The how's and when's to contact Omega Vintage Information
Written by Chuck Maddox on 13 December 2000.
Last Revised: 8 June 2002, 15:29 GMT
Recently, a fellow TZer inadvertently posted in the Omega Forum the direct email address of John Diethelm of Omega Vintage Information. This isn't the first time this has happened, and there seems to be some confusion on how and when to contact Omega Vintage Information for the answers to questions. This document is an attempt to describe some of the considerations one should take when deciding where to ask questions or for assistance.

First off a little bit about John Diethelm...

I haven't had the honor to meet Mr. Diethelm personally or even talk to him on the phone... Bill Sohne has. From what Bill tells me John has been with Omega for at the very least 30 years which would likely put his age in the 60-70 range and for the most part he is a single person department. Thus we in the greater Omega community need to be an advocate/champion for him, whenever we have the opportunity, as he probably does as much or more for the greater community of Omega owners as anyone. He is, simply put, irreplacable. And we are especially fortunate to have John. I have yet to find John's counterpart at most other watch firms. Thus, I and many others are hence a very protective of Mr. Diethelm...

By following the steps on Omega's site and filling out the proper form we support the Vintage Information Department and John Diethelm to get the resources necessary to continue to provide such a stellar resource to the Omega community and continue to improve it. Omega, like most firms run statistics on their web-site. These statistics are a method for departements to request and justify funding. Thus short-curcuiting this proceedure is a very shortsighted and should be avoided whenever possible. For point of reference, I always use the form on any new topic of discussion. Once a topic has been open I will respond to e-mails, but if I have a new question or topic, I start at the beginning. This is common courtesy...

So basically, here is how we can help...

If you:
  • Want to see the official Omega FAQ
  • Want to find your local distributor of Omega Watches
  • Wish to send an inquiry about the following topics go to this page, fill out the form and:
    • A current Catalog select "Customer Service" from the department field.
    • Current products: select "Products" from the department field.
    • OMEGA USA: select "OMEGA USA" from the department field.
    • Public Relations issues: select "Public Relations" from the department field.
    • Sales and/or Distributors: select "Sales and distribution" from the department field.
    • If you are having issues with the Website "select "Webmaster" from the department field.

If what you are seeking isn't satisfied by those actions above:

  • Only use John/Omega Vintage Information via the form if you can't get an answer otherwise. Prior to contacting OVI try:
    • The TimeZone Omega Forum, TimeZone FAQ and articles in the TimeZone Omega Forum Links Page first, we may be unofficial but often someone in the forum will have a satisfactory answer to most questions at hand.
    • try the "Omega.usa" option on the page if you are in the US, they may have the answer,
    • use "Customer Service" option on the page if the watch is of recent (5-15 years) vintage
    • use "Products" option on the page if the item in question is in the current product line.
     
If none of the options above are satisfactory, or to determine the information Omega retains on specific Omega watches based on movement serial numbers:
  • Fill out the form on this page with all the pertenent information and select "Vintage Information" in the Department field...
    • Even though I know John's email address I use the form unless it is on a topic that he and I have discussed in the past. (Like Speedmaster 125's)
      • If I have a follow-up question, repling to an email from John is certainly proper... (don't get carried away about using the form, it would be silly to use the form to reply to email)
    • On new questions or questions on a different watch I use the form .
      • It's not a great inconvenience and it does give structure to your thoughts.
  • Be clear, concise and pleasant in your request. Try to prune any unnecessary detail or non-essential information.
    • In other words, be polite and don't waste people's time needlessly.
  • Don't expect an immediate response on requests that require human interaction as people do have to eat, sleep, etc. and people may not be on-duty when you send your request. Sometimes people at Omega are pulled to attend Basel and other watch fairs, people do take weekends off, and vacations too... Also for folks outside Europe, consider the time difference between your location and Bienne when making inquiries...

Ordinarily, I wouldn't go into such detail, but I thought this might be useful information to have available to point people to, so I went ahead and did this with that goal in mind.

Cheers!

-- Chuck

NOTE: As the URL's of these locations on Omega's site may change in the future, I will keep an updated version of this document at this location... This steps detailed on this page have been extensively re-written as of June 2002 to keep up with Omega's latest website remodel...