We talk here not only about replica watches but about all that happens around the watch industry as well. And one of the most shocking recent news from it is that top cities around the world register a massive number of watch robberies. The ironic thing about it is that thieves seem to know when and where exactly to attack. Most of the robbed watches belong to the luxury category.
I found that important to mention in our blog because many of you, guys, own pretty nice and highly qualitative imitations from our store. And since not every replica watch owner speaks frankly about the fact that his watch is an imitation, the rumors about your potentially “genuine” watch can circulate to your detriment.
What do statistics show?
According to certain criminalistic departments, only in the USA, the police registered a little bit more than 200 luxury watches thefts from May to December 2022. In comparison to the 2021 year, this statistic is 35% higher than the previous year for the same period.
Switching to another country’s statistics, things are getting even worse in London. According to the local Police Service, thieves have stolen about 650 Rolex timepieces and nearly 100 Patek Philippe watches. All of the cases took place around the London city limits and refer to the January to September period. The worst of all is that the same timeframe of the previous 2021 year hasn’t registered even half of such cases.
The great thing is that police from the most relevant world cities including Paris, London, and Los Angeles has set up a special program in combating luxury watches theft. I don’t know much about what these measurements specifically refer to, but it’s great to have such a quick reaction from the authorities.
The curious, yet frightening thing about all of that…
…is that these robberies don’t take place regularly, in public spaces. Most of the robberies seem to have been planned accurately and professionally. Take, for instance, the recent case involving the Chelsea midfielder Raheem Sterling. He was absent from his home for a certain period of time, as he was performing for the England national team in Qatar for the World Cup tournament. After England had been eliminated from the championship, he flew back home to discover that his home had been subject to an armed robbery. His house is located in London and according to police, thieves knew exactly what to look for. After detailed investigations and expertise, specialists discovered that no other valuable goods were of interest to burglars rather than the soccer player’s enviable collection of watches.
According to watch experts, the estimated value of Sterling’s collection is nearly $400,000. Nice target for burglars.
Who is on the thieves’ radars?
Professional journalists all with local police departments from diverse big cities have made investigations and concluded that lately, sports and public figures have become the main target of burglars. That’s specifically the case when I’m happy about not being a public famous personality. The point is that this “target audience” is massively present and visible on social media platforms and not only.
On one hand, it became easier than ever to find out where a celebrity person or a sports hero is, and when there’s nobody at home. For instance, Lionel Messi announced that all his family was going to be present at the World Cup finals to support his team. It wasn’t difficult for the thieves to quickly research and make up a robbery plan (thank God it didn’t happen).
On the other hand, public figures post their watch collections on their Instagram and other social media platforms without even thinking that they can become a target for malicious-intended minds.
Bad intentions go beyond that that
Turns out that not only physical persons are a direct target. Big companies are also the subject of watch robberies. Not so long ago, a huge Berlin storage store announced about having been stolen for luxury watches with a total value of $10,000,000. I can’t imagine how it could have happened, as usually, such pre-owned retailers have massive security techniques to protect their patrimony. Still, it happened and it seems that luxury watches have become now a pretty sophisticated “guilty pleasure” of robbery schemes.
With all that in mind…
I encourage all of you to be prudent with your watches, no matter if these are imitations or genuine versions. Now, with Christmas behind us, there is still the New Year holiday in which most of us plan to get a vacation. Make sure to leave your watches safe, and take all precautions possible to protect them, as well as yourself.
Another relevant point here is your social media profiles. Regardless of the time of the year, be prudent about what you post there. Thieves’ schemes have evolved a lot and now they operate with social media profiles like never before. They follow your activity and your location, they monitor your goods including your watches. Also, keep in mind that they don’t really know if your watch is a replica or a genuine one (you don’t write about it openly, right!). And here’s where confusion can develop. Thinking that your accessory is a genuine one, you can easily become their target for a robbery.
Here is the most prudent way to keep yourself safe. It refers to not boasting around with all your luxury accessories, even if they are imitations. Keep them humbly for yourself and enjoy them, avoiding “screaming” out loud about them on your social media profiles.
Remember that the online space is useful not only for you to socialize but for malicious-intended minds as well. This space is an open gate for them to find out all about your wealth with only a few clicks. Stay prudent!
Final Word to Say…
My intention is to not make you forget about watches, by no means. The only thing I pursue here is to make you aware of the possible risks. As far as it seems, not only scammers are our direct threat in the replica market. Physical robbery risk is also getting imminent. So, keep loving watches, but only be careful!