I purchased 2 Movado watches in September 2005. One of the watches has always had a problem with a haze forming on the crystal. It is a $1, 500 watch, but the haze makes it look cheap. I have to wipe the haze off of the crystal frequently so that I can see the face of the watch. During the first week of ownership, I brought the watch back to the retailer to inquire about the problem. The retailer acted confused and shrugged off my problem. Since I liked the watch so much, I kept wearing it. Before the 2 year warranty expired, I sent the watch back to Movado to request that they fix the problem. At that point, I was sure that the haze was a defect since my other Movado watch did not have the same problem. Movado performed some routine maintenance to my watch, and then sent it back to me without addressing my question about the haze. Again, I continued to wear the watch since I liked it so much. Recently, I brought the watch to a Movado store for a battery replacement. To my surprise, there was dust inside my watch underneath the crystal after they replaced my battery. I went back and forth with the Movado store employees before they finally agreed to fix the damage that they had caused to my watch while replacing the battery. At that point, I was angry and disappointed with Movado. I contacted Movado to make them aware of my experience in their store, and I mentioned my longstanding concern with the haze on my watch. Please see some of their responses to my e-mails:

"In checking the history of this model since the introduction in 2004, our technician has not shown an inordinate amount of repairs and or 'hazing' on this model and therefore this is not a manufacturer's defect. We believe it is due to wear and tear and also lack of maintenance." Here, Movado is asserting that there is no defect with my crystal because they have received few complaints about that particular model. They cite wear and tear, and a lack of maintenance, but my watch has had the problem from the first week that I owned it. I also had it maintained by them within the first 2 years of ownership, so there was no lack of maintenance on my part.

"Firstly, if your watch was purchased in 2005 it would no longer be covered under warranty. Also, by constantly wiping your watch with your shirt sleeves, this certainly would cause some type of abrasion. In cleaning a watch, it is recommended that a soft jewelers cloth should be used, not shirt sleeves. In terms of hazing, if your watch continue to show hazing initially, it could be a function of perspiration or perhaps humidity due to the weather pattern in Florida." Here, Movado tells me that they are not going to help me because my watch is out of warranty. I requested help twice when the watch was under warranty, and Movado didn't help me then either. Movado also tells me that I shouldn't have wiped the watch with my shirt sleeves. However, their store employee wiped my watch crystal several times with her rough coat sleeve during the battery replacement incident.

Finally, after several e-mails to Movado, they say this: "We are not sure of your dissatisfaction since our Movado Boutique and Movado Group, Inc. is covering the cost of your watch repair." I was very clear and articulate in describing the haze problem to them, and after trying to fend me off with several different defense tactics, they finally ended everything by acting like they didn't understand what I was saying to them.

I am very disappointed with my Movado purchase. When I pay for a luxury item, I expect to receive something of quality. I also expect to be treated well. Receiving such a poor quality item and poor customer service after spending $2, 500 with Movado has been very disappointing. I'm not sure what it would have cost Movado to replace my watch crystal, but I'm surprised that they would rather fight me than to help me receive the quality item that I paid them for.