him.
He's built something amazing.
But back then it was just alittle bit smaller, a bit too
risky, I felt, for me.
So it was just not somethingthat worked out.
And then I was actually able tomeet a ton of people, you know
through Nico, roman being one ofthem.
And that's when I was pitchedby Roman, you know he's like.
He reached out to me and saidhey, marco, I heard things

(05:13):
didn't kind of work out withNico.
Would you ever consider workingfor me in Philadelphia?
And you know, again I was kindof the same thing.
Hey, listen you, you know, likeI I don't know if I really want
to do this.
He's like.
You know it's a totallydifferent operation from nico,
let me get you out to philly andand, uh, let's see what happens
.

Blake Rea (05:32):
And from there kind of.
The rest is history.
Yeah, and I mean I originallyum had saw you on, of course,
the great market series and youknow you were always the watch
wizard, right where roman wouldthrow you under the.
It's like tell me, what do youknow about this watch, right
Like off the cuff, so I canalready imagine being on a
reality type show is already aunique experience, right?

(05:55):
And how has the time on theGreat Market series kind of
influenced your career, Not onlyas a dealer but now kind of
being a personality andinfluencer?

Yeah, it's interesting.
You know like I don't reallythink of myself that way, but I
guess people do, which?

Blake Rea (06:10):
is.

I call myself a jack, right, just the guy.
I'm just like an average watchcollector, like anybody else.
I swear to God there's nothingspecial about me and.
But it's so cool to hearpeople's feedback and and you
know hear their stories how theygot into watch.
For me, that's the mostfulfilling part, right, if I've
accomplished anything is beingable to meet so many amazing
collectors, because I get tolearn from their collective

(06:33):
experience in terms ofcollecting, in terms of, you
know, watches that they'veexperienced, but also you know,
just in terms of their overallinsight, be it in life and
business or you know everythingelse.
So that has been such arewarding aspect, in my opinion,
just working in the industry.
It really opens doors to peopleI would have never otherwise
met if I worked in the bankingindustry back home in Montreal,

(06:53):
right, so that has been withoutquestion.
The most amazing part is allthe people.
Right, the watches are great,but the people, I think, really
make this hobby what it is.

Blake Rea (07:02):
Yeah, I actually actually sold.
I sold pretty much all thewatch brands as an ad.
I think that's what you'redoing now.
You kind of came from the greatmarket, went to the the ad,
other side, uh, light and darkside, right in a weird, in a
weird way.
Yeah, it's interesting?

yeah, it's very interesting.
So so perdine's jewelry is anad now for over 20 brands and we
also buy and sell pre-owned.
We have a huge pre-ownedinventory as well, which is kind
of more what I manage.
I sell, you know, new watcheshere and there, like I sold a
Speedmaster to a member of theHangout, I sold a UN Freak
recently, a Freak One, which isawesome, and I sold a Tudor
Black Bay and that kind of stuff.

(07:38):
And it's different because youknow, a lot of the time on the
gray market, the clientele ofthe gray market and the
authorized dealer is totallydifferent.
A lot of the time at the ADyou're going to work with either
season collectors or someonetotally new to the hobby,
whereas the gray market tends tobe a lot more seasoned
collectors.
It's interesting the dualitybetween both the AD and the gray

(08:02):
market, but it's definitelyawesome.

Blake Rea (08:05):
It's definitely awesome I, I had a hard time
when I was at the ad because,like you, I was passionate, um,
about watches.
And you know there was peoplethere like I did it as a side
gig, right, I was waiting for mywife to come back from europe,
uh, and I had a lot of free timeand I was like, okay, let's,
let me take a little job at awatch dealer, talk about watches

(08:26):
, hang out with watch nerds.
But I always found a strugglebetween balancing, like the, the
passion and the business.
Right, because I was the guythat was like you don't want to
buy that piece of shit.
Like don't buy that watch, likeyou know.
And meanwhile there's peoplesitting next to me that are like
trying to put food on the tablewatch, like you know.
And meanwhile there's peoplesitting next to me that are like
trying to put food on the table.

(08:47):
And, you know, in the city Ilive, in Las Vegas, like it's
all sharks, right, you know allshark salesmen, like snake oil
salesmen, like you know we'llsell you anything they can,
right, but I'm the guy that'slike, no, no, don't buy this.
Like what are you doing?

And I'm the same way right, because the watch
listen, the watch industry issmall to a certain extent.
Everybody knows everybody, orat least everybody communicates
with each other.
Even you know customers whocome to buy from you, and I'm
the same way.
I operate on extremetransparency, to the point where
I even have some customers.
I tell them my cost of goods,which no dealer really wants to
share, that kind of stuff, right.
But I'm like, listen, this iswhat I'm making in between.

(09:21):
I'm trying to be as fair to youas possible.
This is what I need to make thedeal happen.
If it's good, great.
If not, then no problem.
But yeah, I'm with you, listen,if I don't recommend something
or I think it's no good forsomebody, I will tell them point
blank, because for me, I'm notin the industry to be here for
two minutes and make the mostmoney possible.
That's a very short term, veryshort sighted vision.

(09:43):
That's a very short term, veryshort sighted vision.
At the end of the day, I know,I understand that if I take care
of somebody, I will get notonly their repeat business,
their referral business, butalso it's about reputation,
right, and my reputation to meis very, very important, and so
I will go out of my way to takecare of somebody as best as I
can, and if that means giving upa sale, then it's not not an
issue for me.

Blake Rea (10:03):
Yeah, I looked at it as every person that came
through the door Like for methis was an opportunity to build
a friendship, a connection youknow, because friends are loyal,
right, like, if you're justlooking at it, hey, I'm trying
to build a customer base.
Like you know they're going togo where the price goes, like
where they get the best discount, where you know it's convenient
for them.

(10:25):
It discount where you know it'sconvenient for them.
It's very transactional,exactly, and that, to me, is is
the downfall of a salesprofessional.
But you know, still, how do youbalance passion and the
business side?
That was something I alwaysstruggled with.

It's very difficult.
You know it's something that Iwill say that since joining
Berdine's, the passion side ofthings has really kicked up
Right.
There was a time I would saythat, like you, would start to
resent watches that you can'tsell or that are difficult to
sell.
You know it's like oh, thissucks because not because it's a
bad watch, but because it'sit's something that's not easy

(11:00):
to sell, right, it's almost likeif you've heard of the
scientific experiment likePavlov's dog, right, where when
he rings the bell, like youstart to say he starts to sell
because he thinks food is coming.
So, like you know, if you tella watch dealer Rolex, patek AP,
they start to sell it becauseessentially it's easy sales.
Right, that's the idea.
But the point is is you startto look away from these amazing

(11:21):
brands there's so much thisindustry has to offer just
because you know it's a littlebit more difficult to sell.
The discounts have to be alittle bit there.
Maybe the time of sale is alittle bit harder.
You know there's a lot morequestions, a lot more nuance to
it and you know annoying littlethings.
Maybe sometimes you wake up onthe wrong side of the bed you
don't want to deal with.
But that's just what it isright.
And I would say that we havesuch a variety here at Berdine's

(11:44):
that you know obviously we sellRolex, patek AP, all that kind
of good stuff.
But for me, the where mypassion lies really is in the
other stuff.
Right, I feel like, you know,stuff around the edges is always
the most interesting, if youwill, and that's kind of a
difficult thing to balance.
That's still something that Itry to balance as best as I can.
That's still something that Itry to balance as best as I can.

(12:04):
And you know it's not a there'sno, no real solution or formula
to this.
It's really an ongoing, ongoingwar all the time.
You know.

Blake Rea (12:11):
Yeah, there's, there's so much value to be had.
Pretty recently, like you know,I went on the interest list for
an Explorer.
One dealer called they have ahuge pre-owned inventory and I
went in I just was, was like, amI getting ready to pay like
eight grand out the door retailfor this explorer one?
And then I started going totheir pre-owned section and I

(12:32):
got, uh, a sea master 300 likethe heritage, with the, you know
the 89, 12 like the, thejumping hour.
And I was like this is like thefirst of all, it's the cheapest
one I've ever seen.
It was like 3 500 or like 3 800or something.
I mean it's like tremendousvalue.
Box paper is complete and I waslike I think they mismarked it,
but anyways, you know, such atremendous value to be had on

(12:54):
the pre-owned market, it reallymakes me kind of shy away from
buying watches at retail.
Right, like I am on moda, I'malways looking for a good deal,
like I'm always looking forsomething to add and it's just,
I feel like it's a.
I don't know if underserved isthe right, the right word, but

(13:16):
you know you have to be anexperienced buyer to kind of
navigate that marketplace, causea lot of people.
They just they just don't wantto do it.
They're like how do I know it'sreal?
How do I know?
How do I know that?
Like, how do I know I'm notgetting scammed?
Like you know, I'm sendingsomebody from facebook money who
you know?
Who is this?
Like you know?
Like um.
But curiously, I mean I've seenon the series the great market

(13:37):
series, like you've been in somepretty epic watch deals.
What is the one that sticks outlike you'll be telling the
story for the next decade likememorable deal of a lifetime oh
man, um, I mean, there's a lotof them.

You know, there really is like uh, I just
recently sold uh the likeliterally last week a john mayer
uh, I saw that, yeah, that wasyeah, so that that's.
You know, that's an exceptionalwatch, but for sure, my favorite
sale of all time and it's mybiggest sale ever is two watches
.
So I sold the 5167R, which is arose gold Aquanaut on a brown

(14:12):
rubber strap, brown dial, and Isold a rainbow Daytona and at
the time I think the totalall-in sale was $540,000 or
something like that and we justgot a clean wire for that much
and that's the one I was likedamn, that's that's.
I felt really good about it atthe time and you know I still do
.
And listen, I'm still in touchwith that client.

(14:32):
He's my biggest client andsomebody I'm very, very
fortunate I could call a friendand, yeah, he's awesome, he's
the best.

Blake Rea (14:40):
Yeah, I mean that's crazy, um, and I mean just to
think about first of all thesebanks, like they don't want
transactions like this to happen, right like I think about it
all the time.

Uh, yeah, there's a lot of alarm signals
that go off and you know, youhave to call, like the bank will
call you to verify and all thatkind of stuff.
It's, it's very complex.
It's it's no doubt about whenyou're dealing with this kind of
transaction.
You know it's not a swipe mycredit card and I'll walk out
with the watch kind of deal.

Blake Rea (15:09):
Even even then, like my, my debit card only lets me
charge like six grand right perday and I'm like, well, can I
pay six grand today and sixgrand tomorrow?
like exactly it just it becomesannoying and these banks just
want to hold on to all, all ofour money.
Um, but curiously, um, now youtransitioned right, you're at

(15:31):
birdies and you are literallydoing I mean you're doing some
crazy content.
I mean I saw your watchcollection video, awesome
collection.
Uh, it's very cool that you seethat side of somebody, because
it kind of shows, like, who youreally are in a unique way.
Um, I don't think I've evershown off my entire collection
and I mean maybe once or twice,but you know, not really like

(15:56):
out there, um, but I mean, itseems like you guys are kind of
trying to break down somemisconceptions in the industry.
I'd say, um, and you're tryingto kind of, uh, you know,
progress the industry.
So when I say that like are Ihave, I don't think you've ever
been asked are there anymisconceptions about the watch

(16:16):
industry that you're trying todispel?
Uh, you know, where do you seeyour platform, your new platform
, newfound platform, headingyeah, I mean I'll come back to
your question.

I guess the opportunity with berdine's I
thought was so interestingbecause it's, uh, in, at least
in chicago, it's very, very wellknown.
They have a very strong, youknow, retail brick and mortar
presence, but you know, online,for the most part, almost nobody
really knows about them, andthat's that's where I really
found something.
That was a huge opportunitythere, right?
So, like the whole point, Ithink, of the Berdine's platform

(16:49):
is to elevate the customerexperience, right, and that's
kind of what I also want to do.
But to a certain extent, withBerdine's as well, it's all
about transparency and treatingpeople with dignity and respect.
For us, there's no pay for playschemes.
We're going to be forthrightwith you.
There's no, you know, buy thisto get that.
That's not the way that weoperate.
You know we have, like, forexample, a Vacheron authorized

(17:11):
dealer which, okay, vacheronisn't what it was back in 2022.
But you know, for the most part, it's still not easy to get,
you know, watches from them.
But we operate on extremetransparency.
But also we just tell it how itis, and I think that's kind of
the approach that I've alwayshad in the industry.
Right Is that I operate onextreme honesty.
I have nothing to hide.
Anybody who's ever kind ofdealt with me, can you know, for

(17:34):
the most part knows that I'mjust a straightforward person,
right?
It's like I have nothing toreally be ashamed of or unhappy
about or really you know, Iguess not just be
straightforward about.
So that's really the point, Ithink, also with our
communication strategy and whatI want to do with our social
media content.
I have a video coming up that'sactually talking about why I

(17:55):
don't think AP is worth buyingat retail anymore For the amount
of spend that you're going tohave to do and essentially for
the amount of.
You know, essentially toekissing is what I call it.
You know, kiss their toes andget on your knees and pray to
the AP gods that you'll get thewatch that you want.
It's just not even financiallyworth it anymore and I want to
dispel this notion that the ADis the best way to go, because

(18:18):
it just isn't.
You know, I'm sorry, the timespent, the money spent, the
money and the time lost thatyou're waiting for watches that
you know in most cases you'renot even getting considered for
and yet you have this extensivepurchase history and on top of
it you have to deal with.
You know, essentially anenvironment where you're going
out of your way to spend yourmoney and then somehow you're

(18:41):
supposed to be you know,essentially thanking them for
you spending your money withthem.
I don't understand that.
So, you know, there's a lot of,I guess, industry myths or like
things that I want to tackle,but number one for me is really
expanding the pre-owned marketand for those who have kind of
misconceptions about it, becauseeither they've been burnt by
people or they've had negativeexperiences with other people,

(19:03):
it shouldn't shy them away fromthe amazing opportunities and
value and you know the expensivebrands of watches that are out
there to be had yeah, and one ofmy um, one of my friends, works
at an ap external boutique.

Blake Rea (19:17):
Okay, and you know he'll text me like some of the
shit that's in the back, youknow, and it's just it's crazy
to see all the stuff that comesthrough that they pretend like
they don't they don't have rightand it's it's.

I have to be honest, it's unbelievable.
Like some of the stuff thatthey pull right is.
In any other business it wouldbe considered blackmail, but
somehow it's not.
You know, I just hey, it iswhat it is.
What are you gonna do?

Blake Rea (19:47):
I.
I had put my name down for uman offshore diver here and um
that's a watch in steel thattrades universally under retail
right.

Totally want to trade it in.
Every dealer in the world isgoing to offer you under retail
form.

Blake Rea (20:03):
Sorry, I don't mean to 100, no, so, um, this was
like I put my name on the listin probably like 2021, 2022, um,
and then I'd say like maybelike six or eight months ago, he
calls me and says hey, blake,like I want you to come in.
I haven't talked to you in awhile.
And I, I was thinking in mymind, I was like, what do you

(20:24):
want from me?
You know, like what?
Like what do you want me to do?
Like, just let me sit down andhave a coffee with you, like
what's this about?
And then I, I knew he was gonnaoffer me some, some bullshit.
And then, um, sure enough, youknow, he was like, uh, hey, I've
got the offshore diver if youstill want it.
And I was like, dude, I've beenoffered this watch like three
times before.

(20:46):
You called me like in everycolor, like the green, the blue,
and then they have, uh, I can'tthink of the other yeah, yeah,
yeah, the great, yeah, yeah,I've been all for this in every
color, like and no, yeah, sorry,I'm not buying this, but
anyways, um, you know, becausethe watch changed in two years
you know, and then um, and thenwhen you you try that watch on,
it's a 42 millimeter, but but itjust wears like shit.

(21:09):
Like, let me just call it theway it is.
You know, it just wears likeshit.

The old divers, I think, were a lot worse than
the new ones.
I think that they made a lot ofimprovements in terms of the
case and all that kind of stuff.
But yeah, the flare out isstill there, right, and that's
the thing of 42 millimeteroffshore, where it's probably
closer to a 44 millimeter watchyou need to have, you know for,
for lack of a better term, youneed to have the girth of the
wrist.
You know like it has to be.
You know you have to have a bigwrist to wear.

(21:35):
You know just, that's just thetruth.
And you know the probably thethe worst part of all of that is
now probably ap will be veryhesitant to call you back just
because you changed your mindabout a watch.
You know, and that's, that'swhat's the craziest.
Like I don't understand, like,like what, like I don't, I don't
get it.

Blake Rea (21:53):
But yeah, that's what it is this is the face of a guy
that doesn't give a shit yeah,there you go, that's the
attitude I think you should haveabsolutely and uh, no, but no,
no.
so to give a little bit ofcontext, like me and um, bubba,
bubba, hotep, I'm sure youprobably know um, he and I like
are like really close friends.
Like he flies out, we, we seeeach other.

(22:14):
Like we did christmas together,we did thanksgiving together, I
think we're doing thanksgivingtogether this year, um, but
anyways, good friend of mine andhe, he knows that like I
religiously wear like a 44panerai, so I'm not scared to
get a chunky watch, but eventhen it's still warlike.
I could literally put my fingerthrough the lugs.

(22:37):
Anyways, I think AP has fallenfrom grace, especially with
their leadership changes, and Ihave a bunch of from grace,
especially with you know, theirleadership changes.
Um, I mean, and I have a bunchof friends that are asking me
like you know cause I'm, I'm nota dealer, you know, I'm going
to give people you know, likeyou like unbiased advice like

(23:00):
hey, what do you think about thecodes?
Like should I, I wouldn't buy acode like personally.
And and that leads us kind oflike right into our other
question.
But I mean, the watch market isevolving so rapidly, trends are
changing right now, in front of, in front of us.
What do you and I know youdon't have a crystal ball, like

(23:22):
none of us do but how do youthink the market will evolve in
the next few years?

Yeah, it's an interesting question.
You know, I ask myself thatprobably on a day to day basis.
So, yeah, I was a buyer for myprevious company, I'm a buyer
for Berdeen's, and that's themost difficult part of the
business, and I will explain itlike this Selling a watch is not
as difficult as you may think.
It's actually getting theproduct and getting the right

(23:50):
price for the product.
Right, because finding an enduser, you know, or even a dealer
, for example, to sell tothere's so many avenues to sell
a watch nowadays, right, chrono,ebay, moda, facebook groups,
you know you can list itprivately and there's so many
avenues out there to actuallysell a watch.
It's getting the product is themost challenging part of the

(24:12):
equation, and then pricing itcorrectly is even more difficult
.
So, to put into context, Istarted a luxury bazaar back in
April 2022, which I consider tobe the absolute peak of the
watch market.
That was literally when priceswere the absolute highest and
then from there, we sawprecipitous decline, right?

(24:32):
So, you know, I basicallystarted at the highest point you
can get at and saw the watchmarket decline, you know, for
example, like a pendant Daytonago from 60,000 to about, you
know, let's say 30,000 today,right, and it's very difficult
to keep track of it, but it's adaily thing and I'm in a ton of
you know a ton of chats where Ican see the price action every

(24:54):
single day and that's the onlyway you can keep track of it,
because there's no real monitorfor pricing.
You know, you ask the dealerwhat would he pay for something,
like 10 different dealers whatthey would pay for something and
I always like to say you'll get12 different prices.
That's just what it is.
So where's the watch industrygoing?
It's a great question.

(25:14):
I think the watch industry swungreally hard one way because we
had a huge influx of new buyers,and you see this in a lot of
markets where, essentially, youhave a new influx of buyers.
The pendulum will swing anextreme way one way and then an
extreme way another way, right,and we've saw that right over
the last kind of two years whereprices declined pretty sharply,
pretty quickly, and I think atsome point, and even now we're

(25:38):
reaching more of a stabilizationpoint, not across the board,
but there's a lot of watches,even now currently that are
going up in price.
You know, patek 5712 in steelcurrently is up in price over
the last six months.
That's just the reality ofthings.
There's other watches out thereI could point to, but that's
just the one that comes to mind.
So you know, it's not a very,it's not just a decline for

(26:02):
every single model, it's verymuch a model by model basis.
Where do I see it in the nextcouple of years?
I'm pretty bullish.
I not as much money out thereon the market they're not

(26:29):
printing as much money as theydid back then.
But yeah, I feel a very bullishsentiment for the wash market
in general.
And one thing I always say isthe volume.
The sales volume in terms ofunits is still there.
Actually, at Berdeen's we'vesold almost 20% more pre-owned
units than last year.
The prices are different, right, but we've sold more volume

(26:52):
than we did last year, which iskind of an interesting
phenomenon when you consider it,because the market is down.
In theory the psychology ofsellers would be oh well, it's a
down market, I don't know if Iwant to buy it, but the volume
is still there.
It's just the prices aren'tthere and think that has to do
with the kind of the pendulumswing of pricing, right extreme
way, one way when we saw theinflux of buyer, and then an

(27:13):
extreme way, another, when themarket actually declined, and I
think we'll reach a point whereyou will hit bottom and then
from there we'll see the pricesstart to increase again, like we
saw in 2008 I've noticed too,like if anybody's watched any of
your content, they know andthey understand that you
appreciate the undervaluedwatches.

Blake Rea (27:33):
I know, for example, your Mono Pusher Chronograph is
one that you've talked about,but I'm sure that changes daily.
I'm sure that changes daily.
So today I'm asking you, giveus what you feel like are

(27:56):
underrated pieces, and I mean,obviously let's do the flip side
of the coin Watches that.
I mean, I'm probably sure Iknow what you're going to say,
but watches that are overhyped.

Yeah so underhyped, overhyped.
Sure, I mean undervalued.
I think you know I'll go to alot of the key brands.
I think, for example, you knowI have a Montblanc monopusher
chronograph which you know.
This is a manual winding, highhorology, finished monopusher
chronograph from a companycalled Minerva who does only 100
movements.

(28:24):
And if you could snag one under$20, thousand dollars, I can't
think of that level ofwatchmaking at around twenty
thousand dollars.
I mean we're talking about handfinishing super crazy in-house
calipers for monopocherchronograph.
It's amazing.
But I, you know, if we'resticking to the big brands, I
think something like a brigette,like a brigade 5817, a marine
in stainless steel under 10 000I think, think is an insane

(28:47):
value for literally a handmadewatch.
I just can't pull out theproportions.
But if I could I would own thatwristwatch.
I think a long and zone has alot of opportunity, like a Lanka
one.
Even the Saxonias have comedown in price dramatically where
there's just I mean you can geta longer now which is a
superbly finished watch all daylong under $20,000.

(29:07):
In modern case sizes also.
This is not just like 36, 37.
I'm talking about even 40millimeter Saxonias that sell
under $20,000, which I think isjust a steal of a deal.
I think also there's a lot ofvalue to be had right now.
Probably the best value to behad is in Vacheron Constantin.
You could pick up traditionalslike I bought under $20,000.

(29:28):
1942s under $20,000.
1942 is under $20,000.
The 1921s have come up in priceover the last kind of six to 10
months but you could still pickup, you know, a rose gold model
under $25,000, which, for awatch that retails for $40,000,
I think is just such an insanedeal considering all the
artisanal qualities you get inthat wristwatch.
If we're talking under $10,000,there's so many brands out

(29:52):
there that you can look at.
Glashuta Original is anotheramazing watch brand.
You get so much bang for yourbuck.
Iwc, I think, is at a reallyattractive price point.
If you're willing to lookoutside of Rolex, there's so
many amazing brands of watchesand designs out there to be had
under $10,000, under $20,000.

(30:12):
And I would say like even under$50,000 right now there's so
many snags it's unbelievable.

Blake Rea (30:18):
What about some of the watches that you feel are
just getting so much hype?
That just don't deserve it?

Man, the market has shifted a lot right.
Um man, the market has shifteda lot right.

(30:49):
So, like in the past, I wouldtell you the Royal Oak, but the
Royal Oak is probably the worstperforming.
You know, watch inatek,philippe aquanaut, reference
5167a, specifically that one.
I like the 5164, but since theydiscontinued it, also I think
the price points are crazy.
Like you're gonna pay probably70 000 for a steel travel time,
while I I just think it'soutrageous and a 5167, you know,
for a newer condition, like,let's say, 2020 plus.

(31:10):
You're paying over 50 grand forthat watch or around 50,000 for
that watch.
So I tell this to people all thetime.
They don't really believe mebecause they see so many people
talk about it like, oh my God,it's a Patek Aquanaut.
Wow, it's amazing, but this isa stainless steel rubber strap
watch that just has a time onlymovement.
And when people like, try it onin person, the overwhelming

(31:33):
sentiment, not all the time, butthe overwhelming sentiment is
whoa, I thought this was.
You know, I thought this wouldwear a little bit differently
and not in a good way.
You know.
It really just not that it's acheap watch.
It's just not worth what itsells for on the secondary
market.
In my opinion, it's just aplain stainless steel rubber
strap watch.
It's just not worth what itsells for on the secondary
market.
In my opinion, it's just a plainstainless steel rubber strap
watch.
I think it's a wonderful$30,000 watch.

(31:53):
Would I pay more than that?
Probably not, Not for mepersonally.
And that's listen.
People have their own tastesand styles, but I think the
Patek Philippe Aquanaut is thego-to.
That I say because I see it allthe time and I've sold many of
them.
But many of the times I hearpeople saying like you know,
when they actually get the watch, hey, this is awesome.
And then maybe a few monthslater they're like you know,
this is not what I thought itwould be.

Blake Rea (32:15):
I um my local dealer here.
They they have a huge pre-ownedkind of section and they have
one of the transitional year 51,67s, uh steel for like a
hundred grand I I don't knowlike.

I mean, I don't know, it's not a 51 67, it's the
38 millimeter probably thatthey have, which is so they make
.
They made for a very, veryshort period.
So so regular aquanaut 51 67 is40 millimeters but for a very
short, I think was like two, two, three years max.
They made a 38-millimeter onewhich sells for around $100,000,
which is even worse.
I'm sorry, but I'm not payingfor less diameter.

(32:54):
Again, that's just my personalopinion.
I don't see the value in thatwatch at all at all, but that's
just my opinion.

Blake Rea (33:03):
Nevertheless, it's been sitting there for like two
years.
So I'm sure it'll sit there foranother two years or maybe
longer.
So now you transitioned right.
You transitioned from workingwith Luxury Bazaar.
Now you're at Burdeens and youknow we've talked about this
kind of being two differentsides of the coin.
And I mean it seems like you'regoing all in on social media,

(33:26):
which is something Itraditionally don't do.
I just do content for passion,post it and hope people find it.
I don't really push it, but I'massuming, with the rise of, of
course, social media, onlineplatforms and it's kind of
pushed traditional dealers intoa new kind of like uncomfortable

(33:48):
zone for them, do you, do youreally think, do you do you feel
like the traditional 80s arekeeping up with that model?
or do you feel like they're justgoing to kind of think in the
normal sense that they have forthe past decades?
Hey, we have product, we openthe doors, people come in.

Yeah, it's like, like I said earlier, right, the
hardest part is getting theproduct to a certain extent,
right, but also part of theequation is selling it, too.
Right, and we've seen thatwatch sales has changed
dramatically over the last, evenjust the last decade.
Right, over the last five yearshas changed dramatically, and
the reason for that is socialmedia, no doubt about it, and I

(34:28):
think it's the greatest tool toultimately find new collectors,
right, if not for anything else,then at the very least, you
know, find a community or jointhe watch community online.
And that has been such avaluable asset to so many
collectors because, again,rather than meeting people in
person, it's virtual, but youstill get to learn from the
collective experience andownership experiences of other

(34:51):
people.
Right, and that's where thereal value lies.
Obviously, part of it ismarketing yourself, marketing
your business, no doubt about it, but it just gives you the
opportunity to meet newcollectors and really join the
watch industry in a differentway.
Right, where were we lookingfor information?
Right?
I could tell you personally, Iwas looking at online forums,

(35:11):
watching Tim Mosso watch reviewsand that kind of stuff, and now
that's kind of really out thewindow.
There's just so many forms ofcontent, specifically digital
content, especially as ourattention spans become less and
less, we're going to read farless print media and watch far
more visual content just becauseit's so much easier and quicker

(35:32):
to consume, right, and I thinkthat is, without question, kind
of the future of the industryand it's currently the present
already, right, it's changeddramatically.
I mean, you've seen dealers,like you know, probably the most
famous one on TikTok is Mosesright, and I got to meet Moses
and meet his dad as well, andyou know he, the most famous one
on TikTok is Moses right, and Igot to meet Moses and meet his
dad as well, and you know, hetold me something and said

(35:53):
listen, marco, if it wasn't for,you know, tiktok and Instagram
and all that, we had maybe sixto 12 months left and then we
would have had to close up shop,and now he's one of the most
popular watch dealers in theworld, right, so you think about
that.
I mean, it's unbelievable howsocial media could change a
business, and Bose is one of thenicest people you'll meet in
this industry Great, great guy,and I have nothing but great

(36:15):
things to say about it and soyou know what otherwise would
have been.
You know, a struggling businessbecame kind of an overnight
success to a lot of people.
A lot of people don't see thehard work, but social media
showcases that and reallyhumanizes the people who are
selling the watches and showsoff the product in a way that I
think you know traditional ADsjust don't capture effectively

(36:36):
through the kind of walk-inmodel, if that makes sense yeah,
yeah, and I think I mean youkind of bring a good point that
the market has evolved,especially what people consume
online and like, if you look atit like two years ago, three
years ago, like the tiktok watchdeals were like all the thing,
like the negotiations and nowit's like dude, come on like

(36:59):
it's still hurting when theythrow watches over a glass
counter, but hey, yeah, it'sokay, that's that's their model
and you know that's how theyenjoy doing it, so no problem it
.

Blake Rea (37:09):
It's so, it's so cringy to me now, like when I
think about it, um, and I neverreally got into it.
But I've met in a couple, I'vemet a couple of the people that
do that like watch jewels andstuff like that.
Like I saw her, uh about at uhjck couture, like they have the
vintage watch show that's likeparallel to that, um, and I saw

(37:32):
her and uh, you know, I talkedto her for like a brief second,
I don't know how I kind of waslike I'm, you know, it seems
like she's kind of milking it.
I mean, I don't mean to throwshade, but you know, like, come
on, come up with something alittle bit more clever, I think,
you know, instead of just thedeals, the negotiation videos,
like I'm just tired of tired ofseeing it yeah, and then you
know what.

That's the difficult part right about
making content I could tell you,because I do it often is coming
up with new interesting topicsto talk about.
That's the thing it's like.
Listen, I've been doing contentnow for almost three, four or
five years.
If you go back to the livestreaming days, like there's
only so many different ways Icould talk about watches or, you
know, bring up topics thatdoesn't become repetitive and

(38:14):
that you know is still verycurrent.
And the thing is is deals wasalways fun because people love
to watch the entrepreneurialside of things, right like sure.
They love to see how businessis built, how businesses run and
learn from it themselves topotentially even do it
themselves, or even just forentertainment.
Listen, I love that side ofthings.
You know, it was great, it'ssuper entertaining to watch,
even still to this day.

(38:34):
But you know, to a certainextent I agree, it's either you
adapt or die and sometimes youhave to kind of try new things
and that's just.
Some people do, some peopledon't, and you know you kind of
just have to figure it out asyou go along.
There's no real.
There's no real thing, you know, like plan in place or you know
formula to follow.
I tell people this all the time.
No-transcript.

Blake Rea (39:28):
Yeah, I get a lot of questions too because I come
from a creative background.
A lot of the people that are inthe industry now they don't
come from the creative side, sothey always have that challenge
of coming up with new content.
Um, I have, you know, I'vespoken about I don't think maybe
I've spoken about this beforebut I have like a content pool,
so like I literally will havethese spurts.

(39:50):
It's just kind of like waves,you know they come and go.
Like you have a huge wavecreated creativity, you write
down a bunch of shit.
Then you're like, what the helldo I do?
Like I don't know what?
Oh cool, I got my content pool.
I literally have had so many ofthose waves like within the
past like six months I I'm on mylist.
I have almost like eight or ninehundred concepts that I want to

(40:10):
execute, um, and that includesyoutube podcasts, uh, guests, uh
, it kind of helps me kind of goback to like a default, like
like point where I'm like, okay,I've got plenty of stuff to do
when I'm when I don't know whatto do and that can kind of save
me.
Um, let's kind of segue againand I I know this um, but I'm

(40:34):
gonna ask it anyways.
Um, you know, in yourcollection video, you know, you
kind of showcased off yourcollection.

Which, by the way, totally changed since I
filmed that video.
But it's all good.

Blake Rea (40:46):
So tell us, like on public record, like, what's
changed with your collection.

Yeah, yeah, I mean, you know what?
I have a complete I don't wantto say the word, but I have a
complete watch flipper, let'scall it right.
There's very little like theonly watch I would say that will
always stay in my collection.
I would sell all my earthlypossessions before I sell this
as my back row and not becauseI'm a huge Rolex guy or a Rolex
fan.
It's the story behind it, right, the whole.

(41:11):
For those who know, they kind ofknow the story of how I got it.
I got it through the livestream and you know it was this
crazy kind of situation and um,but yeah, other than that,
everything is fair game for meto sell pretty much and I've
been in and out of probably 30or 40 watches over the last uh
kind of two to three years.
Just because you're in theindustry, you get great deals,

(41:33):
you try new things and I'm notone to really wear our inventory
.
It's not my watch, so I feelkind of guilty wearing something
I don't own.
You know it's like drivingsomebody else's car for me.
I don't like that.
So, yeah, that's kind of thething.
So currently I have a Mr GGshock.
I have my Batgirl.
I have which I call the BruceWayne, by the way, the real

(41:54):
Bruce Wayne, this is thedressed-up version of the Batman
.
I have also my mont blanc modelpusher chronograph and I have
the new watch that I justshowcased in a new video, uh, on
berdine's jewelry youtubechannel, which is, uh, the
vacheron traditionelle with theblue dial, which was a limited
edition of 15 pieces.
So I'm steering uh clear ofeverything else for the time
being.

(42:14):
I'm at three and a g, as ourfriend ollie calls it right,
just Just three watches and a Gshock, and I kind of like it.
It's difficult to stay down tothree watches, but you know I'm
trying to try my best to do that.

Blake Rea (42:25):
I envy you Cause I I can't do it Like I.
I've got so many watches Idon't even I think last time I
kind of have maybe 150 watches.

Man, it's unreal .

Blake Rea (42:41):
It's, it's unreal, it's it's insane.
And uh, somebody asked me likehow do you decide what?

to wear.
I I don't know.
Yeah, it's just a feeling,right?
You just kind of look at yourwatch.

Blake Rea (42:46):
I'm gonna wear this today and then, you know, I was
talking to some friends and Iwas trying to figure out how I
could dwindle down and they cameup with the same concept that
you like.
You know you talk about clothesum, oh, if you haven't worn it
in six months, just get rid ofit, you know.
But then I kind of cornermyself because I buy watches as
like mementos, like, oh, cool, Iremember, uh, when I got

(43:08):
engaged I got this watch, orwhen I got married, I wore this
watch, or, uh, you know, I had a, um, monumental point,
monumental moment in my careerand I bought this watch and and
I'm like, how do I get rid ofthose?
You know, those watches?
Because I've layered themaround event, life events and,
uh, I find it very conflicting.

Yeah, you know what.
It's something that I strugglewith as well.
So I had a Pam one 83.
It was my first luxury watchand, uh, you know that was a
really, really important watchto me because it was my first
luxury watch.
And you know that was a reallyreally important watch to me
because it was my first luxurywatch, you know, like the first
watch, that really hurt, as wecall it right.
Yeah, you know it hurt to buyit and see the money leave my
account, kind of thing.
And you know, also, it was awatch that I wore kind of in the

(43:53):
last year of my grandfather'slife, who was probably the most
important person you know in mylife ever and that was really
difficult.
Losing him was really difficultand the watch was there with me
.
But you know, to a certainextent it was something that my
friend JJ from the watch hangoutkind of said to me was listen,
at the end of the day you'llalways have those memories with

(44:14):
you.
The watches just add to thosememories, if that makes sense,
right?
And listen, do I regret sellingit sometimes?
You know, do I think, man, Iwish I kept it?
Not really.
Ever since I sold it I neverreally looked back on it the
first month or so you kind ofmiss it, but after that, you
know, time heals all wounds, soto speak, and you know it
becomes, you know, like oh, wow,that's a great memory.

(44:35):
I remember my pam 183 and youknow, being by my grandfather's
side, you know while he wasstill alive and when he
ultimately passed away, and youknow again.
I think the memories willalways stay, even though you
mark an occasion with the watchwhich is, I think, just as
special as owning the watchitself yeah, that makes sense.
I I still have a hard time Imean, I guess I haven't

(44:56):
transitioned, it's so difficultI mean it's so hard and jj has
such a uh, a non to the coreflipper to the core.

Blake Rea (45:08):
I love it, I mean he has jjsw like, let's just be
real like, but he is a verynon-emotional collector you know
, and all the collectors thatthat I would say, that are in my
inner circle, that Icommunicate with, that are
friends that you know.
I mean they're very emotionalcollectors, you know, um, and,
and I think I I fall into thatside where I'm like a punk rock

(45:31):
emo collector.
You know what I mean.
Like, like, if I was, if I wasin music, I would be in emo
because I just can't get rid ofwatches like that.
You've talked about thecommunity.
You know the watch collectingcommunity.
How have you seen the communityevolve since you got in to
where it is?

(45:51):
You know now.

Oh man, it's changed so much the people are.
You know, there's so many morepeople.
It's just the amount of people,right?
I don't think it's.
I think it's changed in thesense that, you know, like the
flippers or the people who arein it for like money kind of
thing, have left.
I think they pretty much allleft the hobby at this point,
right, because you know, listen,the market isn't what it used
to be.
And I think also part of theequation is just the amount of

(46:21):
people.
Uh, there's just anoverwhelming amount of people
who have joined this hobby overthe last five years.
And again, I always say thewatches are amazing, but the
people really make this hobbygreat yeah, I would agree.

Blake Rea (46:29):
I mean, we have, um, a watch club here in vegas and
we have about 100 or so members,um, and you know, going to the
events.
It's more about the people thanit is the, you know, because
everybody's always bringingtheir watches hey, I picked this
up, I picked that up um, andit's more about the people than
it is about the, the products orthe watches, or um, and it's

(46:55):
weird because I'd say, everybodywho I've met at a watch event,
like somehow like we get eachother, you know what I mean.
It's like like you and I arelike on different levels, but
we're the same dude, you knowwhat I mean it's a secret
handshake, right like yeah, yeahyeah, and, and it feels kind of
interesting.
I mean it feels great to knowthat, like, I'm not the only

(47:16):
weird one out there who'sobsessed with these little
things that you wear on yourwrist.
Um, and and yeah, I mean justthe community has been so
supportive, um, I meanespecially like I mean from our
journey, like you can look, Imean, at our entire podcast
roster, um, and this has been aproject that's been going for
about a year now, like a yearand a half, um, and the amount

(47:36):
of stuff that we've been able todo in a year and a half, and
the amount of stuff that we'vebeen able to do in a year and a
half is just insane, insane.
Like I was at the Paneraifactory in March shooting
content with the CEO.
I just filmed a factory tour.
I've got a Beauvais factorytour I'm working with right now.
Like I mean just the amount ofstuff that we've been able to do
and I'm working on some stuffwith IWC.
I mean just the amount of stuffthat we've been able to do and

(47:59):
I'm working on some stuff withIWC.
Like just the amount of stuffthat we've been able to do, and
the community has just beeninsane, and that's, I think, why
I'll never leave right, yeah,there's.

So you know, getting in the industry is
actually not as difficult as youmay think.
Right, there's so littlebarriers to entry.
I think everybody is just sofriendly and welcoming.
You know everyone except forotomar.
But like, yeah, there's likeyour key brands that are kind of
, you know, think, think veryhighly of themselves and say, um
, no, but that was a joke aimedat ap.

(48:30):
But for the for the most part,everybody is so so friendly and
amazing to work with and you,you'd really be surprised.
It's like people are sometimesafraid to try a watch on, like
guys, this is the whole reasonwhy you're here.
Like, no, you have to try thesewatches on.
You know that like, or they'reafraid to talk to people, all
that kind of good stuff, andthat that's.

Blake Rea (48:49):
That's really what makes the hobby special oh, yeah
, yeah, I mean, um, and we havea lot of the the guys in our
group that they're not like bigmoney collectors, right, like I
mean you find yourself in asmall hobby like watch
collecting and then somehow weget segmented into like how much
disposable income we have,which is weird.
And we have a lot of the guysthat we just did an event with

(49:11):
yulish nard on and uh, and likelike six or seven out of the
hundred people you know in ourwatch group that get the invites
like showed up and I findmyself like kind of like
wondering like why, you know,why are more people not showing
up?
And then I started talking tosome of like the founding, like

(49:32):
the founding guys, and you knowwe just thought that the barrier
of entry was too high.
You know, like not everybody iscomfortable coming to an event
with you in where you is goingto talk about product and this,
and that Maybe they feel bad,maybe they don't even have 12
grand in their bank account,enough to even afford the

(49:53):
cheapest you in or whatever.
Right, and that's, that'stotally OK.
You know, I hope that that hasbeen clear for my, my founding
days, starting this community,that that's clear and I even
tell the brands who are doingevents with us, like don't
expect us to buy a bunch of yourwatches like come here, support
the community.
Watches are a long sale.

(50:13):
They're not like you know.
Like even look at car sales.
Like you get you, you have havewhat you're working on.
One sale, one transaction overthe course of a couple weeks or
maybe months, or even even evenlonger sometimes yeah, you
always have irons in the fire,right?

if you're depending on one sale, you're
dead in this industry,unfortunately yeah.

Blake Rea (50:31):
And then we kind of had that epiphany where we're
like, okay, we need to likelower the barrier of entry.
And so you, you know we'redoing events with IWC and you
know it's Formula One weekendcoming up, We've got a Tag Heuer
event, We've got a Hublot event, you know, we've got IWC event,
We've got a Panerai event, aBlancpain event, Like we've got
so much shit.
And then on the flip side, I'mlike, okay, now we're going to

(50:55):
go to like Citizen or likeBoulevard or like Frederick
Constant, like Alpina or likeyou know.
I mean just the other side,Because it seems like we've been
trending into those higher endbrands and people.
We were literally have such acrazy turnout for people that
want to come and show theirwatches off, Like 30, 50, 60

(51:16):
people like, easily, right,We'll come show their
collections off, but we do abranded event like 10 people.
You know people like easily,right, We'll call them, show
their collections off, but we doa branded event like 10 people,
you know it's like all right,that's the cocktail, Like that's
the winning formula.
I'm sure you probably alreadyanswered this and maybe you just
didn't vocalize it, but whatwould you feel is the most

(51:36):
rewarding part of being in thewatch community?

Yeah, 100%.
Again, it goes back to thepeople, right.
It's like learning fromcollective experiences, learning
from people's experiences, bothon the watch side and on the
personal side.
Right, because through watchsales I get to actually develop
friendships with people.
I don't really treat thisbusiness as a transactional
endeavor.
For me, it's not about justselling a watch.

(52:03):
That's very zero-sum you win oryou lose.
You either sell the watch oryou don't.
For me, I want to establish areal personal relationship with
people, not just selfishly,because obviously I want them to
work with me, but also because,at the end of the day, I get to
learn from them.
And that's really both on thepersonal side and the business
side, which, again, that I thinkis the most rewarding part of

(52:26):
this industry.
I've been able to meet people Inever would have otherwise met
and or never would haveotherwise even thought of
meeting, and now I have theopportunity not just of meeting
them but speaking to them andlearning from them.
And, yeah, that's definitelythe best part.

Blake Rea (52:42):
Yeah, I couldn't agree more.
Coming to the end of our timehere, I have a couple more
questions.
Sounds like obviously you wearmultiple hats.
I mean, you are a dealer by day, content creator, influencer,
whatever you want to callyourself by night.
It makes me cringe so bad.

I'm sorry content.

Blake Rea (53:02):
That's why that's why I said content creator come on
what's next for you, you know,and do you have any exciting
projects, goals?
You know something we can lookback at and kind of measure like
where you're at in your, inyour career yeah, man, that's

(53:23):
such an interesting question.

A lot of the, the goals I have, uh, are
personally related, you know,like I'd love to get married in
the next five years, kind ofthing, because you know the
thing is ever since joiningbernice it's such.
I know this sounds likeobviously very cliche, but it's
an amazing organization, like Iget so much freedom and
flexibility to do essentiallywhat I want right On a buy, sell

(53:45):
, trade kind of scenario, butalso in terms of just straight
up like content side of things,right, I get the opportunity to
speak about pretty much whateverI want whenever I want, you
know, within reason.
Obviously you know this is stilla business and I have to
represent it, you know,faithfully and to the best of my
ability.
So you know, but otherwise Ikind of get, you know, freedom
and liberty all over the placeand that's it's almost like I'm

(54:08):
running my own business withinBurdine's right, and so my goal
is really to just keep expandingthat, reach new people, reach
new collectors and, you know,hopefully continue to build my
name and showcase why I feel I'mthe guy in the industry that
everybody should deal with andhopefully that passion and that
experience will resonate withpeople and they'll choose to do

(54:31):
business with me or not, or justconsume my content, because I
get so much validation andenjoyment from people saying to
me people I've never sold awatch from like, oh hey, I do
business with this person, but Ilove your content.
I get, or I just love yourcontent in general.
You know, that kind of stuff.
I eat it up because listen, atthe end of the day, I put a lot
of time and effort into it andyou know I'm super passionate

(54:52):
about this hobby.
And it's not that easy to putyourself out there, right,
because a lot of people onlinewill flame you for, for things
you say or do, and that's that'spart of being, you know, an
online personality contentcreator, if you will, and, uh,
you know, but but it's.

Blake Rea (55:07):
It's such a rewarding experience at the same time you
realize, if you get marriedright, you're never buying
another watch, right?

that's why I'm waiting.
That's why I said 30, 30, 30 I,I.

Blake Rea (55:20):
I have tried to figure out the kind of like uh
like happy ratio.
And you know, when boxes showup at the door, I'm like, okay,
well, when I see a few boxesthat show up at the door, that
means I can bring a few boxes.
You know like all right.
And then my wife's like, oh,what's that?
You're?

wearing.
Oh, I've had this.
Yeah, I just changed the bezelon it.

Blake Rea (55:44):
Yeah, I changed the strap.
So, yeah, best of luck to youin that regard.
And finally, and let's justspeak subjectively, right, and
obviously we live in a fairytaleworld which we call watches,
but if you could collaboratewith any brand, past, present or

(56:05):
even, uh, like industry leader,yeah, who would it be?
What would it be?
That's an excellent questionwhat would come from it?

you know, if I had to like let's say like have
dinner with anybody in theindustry, right For me it would
have to be Abraham Louis Breguet, the greatest watchmaker of all
time.
Hans Wilsdorf is definitely upon the list, you know, just from
a business perspective.
You know business side ofthings.
But you know, if I couldcollaborate with anybody in the

(56:36):
industry, it would be, you know,my personal favorite brand and
that would be an MB&F, and Iwould love to collaborate with
them on some kind of speciallegacy machine perpetual, which
is my personal grail watch.
You know, I I always said thatthat's my grail watch and I
stand by it.
I think it's one of the mostamazing watches ever made and I
think it's this ingeniouscontraption and, uh, it's just
amazing.
I'm a huge fan of max busterand his watches and the mbnf

(56:56):
brand and, and you know what, ifI could collaborate with them,
that would be an insane dream ofmine.

Blake Rea (57:03):
I'm sure there's going to be people that are
going to be echoing that thatdream, for sure.
Um, wow, I mean we're reachingthe top of the hour.
Uh, we have covered almost 20questions, which I didn't expect
to do.
Like you know, sometimes, likewe just kind of pace it a little
differently, we went over a ton, but we've kind of been doing

(57:27):
this like weird little thing.
I feel like it's veryappropriate where we essentially
turn over our platform to you.
You know, is there anything youfeel like we didn't cover?
Is there anything you want toaddress directly?
Is there anything you want tosay that we didn't talk about?
If so, here's the opportunity.

Yeah, no, I think we pretty much covered
everything.
You know.
Obviously, if people arelistening and they don't know
about me, then I would urge themto check out my socials, be it
on Instagram, watchmarco or, youknow, check out my YouTube
channel.
I'm over on Verdine's jewelryon YouTube and, yeah, like I
hope, I hope to hear from youguys and learn from your
experiences and hopefully earnyour business someday.

(58:04):
And no, thank you so much,blake, for having me on.
It's been an absolute pleasure.
We covered so many topics and Ialways I can't get enough about
watches, you know.
So, like I work in the industry, I love the industry and I love
the watches.
So, yeah, this is awesome.

Blake Rea (58:17):
Yeah, everybody, we will be sure to link Marco down
and the description of thispodcast or the YouTube wherever
you're listening from, be sureto check out Marco.
Watch Marco on Instagram.
Again, he said a bunch of timeshe's at Bardeen's, which is in
Chicago.
Make sure you reach out to himif you're considering getting
your next piece and we willdefinitely have you on again in

(58:41):
the future.
We're looking.
We've only had our first guestcome back once and it was Mike
Pearson who went from Zodiac toChristopher Ward.
But, but no, we're going tostart planning to kind of to
check back with people.
So in the future we'lldefinitely check back with you.
You see where you're at on your, your goal right?
Maybe you'll be married, maybeyou'll have new watches.

(59:03):
Um, thank you again for comingon spending the time with us.
It's been an absolute pleasure,humbled, to be here as your, as
your host, and uh, and thankyou, as always, for spending
time with us absolutely.

The pleasure is all mine, man.
Thank you so much you got itbye.

All Episodes

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

Dateline NBC

24/7 News: The Latest

Therapy Gecko

.css-15opob5{left:0;position:absolute;top:0.8rem;} All Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Marco Ferrante on Transforming Passion into Professional Prestige in the Watch Industry

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

.css-r6mb8g{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:1;overflow:hidden;}Dateline NBC

24/7 News: The Latest

Therapy Gecko

All Episodes

Marco Ferrante on Transforming Passion into Professional Prestige in the Watch Industry

Dateline NBC