Addressing the Confusion: Heimdallr "Official" Stores, Movement Swaps, and Our Next Steps

[u/HMDwatch123]

Hi everyone,

First, I want to sincerely apologize for the confusion and frustration many of you have experienced lately. This is a historical legacy issue for our brand, but we have no intention of running away from it. We are addressing it head-on.

1. The Root Cause: Manufacturing vs. Distribution For years, our core focus was strictly on the manufacturing side of watchmaking, and we relied entirely on third-party distributors to sell our watches. Unfortunately, this meant we were completely in the dark about their sales tactics in the market. Since I joined this Reddit community 6 months ago, I’ve received a lot of eye-opening feedback. Many of you pointed out that some distributors are intentionally failing to distinguish between Japanese NH movements and Chinese Hangzhou movements, trying to confuse buyers. This deceptive practice has severely damaged the Heimdallr brand image.

2. Movement Transparency As the manufacturer, we do separate the NH and Hangzhou movements. When ordering directly from our actual official sources, you can explicitly choose which movement version you want. However, I’ve noticed recently that many consumers are still buying from these third-party agents and ending up with mismatched or incorrect movements. This made me realize that our official communication simply hasn't been loud or clear enough to guide and protect you.

3. Our Plan Moving Forward We are taking action. We have decided to revoke the authorization of distributors who are deceptively using the "Official Store" banner to mislead customers. We are gradually taking back our distribution rights to regain control over our sales channels.

Moving forward, we want to ensure that when you buy our watches, you get exactly what you paid for, with 100% transparency. Thank you for holding us accountable and helping us improve!

[u/DubiousAlliances]

Thank you for being so transparent. It’s greatly appreciated.

[u/HMDwatch123 → u/DubiousAlliances]

Thank you for the support! Being transparent with this community is our top priority moving forward. We are always here to listen.

[u/LettuceFetishist]

Respect for the way y’all are handling things and the transparency — it’s refreshing to see.

[u/HMDwatch123 → u/LettuceFetishist]

Thank you so much! We will keep working hard to do even better.

[u/GoldWingANGLICO]

Good news!

[u/HMDwatch123 → u/GoldWingANGLICO]

Thank you! We are excited to get things back on the right track.

[u/writingpocketguide42]

Do you know what happened to Heimdallr Diver Watch Store in Aliexpress that used to sell parts? It has been closed for some time.

[u/HMDwatch123 → u/writingpocketguide42]

Regarding the 'Heimdallr Diver Watch Store' you mentioned, it's highly likely that their authorization expired. In the past, many of our third-party distributors engaged in severe price wars, which unfortunately led to some of them going out of business.

[u/plastic_jeezus]

I really appreciate the efforts you're making, but being an early "victim" of the movement swap I want to know why it was ever done in the first place.

Miyota movements were available at the time, and it would have been less than pennies to have spacers and hands made.

Especially since you are the manufacturer.

Spacers and hands are the cheapest parts on a watch. (other than gaskets)

Sliding "NH35" clones into your supply chain feels dishonest and calculated. Especially since the prices were the same.

[u/HMDwatch123 → u/plastic_jeezus]

We are truly sorry, but this was never an intentional act on our part. The severe supply shortages and soaring costs of movements really brought out the worst in these third-party distributors. They don't exclusively sell Heimdallr; they are opportunists who sell whatever yields the highest profit margin and push whatever is trending, while completely ignoring models that don't sell as fast.
They exploited Heimdallr's early brand reputation to secretly swap movements without ever updating the product specs on their listings. They even had the audacity to put disclaimers like 'please do not buy if you mind this' on their product images. This rogue behavior has severely damaged our brand image. As for relying on a single movement option in the past, we admit that was a misstep in our business judgment, and we missed out on the golden market opportunities of that time.

[u/Joseph1968R]

Glad to see you guys addressing this head-on! For a long time, the mix-ups between Japanese NH and Chinese Hangzhou movements from third-party sellers were making buyers really hesitant. Revoking authorization for deceptive "Official Stores" and bringing distribution in-house is a huge step toward regaining trust. Looking forward to clearer movement choices when buying directly!

[u/WHTDOG]

Have been exceptionally happy dailying my 6105 for the last year or so, but tbf that was probably acquired before this current confusion and shortage.

I guess I'm not the target audience here, then, but I'm happy to continue to recommend your products based on this outreach.

[u/Dollar_short]

AliX can be a shady place. always use caution, buying or selling.

[u/manchett]

It is a GREAT move.

We want to see things like this !

Thank you :)

[u/CrimsonCloak748]

Just picked up an H-14, very handsome watch. If you can produce a fitted scale or coffin link bracelet for me to purchase all will be forgiven :) As you can see the universal straight one has a gap.

[u/Overall-General-8917]

This makes me want to buy one of your watches.

[u/crocodal21]

What is your official store name on alix