Steal(ish) Alert: Hamilton Khaki King Automatic Watch at Nordstrom for $380

Hamilton Khaki King Automatic 40mm Watch – $380.99 ($545)

Dear peanut gallery ready to poop all over this on social media. Hold off for a sec. Allow me to make the case.

Shopping for watches on the internet can be difficult. You’re sorta buying something sight-unseen-in-person. And if it shows up and you don’t like the way it looks laying (gently) on your wrist, or it seems bigger or smaller, or it doesn’t feel as good in your hands as you thought it would, well, depending on where you bought it, sending it back could be potentially difficult.

A lot of us (myself included) will often try to save money by buying from “gray market” watch dealers. These are retailers who are not “authorized” brand reps, and thus, don’t have the relationship with the brand, often have tighter return policies, and don’t offer a manufacturer’s warranty. Sometimes a gray market purchase works out great. Sometimes it doesn’t. It’s a risk.

What we’re looking at, here, is a 40mm diameter (should work for most), Swiss made watch with rugged good looks and from a heritage brand that’s impressive without being snooty. It’s also weirdly on sale at a big name, trustworthy retailer like Nordstrom, who’s gotta be an authorized dealer, and thus, you get all the bells, whistles, papers, warranty cards, etc. PLUS. Since it’s Nordstrom, it ships and returns for free. Is it on sale at gray-market Jomashop for less? Yes. $32 less. But let’s be honest. Jomashop is NOT Nordstrom. Not close. Sorry. Also, it feels like Hamilton prices on the gray market have been increasing. The non-day-brother of this watch has been over $400 at Amazon for a while now. I think.

If you have a Mr. Rugged Guy in your life who has cemented himself on the very, very nice list this year? Then perhaps this is the gift. I’d just make sure Nordy customer service knows it’s a gift for the holidays, and thus, you make sure they’re cool with an extended return window.

That’s it. Maybe it’s worthy of a steal alert to you. Maybe it’s not. If it’s not? That’s okay! Nothing matters anyway.

Carry on.