But you never actually received the strap, so you have no actual first-hand experience with it.
Interesting….

 

But you never actually received the strap, so you have no actual first-hand experience with it.
Interesting….

I acknowledge that. However, based on the research I did--several reviews with pictures of low quality product and the shipping initiation location and ownership by Alibaba-- and the initial response from customer service team turned on my spidey sense that all is not as implied.

Everyone can make their own assessment. I just recommend looking into them more deeply prior to making a purchase.

 

Gotta ask though, is drop shipping considered fraud? Unethical, sure, fraud is a bit far, no? Case being, plenty of watch companies have their watches basically manufactured in a different country, and then claim them to be Swiss, German, etc. e.g. Hitori Watches

 

Do they say their straps are made in Switzerland though? They are a Swiss company. This is your first time hearing that some European companies manufacture parts in Asia?
I have no idea if their straps are good quality or not, but it seems you're overreacting a bit.

 

Good for you following the trail to where they originated from.
I think if they were more transparent and honest in their description, they could probably avoid misleading potential customers, making them think they are an EU made product.

 

Thank you for the reply. To me, this is crux of it. Not only does Helvetus make every effort to present themselves as Swiss and imply Swiss made, when you look at reviews they consistently complain about the quality of the product. I have no issue with drop shipping if that is made known and the quality is high. There is very high end manufactuing out of China. But when the preponderance of evidence points to obscuring a product's origins, poor quality product via reviews, and obstinate customer service, then I think that unethical (maybe not meeting the legal definition of fraud) business behavior it is important to call up.

Because I ended up following the trail, I just wanted to share my findings with this community so they can make a more informed assessment.

 

Hope OP can apply his/her sleuthing skills to suss out the origins and truth of watch companies claiming to be Swiss or having Swiss-made watches. (There have been some threads floating around about such questionable origins of some watch brands.)

 

Certainly, calling you and all Americans arrogant would be unacceptable in any reputable service organization. That alone would keep me away. One wonders as to the percentage of their business derived from the U.S. Bet it's a fair sized chunk. Sorry, there's that arrogance, I guess.

 

Lesson learned for OP, do the research before hitting the payment button.

Curious, I looked at their site and no where did they claim to have only Swiss made products. However, I can see how 1 might believe that given what they do claim.

It seems OP canceled the order after they shipped or in the shipping stage of the fulfillment process? I'm not sure of any company that honors cancellations after entering the shipment phase. Returns, yes.

 

Agreed, lesson learned on my end.

 

Welcome to the world of watch collecting.

Not everything goes perfectly each time, but you always gain better experience for the next go around.....

 

I purchased one of their Omega AT straps and I’m happy with it. They told me it’s FKM and, while I’m not sure how I would be able to prove it, I can tell you it’s definitely not silicone. It’s really comfortable and the clasp is actually really good quality. I did my research before I purchased and knew I’d be taking a chance that it could be a turd. I also knew that returning it and paying their “restocking” fee would be a major bummer. With all that risk in mind, I bit the bullet and I’m glad I did. Even with my satisfaction this time around, I’m not sure I’d buy another strap from them. I feel like I got lucky with this one and wouldn’t want to push my luck.

 

Again, while unethical and misleading, I don't think it's considered fraud per se.

I mean, just look at all the luxury bags scandals, plenty of them are made or sourced from China, and have terrible working conditions for its employees.

Doesn't excuse a company from doing this, but more of informing people that this is a widespread issue.

 

Was just browsing for a strap for my Conquest and this company came up. It sure looked like they were selling for $70 the same knockoff Longines rubber strap you can get on AliX or Etsy for $20. At least to my eye the stock photos didn’t look any different.

I went elsewhere.

 

Since this feedback thread was posted we've been inundated with Mod Reports from no less than two dozen new accounts claiming harassment, spam, and fraud. The odd part is all these accounts have originated from Pakistan. I'm not sure if this is Helvetus themselves or an SEO optimization company paid to do their bidding. Hopefully someone at Helvetus sees this post and realizes their ongoing campaign of harassment will not work here.

As always buyer beware!

 

unbelievable !.
i was about to order my first strap from them, but though to do a bit of research.. so i came across this post:


if you scroll down to the 1st reply. there's a guy who bought the same strap from AliExpress for a fraction of Helvetus strap !.
i also watched a video on youtube. saying the same thing.
they ain't taking my money. that's for sure.. and thank you for the awakening.