CARROLLTON, TEXAS -- Well after doing some lengthy research regarding Balmer, Wohler, Louis Richard and Duboule Jarrow Watches I have come to some greater understanding regarding their origination. I placed a bid through Air Force UBid site through AAFES. After receiving the watch I had a watchmaker examine it and found it to be "Made in China". So I promptly called UBid and requested a return authorization and refund. I explained to the customer service agent, "if I wanted to purchase a watch made in China I would have done so.” She said nothing to refute the claim.
Balmer Watches does not originate in Switzerland nor do the others I've mentioned. It's ironic they claim to be Swiss Made and give an elaborate history but come to find, they are not Swiss Made at all. All aforementioned watches are made in China and imported into the US. The warranty repair location for all these brands is;
Always At Market Service Department, 1545 Capital Drive, Suite 106, Carrollton, Texas 75006. Phone: 972-242-4045 Fax: 972-242-7630. CEO/President John House ex 333 jhouse@myatmarket.com. CFO/Treasurer John **. Vice President of Sales. Paul **. Vice President of Operations Frank **. Vice President of Merchandising Susan **.
This supposed warranty service department is. After carefully tracing the IP addresses for each supposed manufacture, I found a company "CrystalTech Web Hosting" - 1125 W. Pinnacle Peak Road Suite 103, Phoenix, AZ 85027 +1-602-263-0300.
Is the host for all aforementioned websites;
www.balmerwatches.com
www.duboule.com
www.louisrichardwatches.com
www.wohlerwatches.com
which is quite ironic considering their website advertisement. On each site they give elaborate histories and allude to their location of origin but a Balmer they specifically show a map of manufacture origin, which is in Switzerland. Don't be fooled by their unfounded claims and pricing. What you are buying is a Made in China watch. They falsely advertise by not disclosing the country of origin. Balmer further claims the "Balmer Swiss Gents Phoenix II Limited Edition" is a limited edition with a run of Black - 125 pieces, Silver - 100 pieces, Blue - 125 pieces, Brown - 125 pieces, Green - 125 pieces.
I've personally counted far more than the 125 pieces from the many dealer and auction sites spread across the internet. They are falsely advertising their location of origin, numbers of limited additions and misleading potential buyers with claims of comparison costs and worth. You'd be lucky to get less than %5 of the suggested retail cost and many time much less. So buyers beware (Caveat Emptor). Us the old adage "If it looks to good to be true, then it usually is. As of this writing, I'm filing a false advertisement claim against all four importers, which really amounts to one.
Oh yes, to help you understand the relationship between Always At Market, UBid and these watch fakes you only have to look at Always At Market. UBid is owned by Always At Market and distributes the watches through their site and also Shop NBC. I'll follow with this in a few days and let you know how it's going. Cheers.