Lonely Wrist: All Things Watches & Horology
Lonely Wrist dives deep into the intricate world of watches, unearthing the stories, craft, and passion behind every ticking piece. From timeless classics to modern marvels, this podcast winds through the history, mechanics, and cultural significance of timepieces. Whether you're an avid horologist or just someone who admires the beauty of a well-crafted watch, Lonely Wrist offers a unique perspective, uniting enthusiasts and curious minds. Join us every episode as we explore the art of watchmaking, discuss the latest trends, and interview watch industry experts, all while appreciating the silent yet profound voice of every watch's lonely wrist.
Lonely Wrist: All Things Watches & Horology
Marco Ferrante on Transforming Passion into Professional Prestige in the Watch Industry
Imagine embarking on a journey that transforms a teenage curiosity into a professional passion. Meet Marco Ferrante, a fervent watch enthusiast whose adventure began at the age of 16 with a unique Orient Explorer. Marco opens up about his transition from a casual collector to becoming a well-respected professional in the watch industry. Our conversation highlights the unexpected opportunities that arose from his engagements on YouTube and with watch influencer Nico Leonard, marking pivotal moments in his career.
Join us as we explore Marco’s experiences navigating the intricate balance between passion and business. Highlighted in this episode is Marco's appearance on the "Grey Market" series, which opened doors to unique encounters and connections within the watch community. We discuss the dynamics of operating within the gray market and the challenges posed by banking restrictions and common industry misconceptions. Marco’s insights urge a reevaluation of industry myths and emphasize the crucial importance of transparency and building genuine relationships in this field.
As we look ahead, Marco shares his thoughts on the evolving watch industry, the role of social media in reshaping marketing strategies, and the emotional aspects of watch collecting. From the rising prices of sought-after models to the hidden value in underrated timepieces, our conversation leaves no stone unturned. Marco also shares his personal growth ambitions, including a dream collaboration with MB&F. With gratitude for Marco's insights and a look at future goals, we invite listeners to engage with his inspiring journey in this ever-evolving world of horology.
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well, everybody, welcome to another episode of lonely brist. Today, sitting in front of me is marco forante. What's up, brother?
Marco Ferrante:hey, how are you? Thank you for having me on yeah, thanks for coming on.
Blake Rea:I've been trying to get you on for a while. I knew I had to have you on.
Marco Ferrante: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 last couple weeks for us both, right, but yeah, a little bit of a hectic week and hectic last couple of weeks for us both, right. But yeah, I know I'm glad to be here and you know, let's, let's get into it.
Blake Rea: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.
Marco Ferrante:But yeah, no, november, december is always like the best time of the year for 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 time of the year. It's the best time, you know, I think, because it's like the most rewarding time for me. You know, for me, like watches have always been a passion of mine, the sales kind of come secondary, but like getting you know, new watches on people's wrists, I think it's such a fulfilling job because I get to see passionate watch people kind of live out their wristwatch dreams, so to speak. So that's the most rewarding part of the job by far. And now is the best time and I get to see some of the coolest pieces, I think, in the world.
Blake Rea: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, and how you, you know ended up in the industry yeah, so I uh got into watches now almost 10 years ago, uh, so I was 16 at the time.
Marco Ferrante:I bought an orient explorer off like this canadian, you know, back page craigslist 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 reserve indicator, a date at six o'clock like a date wheel, and then it had like, uh, what's it called, a, um, a world time function and like a bunch of outer scales that you could do. It was a super funky watch that it was so busy. That's what kind of attracted me to it. And when I went in person, I think I paid like 200 or 300 bucks for it at the time.
Marco Ferrante:And when I went in person I didn't know anything about mechanical watches. You know, I'd owned Citizen and Armani and that kind of stuff, but I didn't consider myself a watch collector. I wouldn't have considered myself kind of a watch collector at the time. And man, as soon as I turned that watch around and saw the mechanical movement, the mechanical movement, I was like kind of like Whoa, what's this? And ever since then my curiosity was peaked. And, yeah, I guess you can only get so much of Rolex and Patek and AP and all that kind of stuff that most people tend to talk about. So you know, the watch world is so expansive that there's so much to learn all the time, and that's what really keeps the hobby fresh and interesting, in my opinion.
Blake Rea:Yeah, I mean, you can spend decades, if not lifetimes, fresh and interesting in my opinion yeah, I mean, you can spend decades, if not lifetimes, learning about watches.
Marco Ferrante:Literally, you can spend a whole lifetime just on one brand, absolutely it's, it's crazy.
Blake Rea:Um, so obviously that's your early, the early days. Um, I originally saw you on, of course, on youtube, right, and then you know we have mutual friends and uh, and then what, what made you transition into actually dealing watches, like, okay, this is something that I want to pursue as as a career.
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, it's funny, you know, it kind of just the opportunity presented itself to me 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 uh channel on YouTube or you know, doing live streams with JJ and even back in the day with Archie Luxury, all that kind of stuff, and it was a great time kind of just you know talking watches and whatnot. And uh, back then I actually got, or was found, I guess, through the live streams by Nico Leonard, who's you know in the in the industry, probably the biggest YouTuber on the platform. And at the the time you know, he kind of pitched to me hey, marco, you ever consider working in watches? And at the time I was in university I worked in wealth management. I had just quit my job, kind of. At the start of COVID I was just like, hey, listen, I'll just kind of figure it out and see where things can take me after I graduate. And I fully planned I had actually an opportunity to work either in consulting or I had an interview lined up to work in consulting or in wealth management and you know, I kind of told Nico about it. He's like, listen, I'd love for you to consider it. How about I kind of fly you out to Ireland? So I actually went out to Ireland and got to meet Nico, got to see his whole operation there and, listen, things didn't work out from there just because it was. You know, listen, ireland is halfway around the world. It was pretty difficult. You know, I was 20 years old. You know it's a 24 hour kind of plane ride to get back home, so it's a long ways away. I don't think I was ready for that kind of distance at the time. And you know, back then Nico was a very, very small channel but in the context he had maybe 100000 subscribers. You know his very small channel To put into context, he had maybe 100,000 subscribers. His business was much smaller than it is today. Obviously, now he's the biggest YouTuber on the platform. His pride and opinion is definitely a titan, I would say, in the industry. So, yeah, props to him. He's built something amazing.
Marco Ferrante:But back then it was just a little bit smaller, a bit too risky, I felt, for me. So it was just not something that worked out. And then I was actually able to meet a ton of people, you know through Nico, roman being one of them. And that's when I was pitched by Roman, you know he's like. He reached out to me and said hey, marco, I heard things didn't kind of work out with Nico. Would you ever consider working for me in Philadelphia? And you know, again I was kind of the same thing. Hey, listen you, you know, like I I don't know if I really want to do this. He's like. You know it's a totally different operation from nico, let me get you out to philly and and, uh, let's see what happens.
Blake Rea:And from there kind of. The rest is history. Yeah, and I mean I originally um had saw you on, of course, the great market series and you know you were always the watch wizard, right where roman would throw you under the. It's like tell me, what do you know about this watch, right Like off the cuff, so I can already imagine being on a reality type show is already a unique experience, right?
Blake Rea:And how has the time on the Great Market series kind of influenced your career, Not only as a dealer but now kind of being a personality and influencer?
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, it's interesting. You know like I don't really think of myself that way, but I guess people do, which?
Blake Rea:is.
Marco Ferrante:I call myself a jack, right, just the guy. I'm just like an average watch collector, like anybody else. I swear to God there's nothing special about me and. But it's so cool to hear people's feedback and and you know hear their stories how they got into watch. For me, that's the most fulfilling part, right, if I've accomplished anything is being able to meet so many amazing collectors, because I get to learn from their collective experience in terms of collecting, in terms of, you know, watches that they've experienced, but also you know, just in terms of their overall insight, be it in life and business or you know everything else. So that has been such a rewarding aspect, in my opinion, just working in the industry. It really opens doors to people I would have never otherwise met if I worked in the banking industry back home in Montreal, right, so that has been without question. The most amazing part is all the people. Right, the watches are great, but the people, I think, really make this hobby what it is.
Blake Rea:Yeah, I actually actually sold. I sold pretty much all the watch brands as an ad. I think that's what you're doing now. You kind of came from the great market, went to the the ad, other side, uh, light and dark side, right in a weird, in a weird way. Yeah, it's interesting?
Marco Ferrante:yeah, it's very interesting. So so perdine's jewelry is an ad now for over 20 brands and we also buy and sell pre-owned. We have a huge pre-owned inventory as well, which is kind of more what I manage. I sell, you know, new watches here and there, like I sold a Speedmaster to a member of the Hangout, I sold a UN Freak recently, a Freak One, which is awesome, and I sold a Tudor Black Bay and that kind of stuff. And it's different because you know, a lot of the time on the gray market, the clientele of the gray market and the authorized dealer is totally different. A lot of the time at the AD you're going to work with either season collectors or someone totally new to the hobby, whereas the gray market tends to be a lot more seasoned collectors. It's interesting the duality between both the AD and the gray market, but it's definitely awesome.
Blake Rea: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 people there like I did it as a side gig, right, I was waiting for my wife to come back from europe, uh, and I had a lot of free time and I was like, okay, let's, let me take a little job at a watch dealer, talk about watches, hang out with watch nerds. But I always found a struggle between balancing, like the, the passion and the business. Right, because I was the guy that was like you don't want to buy that piece of shit. Like don't buy that watch, like you know.
Blake Rea:And meanwhile there's people sitting next to me that are like trying to put food on the table watch, like you know. And meanwhile there's people sitting next to me that are like trying to put food on the table. And, you know, in the city I live, in Las Vegas, like it's all sharks, right, you know all shark salesmen, like snake oil salesmen, like you know we'll sell you anything they can, right, but I'm the guy that's like, no, no, don't buy this. Like what are you doing?
Marco Ferrante:And I'm the same way right, because the watch listen, the watch industry is small to a certain extent. Everybody knows everybody, or at least everybody communicates with each other. Even you know customers who come to buy from you, and I'm the same way. I operate on extreme transparency, 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 is what I'm making in between. I'm trying to be as fair to you as possible. This is what I need to make the deal happen. If it's good, great. If not, then no problem.
Marco Ferrante:But yeah, I'm with you, listen, if I don't recommend something or I think it's no good for somebody, I will tell them point blank, because for me, I'm not in the industry to be here for two minutes and make the most money possible. That's a very short term, very short sighted vision. That's a very short term, very short sighted vision. At the end of the day, I know, I understand that if I take care of somebody, I will get not only their repeat business, their referral business, but also it's about reputation, right, and my reputation to me is very, very important, and so I will go out of my way to take care of somebody as best as I can, and if that means giving up a sale, then it's not not an issue for me.
Blake Rea:Yeah, I looked at it as every person that came through the door Like for me this was an opportunity to build a friendship, a connection you know, because friends are loyal, right, like, if you're just looking at it, hey, I'm trying to build a customer base. Like you know they're going to go where the price goes, like where they get the best discount, where you know it's convenient for them.
Blake Rea:It discount where you know it's convenient for them. It's very transactional, exactly, and that, to me, is is the downfall of a sales professional. But you know, still, how do you balance passion and the business side? That was something I always struggled with.
Marco Ferrante:It's very difficult. You know it's something that I will say that since joining Berdine's, the passion side of things has really kicked up Right. There was a time I would say that, like you, would start to resent watches that you can't sell or that are difficult to sell.
Marco Ferrante:You know it's like oh, this sucks because not because it's a bad watch, but because it's it's something that's not easy to sell, right, it's almost like if you've heard of the scientific experiment like Pavlov's dog, right, where when he rings the bell, like you start to say he starts to sell because he thinks food is coming. So, like you know, if you tell a watch dealer Rolex, patek AP, they start to sell it because essentially it's easy sales. Right, that's the idea. But the point is is you start to look away from these amazing brands there's so much this industry has to offer just because you know it's a little bit more difficult to sell. The discounts have to be a little bit there. Maybe the time of sale is a little bit harder. You know there's a lot more questions, a lot more nuance to it and you know annoying little things. Maybe sometimes you wake up on the wrong side of the bed you don't want to deal with. But that's just what it is right.
Marco Ferrante:And I would say that we have such a variety here at Berdine's that you know obviously we sell Rolex, patek AP, all that kind of good stuff. But for me, the where my passion lies really is in the other stuff. Right, I feel like, you know, stuff around the edges is always the most interesting, if you will, and that's kind of a difficult thing to balance. That's still something that I try to balance as best as I can. That's still something that I try to balance as best as I can. And you know it's not a there's no, no real solution or formula to this. It's really an ongoing, ongoing war all the time. You know.
Blake Rea: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 a huge pre-owned inventory and I went in I just was, was like, am I getting ready to pay like eight grand out the door retail for this explorer one? And then I started going to their pre-owned section and I got, uh, a sea master 300 like the heritage, with the, you know the 89, 12 like the, the jumping hour. And I was like this is like the first of all, it's the cheapest one I've ever seen. It was like 3 500 or like 3 800 or something. I mean it's like tremendous value. Box paper is complete and I was like I think they mismarked it, but anyways, you know, such a tremendous value to be had on the pre-owned market, it really makes me kind of shy away from buying watches at retail.
Blake Rea:Right, like I am on moda, I'm always looking for a good deal, like I'm always looking for something to add and it's just, I feel like it's a. I don't know if underserved is the right, the right word, but you know you have to be an experienced buyer to kind of navigate that marketplace, cause a lot of people. They just they just don't want to do it. They're like how do I know it's real? How do I know? How do I know that? Like, how do I know I'm not getting scammed? Like you know, I'm sending somebody from facebook money who you know? Who is this? Like you know? Like um. But curiously, I mean I've seen on the series the great market series, like you've been in some pretty epic watch deals. What is the one that sticks out like you'll be telling the story for the next decade like memorable deal of a lifetime oh man, um, I mean, there's a lot of them.
Marco Ferrante:You know, there really is like uh, I just recently sold uh the like literally last week a john mayer uh, I saw that, yeah, that was yeah, so that that's.
Marco Ferrante:You know, that's an exceptional watch, but for sure, my favorite sale of all time and it's my biggest sale ever is two watches. So I sold the 5167R, which is a rose gold Aquanaut on a brown rubber strap, brown dial, and I sold a rainbow Daytona and at the time I think the total all-in sale was $540,000 or something like that and we just got a clean wire for that much and that's the one I was like damn, that's that's. I felt really good about it at the time and you know I still do. And listen, I'm still in touch with that client. He's my biggest client and somebody I'm very, very fortunate I could call a friend and, yeah, he's awesome, he's the best.
Blake Rea:Yeah, I mean that's crazy, um, and I mean just to think about first of all these banks, like they don't want transactions like this to happen, right like I think about it all the time.
Marco Ferrante:Uh, yeah, there's a lot of alarm signals that go off and you know, you have to call, like the bank will call you to verify and all that kind of stuff. It's, it's very complex. It's it's no doubt about when you're dealing with this kind of transaction. You know it's not a swipe my credit card and I'll walk out with the watch kind of deal.
Blake Rea:Even even then, like my, my debit card only lets me charge like six grand right per day and I'm like, well, can I pay six grand today and six grand tomorrow?
Blake Rea:like exactly it just it becomes annoying and these banks just want to hold on to all, all of our money. Um, but curiously, um, now you transitioned right, you're at birdies and you are literally doing I mean you're doing some crazy content. I mean I saw your watch collection video, awesome collection. Uh, it's very cool that you see that side of somebody, because it kind of shows, like, who you really are in a unique way.
Blake Rea:Um, I don't think I've ever shown off my entire collection and I mean maybe once or twice, but you know, not really like out there, um, but I mean, it seems like you guys are kind of trying to break down some misconceptions in the industry. I'd say, um, and you're trying to kind of, uh, you know, progress the industry. So when I say that like are I have, I don't think you've ever been asked are there any misconceptions about the watch industry that you're trying to dispel? Uh, you know, where do you see your platform, your new platform, newfound platform, heading yeah, I mean I'll come back to your question.
Marco Ferrante:I guess the opportunity with berdine's I thought was so interesting because it's, uh, in, at least in chicago, it's very, very well known. They have a very strong, you know, retail brick and mortar presence, but you know, online, for the most part, almost nobody really knows about them, and that's that's where I really found something. That was a huge opportunity there, right? So, like the whole point, I think, of the Berdine's platform is to elevate the customer experience, right, and that's kind of what I also want to do. But to a certain extent, with Berdine's as well, it's all about transparency and treating people with dignity and respect. For us, there's no pay for play schemes. We're going to be forthright with you. There's no, you know, buy this to get that. That's not the way that we operate. You know we have, like, for example, a Vacheron authorized dealer which, okay, vacheron isn'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 extreme transparency. But also we just tell it how it is, and I think that's kind of the approach that I've always had in the industry. Right Is that I operate on extreme honesty. I have nothing to hide. Anybody who's ever kind of dealt with me, can you know, for the most part knows that I'm just a straightforward person, right? It's like I have nothing to really be ashamed of or unhappy about or really you know, I guess not just be straightforward about. So that's really the point, I think, also with our communication strategy and what I want to do with our social media content.
Marco Ferrante:I have a video coming up that's actually talking about why I don't think AP is worth buying at retail anymore For the amount of spend that you're going to have to do and essentially for the amount of. You know, essentially toe kissing is what I call it. You know, kiss their toes and get on your knees and pray to the AP gods that you'll get the watch that you want. It's just not even financially worth it anymore and I want to dispel this notion that the AD is the best way to go, because it just isn't. You know, I'm sorry, the time spent, the money spent, the money and the time lost that you're waiting for watches that you know in most cases you're not even getting considered for and yet you have this extensive purchase history and on top of it you have to deal with.
Marco Ferrante:You know, essentially an environment where you're going out of your way to spend your money and then somehow you're supposed to be you know, essentially thanking them for you spending your money with them. 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 market and for those who have kind of misconceptions about it, because either they've been burnt by people or they've had negative experiences with other people, it shouldn't shy them away from the amazing opportunities and value and you know the expensive brands of watches that are out there to be had yeah, and one of my um, one of my friends, works at an ap external boutique.
Blake Rea:Okay, and you know he'll text me like some of the shit that's in the back, you know, and it's just it's crazy to see all the stuff that comes through that they pretend like they don't they don't have right and it's it's.
Marco Ferrante:I have to be honest, it's unbelievable. Like some of the stuff that they pull right is. In any other business it would be considered blackmail, but somehow it's not. You know, I just hey, it is what it is. What are you gonna do?
Blake Rea:I. I had put my name down for um an offshore diver here and um that's a watch in steel that trades universally under retail right.
Marco Ferrante:Totally want to trade it in. Every dealer in the world is going to offer you under retail form.
Blake Rea:Sorry, I don't mean to 100, no, so, um, this was like I put my name on the list in probably like 2021, 2022, um, and then I'd say like maybe like 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 a while. And I, I was thinking in my mind, I was like, what do you want from me? You know, like what? Like what do you want me to do? Like, just let me sit down and have a coffee with you, like what's this about? And then I, I knew he was gonna offer me some, some bullshit. And then, um, sure enough, you know, he was like, uh, hey, I've got the offshore diver if you still want it. And I was like, dude, I've been offered this watch like three times before.
Blake Rea:You called me like in every color, like the green, the blue, and then they have, uh, I can't think 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, because the watch changed in two years you know, and then um, and then when you you try that watch on, it's a 42 millimeter, but but it just wears like shit. Like, let me just call it the way it is. You know, it just wears like shit.
Marco Ferrante:The old divers, I think, were a lot worse than the new ones. I think that they made a lot of improvements in terms of the case and all that kind of stuff. But yeah, the flare out is still there, right, and that's the thing of 42 millimeter offshore, where it's probably closer to a 44 millimeter watch you need to have, you know for, for lack of a better term, you need to have the girth of the wrist. You know like it has to be. You know you have to have a big wrist to wear. You know just, that's just the truth. And you know the probably the the worst part of all of that is now probably ap will be very hesitant to call you back just because you changed your mind about a watch. You know, and that's, that's what's the craziest. Like I don't understand, like, like what, like I don't, I don't get it.
Blake Rea: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 have absolutely and uh, no, but no, no.
Blake Rea:so to give a little bit of context, like me and um, bubba, bubba, hotep, I'm sure you probably know um, he and I like are like really close friends. Like he flies out, we, we see each other. Like we did christmas together, we did thanksgiving together, I think we're doing thanksgiving together this year, um, but anyways, good friend of mine and he, he knows that like I religiously wear like a 44 panerai, so I'm not scared to get a chunky watch, but even then it's still warlike. I could literally put my finger through the lugs. Anyways, I think AP has fallen from grace, especially with their leadership changes, and I have a bunch of from grace, especially with you know, their leadership changes.
Blake Rea:Um, I mean, and I have a bunch of friends that are asking me like you know cause I'm, I'm not a dealer, you know, I'm going to give people you know, like you like unbiased advice like hey, what do you think about the codes? Like should I, I wouldn't buy a code like personally. And and that leads us kind of like right into our other question. But I mean, the watch market is evolving so rapidly, trends are changing right now, in front of, in front of us. What do you and I know you don't have a crystal ball, like none of us do but how do you think the market will evolve in the next few years?
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, it's an interesting question. You know, I ask myself that probably on a day to day basis. So, yeah, I was a buyer for my previous company, I'm a buyer for Berdeen's, and that's the most difficult part of the business, and I will explain it like this Selling a watch is not as difficult as you may think. It's actually getting the product and getting the right price for the product. Right, because finding an end user, you know, or even a dealer, for example, to sell to there's so many avenues to sell a watch nowadays, right, chrono, ebay, moda, facebook groups, you know you can list it privately and there's so many avenues out there to actually sell a watch. It's getting the product is the most challenging part of the equation, and then pricing it correctly is even more difficult. So, to put into context, I started a luxury bazaar back in April 2022, which I consider to be the absolute peak of the watch market. That was literally when prices were the absolute highest and then from there, we saw precipitous decline, right? So, you know, I basically started at the highest point you can get at and saw the watch market decline, you know, for example, like a pendant Daytona go 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 a daily thing and I'm in a ton of you know a ton of chats where I can see the price action every single day and that's the only way you can keep track of it, because there's no real monitor for pricing. You know, you ask the dealer what would he pay for something, like 10 different dealers what they would pay for something and I always like to say you'll get 12 different prices. That's just what it is. So where's the watch industry going? It's a great question.
Marco Ferrante:I think the watch industry swung really hard one way because we had a huge influx of new buyers, and you see this in a lot of markets where, essentially, you have a new influx of buyers. The pendulum will swing an extreme way one way and then an extreme way another way, right, and we've saw that right over the last kind of two years where prices declined pretty sharply, pretty quickly, and I think at some point, and even now we're reaching more of a stabilization point, 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 steel currently is up in price over the last six months. That's just the reality of things. There's other watches out there I 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 every single model, it's very much a model by model basis.
Marco Ferrante:Where do I see it in the next couple of years? I'm pretty bullish. I not as much money out there on the market they're not printing as much money as they did back then. But yeah, I feel a very bullish sentiment for the wash market in general.
Marco Ferrante:And one thing I always say is the volume. The sales volume in terms of units is still there. Actually, at Berdeen's we've sold almost 20% more pre-owned units than last year. The prices are different, right, but we've sold more volume than we did last year, which is kind of an interesting phenomenon when you consider it, because the market is down. In theory the psychology of sellers would be oh well, it's a down market, I don't know if I want to buy it, but the volume is still there. It's just the prices aren't there and think that has to do with the kind of the pendulum swing of pricing, right extreme way, one way when we saw the influx of buyer, and then an extreme way, another, when the market actually declined, and I think we'll reach a point where you will hit bottom and then from there we'll see the prices start to increase again, like we saw in 2008 I've noticed too, like if anybody's watched any of your content, they know and they understand that you appreciate the undervalued watches.
Blake Rea: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, give us what you feel like are underrated pieces, and I mean, obviously let's do the flip side of the coin Watches that. I mean, I'm probably sure I know what you're going to say, but watches that are overhyped.
Marco Ferrante:Yeah so underhyped, overhyped.
Marco Ferrante:Sure, I mean undervalued. I think you know I'll go to a lot of the key brands. I think, for example, you know I have a Montblanc monopusher chronograph which you know. This is a manual winding, high horology, finished monopusher chronograph from a company called Minerva who does only 100 movements. And if you could snag one under $20, thousand dollars, I can't think of that level of watchmaking at around twenty thousand dollars. I mean we're talking about hand finishing super crazy in-house calipers for monopocher chronograph. It's amazing.
Marco Ferrante:But I, you know, if we're sticking to the big brands, I think something like a brigette, like a brigade 5817, a marine in stainless steel under 10 000 I think, think is an insane value for literally a handmade watch. I just can't pull out the proportions. But if I could I would own that wristwatch. I think a long and zone has a lot of opportunity, like a Lanka one. Even the Saxonias have come down in price dramatically where there's just I mean you can get a longer now which is a superbly finished watch all day long under $20,000. In modern case sizes also. This is not just like 36, 37. I'm talking about even 40 millimeter Saxonias that sell under $20,000, which I think is just a steal of a deal.
Marco Ferrante:I think also there's a lot of value to be had right now. Probably the best value to be had is in Vacheron Constantin. You could pick up traditionals like I bought under $20,000. 1942s under $20,000. 1942 is under $20,000. The 1921s have come up in price over the last kind of six to 10 months but you could still pick up, you know, a rose gold model under $25,000, which, for a watch that retails for $40,000, I think is just such an insane deal considering all the artisanal qualities you get in that wristwatch. If we're talking under $10,000, there's so many brands out there that you can look at. Glashuta Original is another amazing watch brand. You get so much bang for your buck. Iwc, I think, is at a really attractive price point. If you're willing to look outside of Rolex, there's so many amazing brands of watches and designs out there to be had under $10,000, under $20,000. And I would say like even under $50,000 right now there's so many snags it's unbelievable.
Blake Rea:What about some of the watches that you feel are just getting so much hype? That just don't deserve it?
Marco Ferrante:Man, the market has shifted a lot right. Um man, the market has shifted a lot right. So, like in the past, I would tell you the Royal Oak, but the Royal Oak is probably the worst performing. You know, watch inatek, philippe aquanaut, reference 5167a, specifically that one. I like the 5164, but since they discontinued it, also I think the price points are crazy. Like you're gonna pay probably 70 000 for a steel travel time, while I I just think it's outrageous and a 5167, you know, for a newer condition, like, let's say, 2020 plus. You're paying over 50 grand for that watch or around 50,000 for that watch.
Marco Ferrante:So I tell this to people all the time. They don't really believe me because they see so many people talk about it like, oh my God, it's a Patek Aquanaut. Wow, it's amazing, but this is a stainless steel rubber strap watch that just has a time only movement. And when people like, try it on in person, the overwhelming sentiment, not all the time, but the overwhelming sentiment is whoa, I thought this was. You know, I thought this would wear a little bit differently and not in a good way. You know. It really just not that it's a cheap watch. It's just not worth what it sells for on the secondary market. In my opinion, it's just a plain stainless steel rubber strap watch. It's just not worth what it sells for on the secondary market.
Marco Ferrante:In my opinion, it's just a plain stainless steel rubber strap watch. I think it's a wonderful $30,000 watch. Would I pay more than that? Probably not, Not for me personally. And that's listen. People have their own tastes and styles, but I think the Patek Philippe Aquanaut is the go-to. That I say because I see it all the time and I've sold many of them. But many of the times I hear people saying like you know, when they actually get the watch, hey, this is awesome. And then maybe a few months later they're like you know, this is not what I thought it would be.
Blake Rea:I um my local dealer here. They they have a huge pre-owned kind of section and they have one of the transitional year 51, 67s, uh steel for like a hundred grand I I don't know like.
Marco Ferrante:I mean, I don't know, it's not a 51 67, it's the 38 millimeter probably that they have, which is so they make. They made for a very, very short period. So so regular aquanaut 51 67 is 40 millimeters but for a very short, I think was like two, two, three years max. They made a 38-millimeter one which sells for around $100,000, which is even worse. I'm sorry, but I'm not paying for less diameter. Again, that's just my personal opinion. I don't see the value in that watch at all at all, but that's just my opinion.
Blake Rea:Nevertheless, it's been sitting there for like two years.
Blake Rea:So I'm sure it'll sit there for another two years or maybe longer. So now you transitioned right. You transitioned from working with Luxury Bazaar. Now you're at Burdeens and you know we've talked about this kind of being two different sides of the coin. And I mean it seems like you're going all in on social media, which is something I traditionally don't do. I just do content for passion, post it and hope people find it. I don't really push it, but I'm assuming, with the rise of, of course, social media, online platforms and it's kind of pushed traditional dealers into a new kind of like uncomfortable zone for them, do you, do you really think, do you do you feel like the traditional 80s are keeping up with that model?
Blake Rea:or do you feel like they're just going to kind of think in the normal sense that they have for the past decades? Hey, we have product, we open the doors, people come in.
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, it's like, like I said earlier, right, the hardest part is getting the product to a certain extent, right, but also part of the equation is selling it, too. Right, and we've seen that watch sales has changed dramatically over the last, even just the last decade. Right, over the last five years has changed dramatically, and the reason for that is social media, no doubt about it, and I think it's the greatest tool to ultimately find new collectors, right, if not for anything else, then at the very least, you know, find a community or join the watch community online. And that has been such a valuable asset to so many collectors because, again, rather than meeting people in person, it's virtual, but you still get to learn from the collective experience and ownership experiences of other people. Right, and that's where the real value lies. Obviously, part of it is marketing yourself, marketing your business, no doubt about it, but it just gives you the opportunity to meet new collectors and really join the watch industry in a different way. Right, where were we looking for information? Right? I could tell you personally, I was looking at online forums, watching Tim Mosso watch reviews and that kind of stuff, and now that's kind of really out the window. There's just so many forms of content, specifically digital content, especially as our attention spans become less and less, we're going to read far less print media and watch far more visual content just because it's so much easier and quicker to consume, right, and I think that is, without question, kind of the future of the industry and it's currently the present already, right, it's changed dramatically.
Marco Ferrante:I mean, you've seen dealers, like you know, probably the most famous one on TikTok is Moses right, and I got to meet Moses and meet his dad as well, and you know he, the most famous one on TikTok is Moses right, and I got to meet Moses and meet his dad as well, and you know, he told me something and said listen, marco, if it wasn't for, you know, tiktok and Instagram and all that, we had maybe six to 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 the world, right, so you think about that.
Marco Ferrante:I mean, it's unbelievable how social media could change a business, and Bose is one of the nicest people you'll meet in this industry Great, great guy, and I have nothing but great things to say about it and so you know what otherwise would have been.
Marco Ferrante:You know, a struggling business became kind of an overnight success to a lot of people. A lot of people don't see the hard work, but social media showcases that and really humanizes the people who are selling the watches and shows off the product in a way that I think you know traditional ADs just don't capture effectively through the kind of walk-in model, if that makes sense yeah, yeah, and I think I mean you kind of bring a good point that the market has evolved, especially what people consume online and like, if you look at it like two years ago, three years ago, like the tiktok watch deals were like all the thing, like the negotiations and now it's like dude, come on like it's still hurting when they throw watches over a glass counter, but hey, yeah, it's okay, that's that's their model and you know that's how they enjoy doing it, so no problem it.
Blake Rea:It's so, it's so cringy to me now, like when I think about it, um, and I never really got into it. But I've met in a couple, I've met a couple of the people that do that like watch jewels and stuff like that. Like I saw her, uh about at uh jck couture, like they have the vintage watch show that's like parallel to that, um, and I saw her and uh, you know, I talked to her for like a brief second, I don't know how I kind of was like I'm, you know, it seems like she's kind of milking it. I mean, I don't mean to throw shade, but you know, like, come on, come up with something a little bit more clever, I think, you know, instead of just the deals, the negotiation videos, like I'm just tired of tired of seeing it yeah, and then you know what.
Marco Ferrante:That's the difficult part right about making content I could tell you, because I do it often is coming up with new interesting topics to talk about. That's the thing it's like. Listen, I've been doing content now for almost three, four or five years. If you go back to the live streaming days, like there's only so many different ways I could talk about watches or, you know, bring up topics that doesn't become repetitive and that you know is still very current.
Marco Ferrante:And the thing is is deals was always fun because people love to watch the entrepreneurial side of things, right like sure. They love to see how business is built, how businesses run and learn from it themselves to potentially even do it themselves, or even just for entertainment. Listen, I love that side of things. You know, it was great, it's super entertaining to watch, even still to this day. But you know, to a certain extent I agree, it's either you adapt or die and sometimes you have to kind of try new things and that's just. Some people do, some people don't, and you know you kind of just have to figure it out as you 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:Yeah, I get a lot of questions too because I come from a creative background. A lot of the people that are in the industry now they don't come from the creative side, so they always have that challenge of coming up with new content. Um, I have, you know, I've spoken about I don't think maybe I've spoken about this before but I have like a content pool, so like I literally will have these spurts. It's just kind of like waves, you know they come and go. Like you have a huge wave created creativity, you write down a bunch of shit. Then you're like, what the hell do I do? Like I don't know what? Oh cool, I got my content pool. I literally have had so many of those waves like within the past like six months I I'm on my list.
Blake Rea:I have almost like eight or nine hundred concepts that I want to execute, um, and that includes youtube podcasts, uh, guests, uh, it kind of helps me kind of go back 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 what to do and that can kind of save me. Um, let's kind of segue again and I I know this um, but I'm gonna ask it anyways. Um, you know, in your collection video, you know, you kind of showcased off your collection.
Marco Ferrante:Which, by the way, totally changed since I filmed that video. But it's all good.
Blake Rea:So tell us, like on public record, like, what's changed with your collection.
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, yeah, I mean, you know what? I have a complete I don't want to say the word, but I have a complete watch flipper, let's call it right. There's very little like the only watch I would say that will always stay in my collection. I would sell all my earthly possessions before I sell this as my back row and not because I'm a huge Rolex guy or a Rolex fan. It's the story behind it, right, the whole.
Marco Ferrante:For those who know, they kind of know the story of how I got it. I got it through the live stream and you know it was this crazy kind of situation and um, but yeah, other than that, everything is fair game for me to sell pretty much and I've been in and out of probably 30 or 40 watches over the last uh kind of two to three years. Just because you're in the industry, you get great deals, you try new things and I'm not one to really wear our inventory. It's not my watch, so I feel kind of guilty wearing something I don't own. You know it's like driving somebody else's car for me. I don't like that. So, yeah, that's kind of the thing. So currently I have a Mr GG shock. I have my Batgirl. I have which I call the Bruce Wayne, by the way, the real Bruce Wayne, this is the dressed-up version of the Batman.
Marco Ferrante:I have also my mont blanc model pusher chronograph and I have the new watch that I just showcased in a new video, uh, on berdine's jewelry youtube channel, which is, uh, the vacheron traditionelle with the blue dial, which was a limited edition of 15 pieces. So I'm steering uh clear of everything else for the time being. I'm at three and a g, as our friend ollie calls it right, just Just three watches and a G shock, and I kind of like it. It's difficult to stay down to three watches, but you know I'm trying to try my best to do that.
Blake Rea:I envy you Cause I I can't do it Like I. I've got so many watches I don't even I think last time I kind of have maybe 150 watches.
Marco Ferrante:Man, it's unreal.
Blake Rea:It's, it's unreal, it's it's insane. And uh, somebody asked me like how do you decide what?
Marco Ferrante:to wear. I I don't know. Yeah, it's just a feeling, right? You just kind of look at your watch.
Blake Rea:I'm gonna wear this today and then, you know, I was talking to some friends and I was trying to figure out how I could dwindle down and they came up with the same concept that you like. You know you talk about clothes um, oh, if you haven't worn it in six months, just get rid of it, you know. But then I kind of corner myself because I buy watches as like mementos, like, oh, cool, I remember, uh, when I got engaged I got this watch, or when I got married, I wore this watch, or, uh, you know, I had a, um, monumental point, monumental moment in my career and I bought this watch and and I'm like, how do I get rid of those? You know, those watches? Because I've layered them around event, life events and, uh, I find it very conflicting.
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, you know what. It's something that I struggle with as well. So I had a Pam one 83. It was my first luxury watch and, uh, you know that was a really, really important watch to me because it was my first luxury watch. And you know that was a really really important watch to me because it was my first luxury watch, you know, like the first watch, that really hurt, as we call it right. Yeah, you know it hurt to buy it and see the money leave my account, kind of thing. And you know, also, it was a watch that I wore kind of in the last year of my grandfather's life, who was probably the most important person you know in my life ever and that was really difficult. Losing him was really difficult and the watch was there with me.
Marco Ferrante:But you know, to a certain extent it was something that my friend JJ from the watch hangout kind of said to me was listen, at the end of the day you'll always have those memories with you. The watches just add to those memories, if that makes sense, right? And listen, do I regret selling it sometimes? You know, do I think, man, I wish I kept it? Not really. Ever since I sold it I never really looked back on it the first month or so you kind of miss it, but after that, you know, time heals all wounds, so to speak, and you know it becomes, you know, like oh, wow, that's a great memory. I remember my pam 183 and you know, being by my grandfather's side, you know while he was still alive and when he ultimately passed away, and you know again. I think the memories will always stay, even though you mark an occasion with the watch which is, I think, just as special as owning the watch itself yeah, that makes sense.
Marco Ferrante:I I still have a hard time I mean, I guess I haven't transitioned, it's so difficult I mean it's so hard and jj has such a uh, a non to the core flipper to the core.
Blake Rea:I love it, I mean he has jjsw like, let's just be real like, but he is a very non-emotional collector you know, and all the collectors that that I would say, that are in my inner circle, that I communicate with, that are friends that you know. I mean they're very emotional collectors, you know, um, and, and I think I I fall into that side where I'm like a punk rock emo collector. You know what I mean. Like, like, if I was, if I was in music, I would be in emo because I just can't get rid of watches like that. You've talked about the community. You know the watch collecting community. How have you seen the community evolve since you got in to where it is? You know now.
Marco Ferrante:Oh man, it's changed so much the people are. You know, there's so many more people. It's just the amount of people, right? I don't think it's. I think it's changed in the sense that, you know, like the flippers or the people who are in it for like money kind of thing, have left. I think they pretty much all left 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 the equation is just the amount of people. Uh, there's just an overwhelming amount of people who have joined this hobby over the last five years. And again, I always say the watches are amazing, but the people really make this hobby great yeah, I would agree.
Blake Rea: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 than it is the, you know, because everybody's always bringing their watches hey, I picked this up, I picked that up um, and it's more about the people than it is about the, the products or the watches, or um, and it's weird because I'd say, everybody who I've met at a watch event, like somehow like we get each other, you know what I mean. It's like like you and I are like on different levels, but we're the same dude, you know what I mean it's a secret handshake, right like yeah, yeah yeah, and, and it feels kind of interesting.
Blake Rea:I mean it feels great to know that, like, I'm not the only weird one out there who's obsessed with these little things that you wear on your wrist. Um, and and yeah, I mean just the community has been so supportive, um, I mean especially like I mean from our journey, like you can look, I mean, at our entire podcast roster, um, and this has been a project that's been going for about a year now, like a year and a half, um, and the amount of stuff that we've been able to do in a year and a half, and the amount of stuff that we've been able to do in a year and a half is just insane, insane. Like I was at the Panerai factory in March shooting content with the CEO. I just filmed a factory tour. I've got a Beauvais factory tour I'm working with right now.
Blake Rea:Like I mean just the amount of stuff that we've been able to do and I'm working on some stuff with IWC. I mean just the amount of stuff that we've been able to do and I'm working on some stuff with IWC. Like just the amount of stuff that we've been able to do, and the community has just been insane, and that's, I think, why I'll never leave right, yeah, there's.
Marco Ferrante:So you know, getting in the industry is actually not as difficult as you may think. Right, there's so little barriers to entry. I think everybody is just so friendly and welcoming. You know everyone except for otomar. But like, yeah, there's like your key brands that are kind of, you know, think, think very highly of themselves and say, um, no, but that was a joke aimed at ap. 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 sometimes afraid to try a watch on, like guys, this is the whole reason why you're here. Like, no, you have to try these watches on. You know that like, or they're afraid to talk to people, all that kind of good stuff, and that that's.
Blake Rea:That's really what makes the hobby special oh, yeah, yeah, I mean, um, and we have a lot of the the guys in our group that they're not like big money collectors, right, like I mean you find yourself in a small hobby like watch collecting and then somehow we get segmented into like how much disposable income we have, which is weird. And we have a lot of the guys that we just did an event with yulish nard on and uh, and like like six or seven out of the hundred people you know in our watch group that get the invites like showed up and I find myself like kind of like wondering like why, you know, why are more people not showing up? And then I started talking to some of like the founding, like the founding guys, and you know we just thought that the barrier of entry was too high. You know, like not everybody is comfortable coming to an event with you in where you is going to 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 cheapest you in or whatever. Right, and that's, that's totally OK.
Blake Rea:You know, I hope that that has been clear for my, my founding days, starting this community, that that's clear and I even tell the brands who are doing events with us, like don't expect us to buy a bunch of your watches like come here, support the community. Watches are a long sale. They're not like you know. Like even look at car sales. Like you get you, you have have what you're working on. One sale, one transaction over the course of a couple weeks or maybe months, or even even even longer sometimes yeah, you always have irons in the fire, right?
Marco Ferrante:if you're depending on one sale, you're dead in this industry, unfortunately yeah.
Blake Rea:And then we kind of had that epiphany where we're like, okay, we need to like lower the barrier of entry. And so you, you know we're doing events with IWC and you know it's Formula One weekend coming 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, a Blancpain event, Like we've got so much shit. And then on the flip side, I'm like, okay, now we're going to go to like Citizen or like Boulevard or like Frederick Constant, like Alpina or like you know. I mean just the other side, Because it seems like we've been trending into those higher end brands and people.
Blake Rea:We were literally have such a crazy turnout for people that want to come and show their watches off, Like 30, 50, 60 people like, easily, right, We'll come show their collections off, but we do a branded event like 10 people. You know people like easily, right, We'll call them, show their collections off, but we do a 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 already answered this and maybe you just didn't vocalize it, but what would you feel is the most rewarding part of being in the watch community?
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, 100%. Again, it goes back to the people, right. It's like learning from collective experiences, learning from people's experiences, both on the watch side and on the personal side. Right, because through watch sales I get to actually develop friendships with people. I don't really treat this business as a transactional endeavor. For me, it's not about just selling a watch. That's very zero-sum you win or you lose. You either sell the watch or you don't. For me, I want to establish a real 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 the personal side and the business side, which, again, that I think is the most rewarding part of this industry. I've been able to meet people I never would have otherwise met and or never would have otherwise even thought of meeting, and now I have the opportunity not just of meeting them but speaking to them and learning from them. And, yeah, that's definitely the best part.
Blake Rea:Yeah, I couldn't agree more. Coming to the end of our time here, I have a couple more questions. Sounds like obviously you wear multiple hats. I mean, you are a dealer by day, content creator, influencer, whatever you want to call yourself by night. It makes me cringe so bad.
Marco Ferrante:I'm sorry content.
Blake Rea: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 look back at and kind of measure like where you're at in your, in your career yeah, man, that's such an interesting question.
Marco Ferrante: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 of thing, because you know the thing is ever since joining bernice it's such.
Marco Ferrante:I know this sounds like obviously very cliche, but it's an amazing organization, like I get so much freedom and flexibility to do essentially what I want right On a buy, sell, trade kind of scenario, but also in terms of just straight up like content side of things, right, I get the opportunity to speak about pretty much whatever I want whenever I want, you know, within reason.
Marco Ferrante:Obviously you know this is still a business and I have to represent it, you know, faithfully and to the best of my ability.
Marco Ferrante:So you know, but otherwise I kind of get, you know, freedom and liberty all over the place and that's it's almost like I'm running my own business within Burdine's right, and so my goal is really to just keep expanding that, reach new people, reach new collectors and, you know, hopefully continue to build my name and showcase why I feel I'm the guy in the industry that everybody should deal with and hopefully that passion and that experience will resonate with people and they'll choose to do business with me or not, or just consume my content, because I get so much validation and enjoyment from people saying to me people I've never sold a watch from like, oh hey, I do business with this person, but I love your content.
Marco Ferrante:I get, or I just love your content in general. You know, that kind of stuff. I eat it up because listen, at the end of the day, I put a lot of time and effort into it and you know I'm super passionate about this hobby. And it's not that easy to put yourself out there, right, because a lot of people online will flame you for, for things you say or do, and that's that's part of being, you know, an online personality content creator, if you will, and, uh, you know, but but it's.
Blake Rea:It's such a rewarding experience at the same time you realize, if you get married right, you're never buying another watch, right?
Marco Ferrante:that's why I'm waiting. That's why I said 30, 30, 30 I, I.
Blake Rea:I have tried to figure out the kind of like uh like happy ratio. And you know, when boxes show up at the door, I'm like, okay, well, when I see a few boxes that 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?
Marco Ferrante:wearing. Oh, I've had this. Yeah, I just changed the bezel on it.
Blake Rea:Yeah, I changed the strap. So, yeah, best of luck to you in that regard. And finally, and let's just speak subjectively, right, and obviously we live in a fairytale world which we call watches, but if you could collaborate with any brand, past, present or even, uh, like industry leader, yeah, who would it be? What would it be? That's an excellent question what would come from it?
Marco Ferrante:you know, if I had to like let's say like have dinner with anybody in the industry, right For me it would have to be Abraham Louis Breguet, the greatest watchmaker of all time. Hans Wilsdorf is definitely up on the list, you know, just from a business perspective. You know business side of things. But you know, if I could collaborate with anybody in the industry, it would be, you know, my personal favorite brand and that would be an MB&F, and I would love to collaborate with them on some kind of special legacy machine perpetual, which is my personal grail watch. You know, I I always said that that's my grail watch and I stand by it. I think it's one of the most amazing watches ever made and I think it's this ingenious contraption and, uh, it's just amazing. I'm a huge fan of max buster and his watches and the mbnf brand and, and you know what, if I could collaborate with them, that would be an insane dream of mine.
Blake Rea:I'm sure there's going to be people that are going to be echoing that that dream, for sure. Um, wow, I mean we're reaching the top of the hour. Uh, we have covered almost 20 questions, which I didn't expect to do. Like you know, sometimes, like we just kind of pace it a little differently, we went over a ton, but we've kind of been doing this like weird little thing. I feel like it's very appropriate where we essentially turn over our platform to you. You know, is there anything you feel like we didn't cover? Is there anything you want to address directly? Is there anything you want to say that we didn't talk about? If so, here's the opportunity.
Marco Ferrante:Yeah, no, I think we pretty much covered everything. You know. Obviously, if people are listening and they don't know about me, then I would urge them to check out my socials, be it on Instagram, watchmarco or, you know, check out my YouTube channel. I'm over on Verdine's jewelry on YouTube and, yeah, like I hope, I hope to hear from you guys and learn from your experiences and hopefully earn your business someday. And no, thank you so much, blake, for having me on. It's been an absolute pleasure. We covered so many topics and I always 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:Yeah, everybody, we will be sure to link Marco down and the description of this podcast or the YouTube wherever you're listening from, be sure to check out Marco. Watch Marco on Instagram. Again, he said a bunch of times he's at Bardeen's, which is in Chicago. Make sure you reach out to him if you're considering getting your next piece and we will definitely have you on again in the future. We're looking. We've only had our first guest come back once and it was Mike Pearson who went from Zodiac to Christopher Ward. But, but no, we're going to start planning to kind of to check back with people. So in the future we'll definitely check back with you. You see where you're at on your, your goal right? Maybe you'll be married, maybe you'll have new watches. Um, thank you again for coming on spending the time with us. It's been an absolute pleasure, humbled, to be here as your, as your host, and uh, and thank you, as always, for spending time with us absolutely.
Marco Ferrante:The pleasure is all mine, man. Thank you so much you got it bye.
